In software development or implementation projects, this triangle (shown below) is often talked about. Software projects can be fast (that is, done quickly), done well, and/or cheap. But you only get to pick two of those. A project can be good, and cheap, but it won't be done quickly. It can be fast and cheap, but it won't be good. It can be fast, and good, but it won't be cheap.
The truth is, in my experience in doing or observing dozens of nonprofit related projects over the years, most often, it's hard enough to get one of these. In general, "good" is the one that people want the most - they want a well-designed, user-friendly product, with lots of features that work together well. Maybe they even want to integrate that with another system.
And, of course, being nonprofits, they don't have a bankroll to spend on a project, so "cheap" is often an important goal. In my experience, these ("good" and "cheap") are probably the two that are the most difficult to get into the same project. "Good" - especially in the parlance of a nonprofit, means "easy to understand", "easy to use", "intuitive." And, unfortunately, those are always the kinds of things that take the most time, expertise, and cost to provide.
You've probably noticed that software projects are like construction projects. They are always late. I haven't yet figured out why this is. Sometimes, it is unrealistic expectations. But I've been doing this work for more than 10 years, and you'd think that by now, I'd have figured it out. These are my theories on what factors might be responsible:
In my experience, the two biggest mistakes nonprofits make in terms of implementation projects are to underestimate how much they will cost (or, more accurately, underestimate how much functionality/quality they can get for their budget,) and underestimate how much time (and internal staff resources) they will take to accomplish. When you are planning your next project, keep this in mind.
*Michelle Murrain is a partner at OpenIssue, a firm that provides and delivers planning and implementation services in Open Source and SaaS-based CMS and CRM information management systems. She also blogs at the Zen and the Art of Nonprofit Technology.
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