The advisory giant has issued a stark warning after one new study found that two thirds of Kiwi projects fail.
Kiwi companies must embrace change or face failure – that’s the warning from one of the world’s largest advisory firms after a study found two thirds of the nation’s projects fail.
KMPG’s Project Management Survey showed that only 29 per cent of projects are delivered on budget, 21 per cent deliver on benefits and 33 per cent meet original goals or business objectives.
Gina Barlow, director in the KPMG’s New Zealand advisory team, says the survey results should motivated Kiwi organisations to embrace new ways of working.
“The survey shows that current project management methods are struggling to provide efficient project delivery, so there is a need for project management to take a big step closer to business strategy and agile project management this year,” she says.
The research also revealed that the number and complexity of projects organisations are completing has risen, with 40 per cent of firms completing more than 30 projects a year.
“We see that organisations have more projects, less time, and change is constant, so ensuring that change management activities are integrated with project management activities is important to achieve desired results and planned business outcomes,” said Barlow.
“Interestingly, despite project failure rates 61 per cent of organisations feel project success rates have improved over the last two years, showing a disconnect between how well organisations think they are managing their projects, and reality,” she added.
The survey also found the skills project managers are most lacking with the ability to lead change within the organisation taking the top spot, followed by the ability to manage conflict, political smarts, resolving grey issues and communications skills.
A lack of skilled project managers was also touted as a problem as was the aging workforce, rapidly developing technology, and not enough training for new talent.
“There is a need for organisations to take a strategic approach to talent management, providing for the future by creating suitable career paths and investing in developing talent to ensure project delivery capabilities do not impact the outcomes from strategic initiatives,” said Barlow.
“It is no longer enough to focus on talent hiring and development for those who only have technical project management skills,” she added.
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