The Project That Would Not Die...

I am currently assigned to assist a project that has been active for 9 years. Yep! NINE YEARS! The sad but true part of this project is...it will most likely fail!

Why has this happened? Poor project management and politics!

This is not the first time this has happened to me. Years ago I worked for a State Agency, in the Department of Too Many Meetings.

The agency dealt with records and I was given an assignment to design a database system that would allow anyone to search for articles.

This was simple enough and I knocked the job out in a week.

Then I was asked to writeup the user manual. I knocked this out pretty quickly and designed a front cover for the manual.

That's when the fun began! I was asked to put a graphic on the front cover so I took a picture of our department head working at a computer.

Big mistake!

A meeting was called TO DISCUSS THE FRONT COVER and I was asked to 'photoshop' the photo and make his office look nicer.

I did that.

Another meeting was called the next week, could I move the keyboard?

I did that.

I kid you not folks, we had meetings every single week for two months over that STUPID cover with the most innane questions asked!

I thought I would lose my mind! So, I began adding details to the picture that could only be seen if you got in REAL close the picture.

I added an earring to the department heads right ear.

I put tatoos on his hands, the right hand said LOVE, the left one said PAIN.

I added 'something' to hang out of his nose.

After three months of nothing to do but work on this crazed picture I found another job.

To the best of my knowledge, these people are still meeting....

Have you ever been assigned to "the project from hades?"

POST A COMMENTCookieHooker(09/27/2007)
Yes. My project from Hades involved permitting a motor vehicle racetrack. I have been working on this project for almost 2 years.

Every time we had a meeting with the Planning and Zoning Commission, it was we need this or we need that, which would delay the project months. Of course my bully boss would blame me that I didn't "foresee" that the Commission would need all this extra information.

But, alas, after 2 years hard work, the Pacific Northwest has an approved (but not built) racetrack that will be larger than Las Vegas, and rival the racetrack in Kansas City.

If only Nascar will come it would but my town on the map.

CK(09/27/2007)
It sounds like 1) Management has too much emotional attachment to the project and will drive the project into the ground. 2) As per the other project (photoshop) it sounds like "project scope creep" - that there is going out of bounds of the main onjective(s).

Squee(01/02/2008)
I'm sure the person who had to work on the cover after you left had a kick out of your additions.

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