Projects often fail at the implementation stage. This section of the toolkit looks
at some common pitfalls in implementation and suggests ways to pre-empt and overcome
these. Further help and tools will be available in the Partnership Working toolkit,
due later in Spring 2001
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Pitfalls
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Safeguards/ Response
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Partners are reluctant to commit to action.
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Identify levers / incentives, e.g. evidence of public concern, costs and benefits.
Resources
Review steps needed to seek/reinforce senior management commitment within key agencies,
and to keep all those within agencies with an interest informed of relevant developments.
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Responsibility for implementation is unclear
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Assign responsibilities to a named individual.
Review/clarify roles and responsibilities of partnership/individual agencies and
other stakeholders.
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The programme drifts and is underachieving
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Review reporting systems.
Set clear milestones for performance of key tasks.
Review commitment of partner agencies. Strengthen agreement between agencies if
necessary. Look at ways of increasing project ‘ownership’.
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Project leadership is weak
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Ensure the project leader has the time, commitment and skills to do the job, and
identify training/development needs.
As well as project management skills, project leaders need the ability to work
across traditional agency boundaries and operate in unknown/unpredictable areas.
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The project leader moves job
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Ensure key decisions and action points are documented.
Spread the work to guard against becoming too reliant on one person.
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A key partner fails to deliver
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Challenge non-delivery. Strengthen agreement between agencies if necessary
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Results don’t come through
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Review analysis of problems and causes.
Check option appraisal and that the right conditions are in place for the project
to work as intended.
Check the action plan is appropriate and well-founded.
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Problem
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Response
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There is low community participation
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Check community perceptions of the initiative.
Identify aspects of the project with greatest community appeal.
Review communications plans
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Partners lose interest
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Review approaches used (e.g. networking between meetings/teambuilding) to keep
partners enthused and motivated.
Ensure the project integrates with other local activities.
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Conflicts develop in the partnership
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Use techniques e.g. soft systems analysis to identify sources of conflict and areas
of agreement.
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