Good project / bad project

Good projects have deadlines.

Bad projects don’t.

Good projects have dedicated resources.

Bad projects don’t.

Good projects have alignment. Everyone knows what success is, and why it matters.

Bad projects have vague, misunderstood, or forgotten goals. Bad projects don’t contribute to a wider strategy.

Good projects have accountability. Goals are within the team’s control, and it’s clear whether they’ve been achieved or not. Good projects have a Directly Responsible Individual to lead and accept personal responsibility for success/failure.

Bad projects have shared responsibility. Everyone is responsible and no one is. Success is driven by external factors, and resources are spread across multiple projects.

Good projects are transparent. Everyone can see what’s going on, whether things are on track, and why key decisions have been made. Good projects have durable, discoverable artefacts.

Bad projects are ephemeral and hard to find. Bad projects exist in ad-hoc meetings, private DMs, and old email threads.

Good projects are rare.

Bad projects are not.