Why info systems fail

If you only have time to read one news article today, read this one from the Financial Post.

Don't leave IT to the techies - Three problems lead to system failures describes in sickening detail the amounts wasted on failed information systems, and the main causes of these failures.

An astounding 68% of information technologies projects fail. This costs the world economy about $6.2-trillion a year. That's about $200,000 a second; imagine all the tech writers you could buy with that.

Here is the most important line in this article: "...failure, in most cases, has little to do with the technology and everything to do with the business process."

Specifically, the three main causes of IT project failure are:

• the project manager failing to understand the business requirements
• the system's users not being involved in its design
• senior management failing to get involved in the project

This is true of any IT project, including any documentation or content management system.

If the documentation manager does not understand the specific business requirements of the proposed system, it will fail.

If the information developers are not involved in choosing or designing a system, or if the system is too difficult to use, it will fail.

If senior management (which can include VPs, CFOs, CIOs or any other alphabet soup) does not support or get involved in the project, it will fail.

It's a cliché but it's true - people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan.

Finally, in the one minute it took you to read this blog entry, another $12 million was wasted...

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The PowerPoint from Hell

General Stanley McChrystal, head of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, has provided a perfect example of how not to create document: a PowerPoint slide that purports to explain the U.S. military strategy in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan "Explained"

“When we understand that slide, we’ll have won the war,” General McChrystal said. In other words, never. This image is the worst example in history of spaghetti documentation.

Now, compare that monstrosity with a simple document created internationally renowned tax expert Dr. Alvin Rabushka at Stanford University.

The Flat-Tax Postcard

Dr. Rabushka has proposed a 15% flat tax for Canada. This would collect the same amount of revenue that the government currently collects, without having to wade through multi-page, hyper-complicated tax form documents and software.

The good doctor even designed a form the size of a postcard that could be filled out in about five minutes.

It's estimated this simple document could save Canadians $30 billion when you factor in:

• the time and effort spent getting receipts and preparing tax returns
• the cost to hire accountants and lawyers to sort through the massive tax code
• the cost to employ vast armies of tax collectors their support staff

I can think of no two documents with more different content and results.

The PowerPoint explains nothing, saves no money and may even indirectly contribute to the war's endless multi-billion dollar cost by giving the illusion of comprehension to an incomprehensible situation.

The tax form is clear, simple and explicit, and would save billions of dollars.

Which document would you prefer to manage?

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A quick tip

One can discover great technical communication in the unlikeliest of places.

Here's a sample from the bottom portion of a restaurant bill I came across recently:

Gratuity not included

Suggested tip at 15% - 2.10

Suggested tip at 18% - 2.52

Suggested tip at 20% - 2.80

Why oh why did someone not think of this sooner? My only quibble is that the terminology is inconsistent - the heading uses gratuity whereas the listed items use tip, but that's a minor point.

This document saves the user the grief of having to manually calculate the tip. It considers the needs of the user and immediately fulfills them, like any great document should.

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