| Peer-Reviewed

Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia

Received: 13 September 2021     Accepted: 8 October 2021     Published: 5 November 2021
Views:       Downloads:
Abstract

In all possible rational thinking, project success is every company’s aspiration. Yet projects are hardly trouble-free, no matter how feasible their plans are. Since projects are planned in a forecasted future working environment, unforeseen circumstances are sure to materialize. These unforeseen, but happening, circumstances cause variations between the planned and actual performances of projects, which eventually lead to distressed project conditions. Nevertheless, all projects do not get distressed for the same cause. Causes of project distress are enormous. They may be internal or external, within the reach of the project team or beyond, controllable or uncontrollable. But discovering causes of project distress is one thing; and preventing the distress is another. Project outcomes are consequences of decisions, not coincidences of circumstances. However, despite all efforts, if a project is judged to be distressed, a project intervention attempt that aimed to find out the very causes for the distressed condition should immediately be initiated. Subsequently, the prevailing state of the project has to be carefully investigated to enable the project team to plan efficient and effective way out strategies. In brief, no matter whatsoever the cause is, the project team should always do everything possible to reinstate the project with the minimum possible cost and effort. Yet the cheapest of all is prevention. Intervention, which occurs once the project has been deemed to be in distress, is very expensive. In general, there are two types of strategies for dealing with distressed projects. Every project that becomes distressed was once not in distress. Hence, there are possibilities of minimizing the likelihood of projects becoming distressed if the appropriate prevention strategies are put in place. On the other hand, in the face of best efforts, prevention strategies might not work due to prevailing conditions that are beyond control, and projects may still become distressed. If this happens, intervention strategies can be applied to reinstate the project. Yet intervention strategies should be carefully planned as all distressed projects do not necessarily call for the same intervention strategy. Intervention strategies need to be designed based on critical analysis of the project’s current state of affairs. The right remedy for the right problem!!

Published in American Journal of Management Science and Engineering (Volume 6, Issue 6)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11
Page(s) 173-181
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Distressed Projects, Intervention Strategies, Prevention Strategies, Project Management Office, Reinstating

References
[1] Berkun, Scott. 2005. The Art of Project Management. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media.
[2] Dye, Lowell D., and James S. Pennypacker, editors. 1999. Project Portfolio Management: Selecting and Prioritizing Projects for Competitive Advantage. West Chester, PA: Center for Business Practices.
[3] El Hadji Meïssa Pouye, 2020. Agile Lean Six Sigma Management Approach for Resiliency and Efficiency.
[4] Eric Lean, 2020. Agile Project Management, The Complete Beginner’s Guide to Learn Project Management Step by Step.
[5] Goldratt, Eliyahu M. 1997. Critical Chain. Great Barrington, MA: North River Press.
[6] Jack Duggal, 2018. The DNA of Strategy Execusion, Next Generation Project Management and PMO.
[7] Konnor Cluster, 2019. Agile Project Management: Learn How To Manage a Project With Agile Methods, Scrum, Kanban and Extreme Programming.
[8] Matthew Skelton, Manuel Pais, Ruth Malan. 2019. Team Topologies, Organizing Business and Technology Teams for Fast Flow.
[9] Michael Bible, Susan Bivins, 2018. Project Interface Management: Reducing Risk on Major Projects.
[10] PMI. A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide) - Fifth Edition: Project Management Institute (PMI). 2013.
[11] Ricky Toyoda, 2020. SCRUM: A Complete Beginner’s Guide for Professional Agile Process. How to Manage Projects with Your Team, Save Time and Achieve Your Goals.
[12] Robert K. Wysocki, 2014, Effective project management: Traditional, Agile, Extreme.
[13] Ruth Pearce PMP JD, Tim Jaques, 2018. Be a Project Motivator.
[14] Stanley E. Portny, 2020, Project Management All-in-One for Dummies.
[15] Te Wu, 2020. Optimizing Project Management.
[16] Turner JR. 1999. The handbook of project-based management: McGraw-Hill London.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Yehualashet Getahun Ayele. (2021). Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia. American Journal of Management Science and Engineering, 6(6), 173-181. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11

    Copy | Download

    ACS Style

    Yehualashet Getahun Ayele. Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia. Am. J. Manag. Sci. Eng. 2021, 6(6), 173-181. doi: 10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11

    Copy | Download

    AMA Style

    Yehualashet Getahun Ayele. Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia. Am J Manag Sci Eng. 2021;6(6):173-181. doi: 10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11

    Copy | Download

  • @article{10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11,
      author = {Yehualashet Getahun Ayele},
      title = {Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia},
      journal = {American Journal of Management Science and Engineering},
      volume = {6},
      number = {6},
      pages = {173-181},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajmse.20210606.11},
      abstract = {In all possible rational thinking, project success is every company’s aspiration. Yet projects are hardly trouble-free, no matter how feasible their plans are. Since projects are planned in a forecasted future working environment, unforeseen circumstances are sure to materialize. These unforeseen, but happening, circumstances cause variations between the planned and actual performances of projects, which eventually lead to distressed project conditions. Nevertheless, all projects do not get distressed for the same cause. Causes of project distress are enormous. They may be internal or external, within the reach of the project team or beyond, controllable or uncontrollable. But discovering causes of project distress is one thing; and preventing the distress is another. Project outcomes are consequences of decisions, not coincidences of circumstances. However, despite all efforts, if a project is judged to be distressed, a project intervention attempt that aimed to find out the very causes for the distressed condition should immediately be initiated. Subsequently, the prevailing state of the project has to be carefully investigated to enable the project team to plan efficient and effective way out strategies. In brief, no matter whatsoever the cause is, the project team should always do everything possible to reinstate the project with the minimum possible cost and effort. Yet the cheapest of all is prevention. Intervention, which occurs once the project has been deemed to be in distress, is very expensive. In general, there are two types of strategies for dealing with distressed projects. Every project that becomes distressed was once not in distress. Hence, there are possibilities of minimizing the likelihood of projects becoming distressed if the appropriate prevention strategies are put in place. On the other hand, in the face of best efforts, prevention strategies might not work due to prevailing conditions that are beyond control, and projects may still become distressed. If this happens, intervention strategies can be applied to reinstate the project. Yet intervention strategies should be carefully planned as all distressed projects do not necessarily call for the same intervention strategy. Intervention strategies need to be designed based on critical analysis of the project’s current state of affairs. The right remedy for the right problem!!},
     year = {2021}
    }
    

    Copy | Download

  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - Prevention and Intervention Strategies for Distressed Projects: The Case of Designated Projects in Ethiopia
    AU  - Yehualashet Getahun Ayele
    Y1  - 2021/11/05
    PY  - 2021
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11
    T2  - American Journal of Management Science and Engineering
    JF  - American Journal of Management Science and Engineering
    JO  - American Journal of Management Science and Engineering
    SP  - 173
    EP  - 181
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2575-1379
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajmse.20210606.11
    AB  - In all possible rational thinking, project success is every company’s aspiration. Yet projects are hardly trouble-free, no matter how feasible their plans are. Since projects are planned in a forecasted future working environment, unforeseen circumstances are sure to materialize. These unforeseen, but happening, circumstances cause variations between the planned and actual performances of projects, which eventually lead to distressed project conditions. Nevertheless, all projects do not get distressed for the same cause. Causes of project distress are enormous. They may be internal or external, within the reach of the project team or beyond, controllable or uncontrollable. But discovering causes of project distress is one thing; and preventing the distress is another. Project outcomes are consequences of decisions, not coincidences of circumstances. However, despite all efforts, if a project is judged to be distressed, a project intervention attempt that aimed to find out the very causes for the distressed condition should immediately be initiated. Subsequently, the prevailing state of the project has to be carefully investigated to enable the project team to plan efficient and effective way out strategies. In brief, no matter whatsoever the cause is, the project team should always do everything possible to reinstate the project with the minimum possible cost and effort. Yet the cheapest of all is prevention. Intervention, which occurs once the project has been deemed to be in distress, is very expensive. In general, there are two types of strategies for dealing with distressed projects. Every project that becomes distressed was once not in distress. Hence, there are possibilities of minimizing the likelihood of projects becoming distressed if the appropriate prevention strategies are put in place. On the other hand, in the face of best efforts, prevention strategies might not work due to prevailing conditions that are beyond control, and projects may still become distressed. If this happens, intervention strategies can be applied to reinstate the project. Yet intervention strategies should be carefully planned as all distressed projects do not necessarily call for the same intervention strategy. Intervention strategies need to be designed based on critical analysis of the project’s current state of affairs. The right remedy for the right problem!!
    VL  - 6
    IS  - 6
    ER  - 

    Copy | Download

Author Information
  • School of Commerce, Addis Ababa University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

  • Sections