Most Common Project Management Challenges and How to Overcome Them

It doesn’t matter if you are just starting a career in the project management industry or if you have years of experience; taking on this role– and succeeding–is no easy task.

You must constantly remain on your feet and learn the basics of project management to help ensure the project stays on track and within the set constraints, such as time, scope, and budget.

Investing in additional training, such as Lean Six Sigma Certification, is a step in the right direction when it comes to being a better project manager. But, there are other steps you should take, as well.

One of these is to learn the most common mistakes that can occur and how to fix or avoid them. Keep reading to learn what these common project management challenges are and how to overcome them.

1. Scope Creep

This is a natural and fully expected phenomenon for all projects. While there are situations when it is beneficial, the cons usually outweigh the pros. Up to 52 percent of project teams have experienced scope creep, and the trend is steadily growing.

If a client doesn’t know exactly what they want or if they have established vague requirements, you will face significant challenges for the project team and managers.

How to deal with it

Engaging proactively with clients in the planning phase will help you get their specific requirements and better understand the expectations they have set. Also, when you plant the use of your talent and resources accurately, you can achieve success.

You should also avoid accepting ad-hoc change requests during the execution of the project because this can cause additional costs and unexpected delays. Instead, just stick to the initial plan.

2. Minimal or Lack of Communication

Effective communication within project management is essential for a project to be successful. You must establish transparent and timely communication methods to ensure that every stakeholder is fully involved in the process. Up to 32 percent of professionals believe that communication is the top issue related to project management.

Issues related to miscommunication are dangerous for most project teams since it impacts teamwork. It may also result in conflicts among the team members and could result in costly delays in the project.

How to deal with it

Most project managers rely on various types of project management and collaborative software to ensure that everyone involved remains updated about what is going on.

The collaborative tools make it much easier for managers to handle their given duties and ensure a higher level of transparency in their given projects. This is easily achieved through features such as priority assignment capabilities, @mentions, and contextual comments.

Also, scheduling short, stand-up meetings a few times a week will go a long way in helping to prevent cases of miscommunication.

3. Lack of Goals or Success Criteria

Clarity is an essential requirement for the successful completion of any project, and if it is not present, it can cause several issues for project management.

According to one study, it has been found that around 39 percent of all projects will fail due to a lack of proper project planning and not having a clear and defined goal.

It is also crucial that project managers develop different ways to quantify project progress and set up different quality tests and milestones.

Along with helping your team progress, developing clear objectives will also assist project managers as they defend your vision in front of customers and upper management.

How to deal with it

Some more popular approaches to setting goals, such as CLEAR and SMART, will help project managers establish effective goals from the beginning of the project. This helps overcome many project management barriers.

Also, remember that not having clearly defined goals is a huge mistake. Once you create goals for a project team, they should be obvious to every teammate. Be sure to document them, too.

4. Budgeting Issues

Most project managers think of financial issues as the main hurdle when it comes to project management. In fact, it has been revealed that up to 49.5 percent of all manufacturing managers report that costs are the main project management challenge they face.

With efficient cost management, managers can avoid some of the most common complications that projects face and work to achieve faster and better results.

How to deal with it

You must utilize the right budgeting procedure and make accurate and realistic assumptions to help avoid budgeting overruns.

Carefully planning the scope of your project has to be done while keeping the budget in mind. If you don’t do this, then budget limitations may threaten the success of a project that is not properly budgeted. Similar to any other aspect of project management, documentation is key.

5. Team Members with Inadequate Skills

Any chain is only as strong as the weakest link. When it comes to project teams, overall performance is dependent on each person’s individual skill levels.

As the project manager, you can create the perfect environment; however, if your team doesn’t possess the skills needed to handle the issue at hand, the project is destined to fail.

This is a significant issue with project management and can only be rectified with proper foresight and experience.

Dealing with It

An effective project manager will pre-determine the needed project management skills and assess the workforce to figure out if additional skill sets and staff are needed or not.

Improving Your Project Management Capabilities

When it comes to project management, there are more than a few factors that must be considered. Take some time to keep the information above in mind, which will help you improve your project management skills and the overall successes you achieve.

Remember, project management is always evolving, and it is up to you to help your team find new ways to succeed. Be sure to keep this in mind, which will help you overcome potential issues and enjoy the benefits offered by successful project management.

Being informed is the best way to ensure the success of any project. By implementing the tips in this article, you can keep your projects on track.