SE-Radio Epislode 250: Jürgen Laartz and Alexander Budzier on Why Large IT Projects Fail

Performance

Agile projects present unique challenges in performance measurement and budgeting compared to traditional methods like waterfall. Alexander Budzier notes that while agile projects often have better schedule performance, cost overruns remain similar to those in waterfall projects 1. Jürgen Laartz highlights the difficulty in measuring overruns in agile settings due to their fluid nature, especially when scaled 2.

Agile in itself is something that is floating somehow. The budgeting processes in organizations that are really agile is different.

--- Jürgen Laartz

This complexity requires a different approach to budgeting and performance evaluation, especially in large-scale agile projects.

   

Success Metrics

Defining success in agile projects shifts the focus from traditional metrics like cost and time to outcomes. Alexander Budzier emphasizes the importance of determining the minimum viable product and managing interdependencies effectively 3. He suggests that while agile offers promising strategies, it doesn't solve all project challenges 4.

We need to focus much more on the outcome and not on the administrative side of projects with judging whether an agile project is successful or not.

--- Jürgen Laartz

This outcome-oriented approach requires precise requirement definitions, even within the agile framework.