Here's a stat that should make you uncomfortable: somewhere between 50% and 70% of technology projects fail to meet their original goals. Depending on whose research you believe, the number is even higher for large-scale enterprise projects.
And yet, businesses keep launching them. Because they have to. Technology isn't optional anymore. It's how you operate, compete, and grow.
So why do so many projects go sideways? And more importantly, how do you make sure yours doesn't?
After 25+ years of building software, leading implementations, and occasionally being called in to rescue projects that went off the rails, I've seen the patterns. The failures rarely come down to bad technology. They come down to bad decisions made early , or warning signs that got ignored until it was too late.
Here's what actually kills technology projects, and what you can do about it.
1. Unclear scope (or scope that won't stop moving)
This is the number one killer. It's not even close.
A project starts with a vague goal: "We need a new website" or "We want to automate our processes." Everyone nods. Work begins. And then, three weeks in, someone says, "Oh, we also need it to do X." Then Y. Then Z.
Before you know it, you're building something completely different from what you scoped, and the timeline and budget are in shambles.
The fix: Get specific before you start. What exactly are you building? What does it need to do? What does it explicitly not need to do? Write it down. Get sign-off. And when new requests come in (they will), treat them as what they are: changes that affect timeline and cost. (We cover this in depth in our guide to how to scope a software project.)
This doesn't mean being inflexible. It means being honest about tradeoffs.
2. The wrong partner (or misaligned expectations)
Not every technology partner is right for every project. And not every client is right for every partner.
Sometimes the mismatch is capability: you hired a WordPress shop to build a complex web application. Sometimes it's communication style: you want weekly updates and they disappear for a month. Sometimes it's just philosophy: they want to build the Taj Mahal and you need a solid house.
The worst version of this? When neither side realizes the mismatch until you're deep into the project and it's expensive to change course.
The fix: Have honest conversations upfront. Ask how they work. Ask about projects that went badly and what they learned. Ask for references, and actually call them. Pay attention to how they communicate during the sales process, because that's the best version of their communication you'll ever see. (See our full guide on what to look for in a technology partner.)
And be honest about what you need. If you're not sure what you're building, say so. A good partner will help you figure it out before taking your money.
3. Over-engineering (building too much)
Engineers love elegant solutions. We love building systems that scale to a million users, handle every edge case, and use the latest technology.
The problem? You might only have 50 users. Those edge cases might never happen. And that cutting-edge framework might be overkill for what's essentially a fancy form.
Over-engineering burns budget, extends timelines, and creates complexity that has to be maintained forever. It's one of the most expensive ways a project can go wrong, because it often doesn't feel wrong while it's happening. It feels like you're building something great.
The fix: Start with the simplest thing that works. You can always add complexity later. Ask "do we actually need this?" about every feature, every integration, every architectural decision. Push back on anyone, including your own team, who wants to build for hypothetical future requirements instead of real current needs.
The best technology projects ship something useful fast, then iterate.
4. Under-communication
Here's a scenario I've seen dozens of times:
The project kicks off with a great meeting. Everyone's aligned. Then the team goes heads-down to build. Weeks pass. Maybe there's a status email here and there. Then the big reveal: "Here's what we built!"
And the client hates it. Or it's not quite right. Or the business requirements changed three weeks ago and nobody told the development team.
Silence is not a sign that things are going well. Silence is a risk.
The fix: Establish a communication rhythm and stick to it. Weekly check-ins at minimum. Show work in progress, not just finished products. Create an environment where questions and concerns surface early, not at the final presentation.
If you're the client, don't assume no news is good news. Ask for updates. Look at work in progress. Stay engaged.
5. No clear owner
"Who's in charge of this project?"
If the answer involves multiple names, committees, or the phrase "well, it depends," you have a problem.
Technology projects need a single point of accountability: someone who can make decisions, resolve conflicts, and keep things moving. Without that, you get death by committee. Decisions take weeks. Conflicting feedback comes from different stakeholders. The team doesn't know whose input to prioritize.
This is especially common in larger organizations, but I've seen it happen in 10-person companies too.
The fix: Designate one decision-maker on each side. The client side needs someone with authority to approve work, answer questions, and break ties. The delivery side needs someone who owns the outcome end-to-end.
These people should talk regularly. When they're aligned, the project moves. When they're not, everything stalls.
6. Ignoring the humans who have to use it
You can build a technically perfect system that nobody uses. I've seen it happen.
Maybe it's too complicated. Maybe it doesn't fit how people actually work. Maybe nobody was trained on it. Maybe the people who have to use it every day were never consulted during the build.
Technology exists to serve humans. If you forget that, you end up with expensive shelfware.
The fix: Involve end users early and often. Not just executives, but the people who will actually click the buttons every day. Watch how they work. Ask what frustrates them. Show them prototypes and listen to their feedback.
And plan for adoption. Training, documentation, change management: these aren't afterthoughts. They're part of the project.
How to set your project up for success
If I had to boil it down to a checklist, here's what gives a technology project the best chance:
Before you start:
- Define what success looks like, specifically
- Document scope in writing, including what's out of scope
- Assign a single decision-maker on your side
- Vet your partners carefully
During the project:
- Communicate weekly at minimum
- Review work in progress, not just final deliverables
- Address concerns early, before they become problems
- Treat scope changes as formal change requests
At the finish line:
- Plan for adoption, not just launch
- Document what was built and how it works
- Establish who owns ongoing maintenance
None of this is revolutionary. But you'd be amazed how often these basics get skipped in the excitement of starting something new.
How we approach it
At DGK Technologies, we've structured our entire practice around avoiding these failure modes.
We start every engagement by getting specific about scope. We document what we're building, what we're not building, and what success looks like, before we write any code. (Not sure where to start? Try our DIY technology audit guide or let us run a professional technology audit for you.)
We communicate constantly. Weekly updates, work-in-progress reviews, and direct access to the people doing the work. No layers of account managers. No disappearing for weeks at a time.
We assign a single owner to every project, someone who's accountable for delivering what we promised.
And we build the simplest thing that works, then iterate. No over-engineering. No building for hypothetical scale you don't need yet.
Does every project go perfectly? No. But when you eliminate the common failure modes upfront, you dramatically improve your odds.