Recovery Progress
0%
Complete all 3 steps to recover your project.
Rule before you start: The goal of recovery is not to find who is at fault. It is to find what needs to change. Keep every conversation focused on systems and solutions — not people.
PAUSE — Stop the bleeding
Before anything else, create space to assess clearly.
Call a project pause — no new tasks start today
Send a brief message to your team: "We are taking 24 hours to assess the project before moving forward. No new work starts until we realign."
Do this first
Notify your project sponsor immediately
Do not wait. Sponsors who find out about problems from someone other than you lose trust permanently. One sentence: "We have a situation I need to brief you on — can we speak in the next 2 hours?"
Before lunch
Write down what you know right now — without judgment
List what has been completed, what has not, what is blocked, and what the current status is. Facts only. No analysis yet.
Take 20 minutes
Identify when the project actually went off track
Not when you noticed it — when it actually happened. This is usually 1-2 weeks earlier than when people first raise the alarm.
Be honest
Pause Notes — What happened?
ASSESS — Understand the real problem
Diagnose before prescribing. Most recovery efforts fail because they fix symptoms.
Run a 30-minute assessment call with key team members
Three questions only: What is blocking you right now? What do you need that you do not have? What have you been waiting on? Listen without defending.
No blame zone
Identify the root cause — not the symptom
Ask "why" five times. "We are behind on deliverables" is a symptom. "Scope was added in week 3 without adjusting the timeline or budget" is the root cause.
Ask why 5 times
Assess what is salvageable vs what needs to be cut
List every deliverable and mark it: Complete / On Track / At Risk / Cut. Be ruthless about what gets cut. A smaller scope delivered is better than full scope missed.
Be ruthless
Determine the real new timeline
Build it from the remaining work up — not from the old deadline down. Add 20% buffer to every estimate. The number will be uncomfortable. That is reality.
Add 20% buffer
Identify what additional resources or decisions are needed
Who needs to make a decision for this project to move? What resource, approval, or information is the single biggest unlock right now?
One unlock
Assessment Notes — Root cause + what is salvageable
RE-SCOPE — Build the recovery plan
A new baseline everyone has agreed to. Written. Signed if needed.
Write a revised scope document — one page maximum
What is still in scope. What has been cut and why. The new deadline. The new budget (if changed). Keep it short enough that everyone will actually read it.
One page only
Get sponsor approval on the revised plan in writing
An email confirmation is enough. "I approve the revised scope and new deadline of [date]." Without this, the recovery plan is just a wish.
Email confirmation
Communicate the recovery plan to all stakeholders
One message. Be direct: what happened, what changed, what the new plan is, and what you need from them. Do not over-explain or over-apologise.
Be direct
Reset the daily sprint — implement 15-minute morning check-ins
From today, every morning: 3 priorities, 1 risk flag, 1 proactive update. No exceptions. This is how you prevent the next derailment.
Start tomorrow
Schedule a lessons-learned session for after project close
Not now — after delivery. Put it in the calendar today so it actually happens. 30 minutes. Three questions: what worked, what did not, what changes next time.
Book it now
Acknowledge the team — then move forward
A brief, genuine acknowledgment that the team worked hard through a difficult situation. Then close the conversation about what went wrong and redirect energy to delivery.
Close the loop
Recovery Plan — New scope, timeline, and commitments
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