Technology Projects, an Ordeal or Challenge for Public Administration

Great goals require great plans and big investments. Many technology projects however seem not to live up to their initial expectations, be it infrastructure projects, ICT projects or the like. If the public is asked to give an opinion on such projects, probably the most frequently registered answer would be that those kinds of projects mostly turn out to be more expensive and more time-consuming than planned and frequently have adverse effects. They seem hampered by unexpected or unforeseen events causing delays in the time schedule and/or overruns of the costs involved. In this paper the question will be addressed why and how this can happen and what can be done about it.