Hindsight is twenty / twenty, no doubt,  but on some troubled projects, one cannot help but wonder if problems seem so clear now just because of hindsight or  of being missed during the planning phase due to oversight.

One of the simplest techniques of project risk management is to ask “what if” questions.  The other technique is to think decisions through by asking questions of “then what?”  On the Millennium dome project, both techniques seem to have been ignored. “What if the sales forecasts were too optimistic?” was a question that certainly was not asked or addressed properly because actual ticket sales were almost half of the original forecast. Therefore, the project was unable to recuperate much of its cost. 

The Millennium dome was meant to be an exhibition celebrating the new millennium in 2000.  However, after the millennium celebration, the structure was still there and so were its maintenance costs, which some put at a million Pounds Sterling a month. This is where the second question should have arisen: “Once the millennium celebrations are over, then what?” 

The dome idea began as early as 1994 when the prime minister of England unofficially initiated the project. The project started facing troubles during the funding stage. Private funding sources did not show any interest in financing the project. It was then that the government decided to back it up through national lottery money.  The project cost millions, of which less than one third was recovered from ticket sales. 

The project has not done well as a business so far, but  the building itself is impressive as it is considered the largest single roof structure in the world.  Despite its size, the roof itself is so light that it weighs less than the air contained within the building itself. The interior space is subdivided into 14 zones, each having its own theme. The themes include ones on money, journey, learning and faith.

Many consider the millennium dome project a failure.  If for nothing else, they can be right just for the fact that stakeholders do not seem to have clear or consistent expectations of what the dome is supposed to offer, or what it will do in the future.  What complicated the problem further were statements by officials that made the project seem like a great success, even before it was opened. 

Was the project really a failure? It seems the answer varies depending on which stakeholders one asks.  The press did not like it and termed it a failure while people who visited the dome during the millennium festivities showed their content with their experience at the dome. However, if the measure of success was the financial performance of the project, then that would also show the project as coming short of expectations, at least so far.

Project management stresses the importance of setting clear and measurable objectives of projects before they are even started.  The objectives should be developed taking into considerations all project stakeholders, their expectations and requirements. That would make the assessment of success of the project easier, more objective and less dependent on subjective opinion. 

However, the curtain is still not down on the millennium dome structure.  After all, the structure itself is still there. However, at the end of 2001, a development company was selected to turn the millennium dome into an indoor sports arena and to develop its surrounding area into a complex that includes residential, shopping, and business facilities.  The building itself has been renamed into O2 as part of its redevelopment. 

The redeveloped building will become an arena with a capacity exceeding 20,000, opening this year.  There are also talks of using the facilities in the future to hold world sports events, including the London Olympics in 2012.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007