Programme steering series (3/7): ‘Per cent complete’ is not a useful steering metric

Before: 45 minutes debating where the project actually stands. After: 10 minutes deciding which of the two blockers gets resolved today.

‘73% complete.’

That number appeared last week on the status slide of a transformation programme I support. Eight workstreams, one Steering Committee, one question: what does it actually mean?

For 45 minutes, the group debated whether 73% was good or bad. Nobody could say which deliverables were missing, where things were stuck, or when complete would really mean complete.

So we changed the approach. Three numbers instead of one:

12 of 18 defined deliverables delivered.
Two critical blockers, specifically identified.
Forecast: four weeks late, with the reason stated.

At the next Steering Committee, the same discussion took ten minutes. Not because the project was going better. But because the numbers enabled a decision rather than triggering a debate.

‘Per cent complete’ feels like control. In reality, the number obscures precisely what steering requires: progress in deliverables, clarity about blockers, realism in the forecast.

Steering does not mean reporting more. It means reporting what supports a decision.

#ProjectManagement #ProgrammeSteering #KPIs