Chapter News

Not every plan survives contact with reality, and that is a gift. I once led a product launch where everything looked solid on paper: timelines, budgets, stakeholder buy-in, even the user stories. But reality hit hard. We missed every milestone we had so carefully laid out, dependencies shifted overnight, and team morale started to crack. It felt like failure, and frankly, it was. I remember sitting in yet another status meeting, trying to sound in control, while knowing deep down that things were spiraling.

But in that chaos, something important happened. We stopped pretending. Honest conversations surfaced, the kind you do not get when everything is “green” on the dashboard. We realised the client’s actual needs had evolved, but our scope had not. So we tore it down. Roles shifted, people stepped up, and the pressure cooker turned out to be a forge. What came out was not what we planned, it was better.

In hindsight, failure was the best thing that happened to that project. It stripped away illusion and made space for truth, trust, and transformation. We built something more resilient, more human, and genuinely client-centred. It reminded me that we do not manage projects, we lead people, and guess what people do? They grow through friction.

Ready to share your Fabulous Failure? Email us at editor@pmi-nl.nl with a brief summary, or simply say, “I’ve got one!” and we will help you share your story.