● User/customer rejection/alienation.
● Initial goals and objectives are not being met.
● The business case is not understood or non-existent.
● Poor documentation.
● Large cost overruns/ delays possibly without explanation.
● Infrequent meetings or too many meetings (e.g., for morale building, trivial rewards).
● Key stakeholders are left in the dark about project issues or not identified.
● The “blame game” is being played.
● Delivery of components/deadlines are being missed.
● Difficult to coordinate initially and get started.
● Unclear direction.
● Constantly changing goals/designs. No change control procedures.
● Conflicting priorities.
● Key items not planned for.
● Crashing is only way to complete project on time.
● Interfaces don’t work.
● Estimates of costs and time to complete the project are unreliable and seem to be unreasonable.
● The people doing the work do not believe in the estimates.
● The intended users of the project’s output are uncertain that the project team understands their needs or, worse yet, feel their needs are understood but ignored.
● Everything seems to take too long, and every new need is met by defensive, rather than supportive behavior.
● The project team feels unenthusiastic, very overworked and under appreciated. They have a generally low opinion of the intended users to assist them in specifying and testing the project.
● The plans to correct the problem involve additional planned overtime, or rely on the new technology.
● Management associated with the project seems unresponsive and not committed to the problem experienced.
● Project’s parameters cannot deal with constructive criticism, or “negative thinking,” creating a culture of fear or silence in subordinates, to avoid dealing with the project’s real problems.
● The project has no competent technical leader, deferring important decisions to committees rather than to subject matter experts.
● No plan/no alternate plan.
● Talk of project manager being replaced/project manager replaced. No back up PM.
● No one knows “who” the PM is.
● Groups working in a vacuum.
● No quality assurance/ control procedures or the specification is not up-to-date.
● Unexplained scope changes.
● No reporting process/metrics.
● Responsible managers have no knowledge of the project’s details, dealing more with “political sensitivities” and “concerns”