4 approaches to dealing with impossible budgets and deadlines

All too familiar? "We are going to do [fill in the lofty goal] and all we got was [barely enough for a Happy Meal]. There is not a moment to lose!" If you've been around the block at least once, this is a pretty familiar situation; take comfort in the idea that it isn't only happening to you.

This problem occurs just as much at the program or portfolio level as at the project level. This era of "Do more with less" has been going on since at least 1990, and it doe snot seem to have an end in sight. So we'll just ahve to deal with it.

Here are some approaches one could take.

(1) "You'll have to find someone else". That probably works fairly well for a business; a business can't afford to sign a contract that cannot be fulfilled. I can't say I actually know any individual PMs who have had the financial independence to risk trying this approach. Comments from those who did pull this off are very welcome.

(2) Stick to your guns. You've done the research into comparable work. You know that it will cost twice as much as the sponsor has been given, and it will take three times as long. get away been able . Given your research you can probably come up with a semi-decent estimate of an answer that is, if not right, then at least somewhere in the right ballpark. Now here's the problem: even if your sponsor agrees with you, even if you make the greatest business case presentation in the world, if the governance board has already divided up the money that it has, where is the extra tens of thousands you need going to come from? Now you're wasting the executives' time asking for something that just is not going to happen,, and as a result you won't get something you could have had.

(3) Roll over like a puppy.  Well, we did just say that standing up for your estimates wasn't going to work. "Maybe", you think to yourself,  "if we can just get this thing going then as we go along we can squeeze the numbers we want".  Good luck with that.  "You signed up for this", they will say.  And so they should.  If you try to do the impossible your team will just start losing interest.

None of these sound too good.  the last one better be a doozy.

(4) The Hybrid: Oh, come on, that what every consultant suggests? Pretty much.  But this one doesn't just split the difference.  First, work out what you can do with the money you think you're going to get.  Make it something useful.  Promise to deliver that, and only that, within the allocated time.  If you focus on what you will deliver, people won't dwell on what you will not do yet.  Now that you've got them in a good mood, tell them all the constraints and all the risks and the possible bill for all this if many of the quite-possible risks do occur.  Now your conscience will be mollified and you'll be able to concentrate of getting the job done rather than on reasons why it will not.

Anyone else had this experience?  Any better or related ideas that you've tried?