Failing Tech Initiatives

It’s still a widespread misconception that digitalization initiatives primarily require technical expertise or fail due to choosing the wrong technology or lack of technical expertise.

In reality, most initiatives fail either (at a very early stage) at the strategic level or shortly after due to poor operational collaboration within the team, inadequate organizational support, or insufficient communication throughout the initiative.

If goals, framework conditions, and guidelines are insufficiently defined or aligned, if the assumptions used are barely reliable, even selecting advanced technology won’t work miracles. Without a solid foundation, most project teams quickly get lost in time and resource conflicts, contradicting priorities, and nerve-wracking side issues. In many cases, it’s not even clear what should be achieved with all the effort in the first place.

Even thorough strategic preparation and support doesn’t guarantee project success. Often, the biggest challenges lie in operational implementation, collaboration within the project team, or interaction with key stakeholders. Unclear responsibilities, lack of communication, personal conflicts, different expectations, or lack of trust between participants are not only exhausting but cost the organization a lot of time and money.

Last but not least, many supposed technology initiatives are still viewed in far too much isolation, especially those that intervene deeply in existing structures, address and (should) change organizational structures, processes or working methods (in the specialist areas). The importance of accompanying change management - if it exists at all - is often underestimated. The affected employees are hardly involved or involved far too late, and fears and reservations are not adequately addressed. As a result, acceptance of the new solutions remains below expectations and the changeover costs significantly more time and energy than planned.