The biggest IT project killer isn’t missed deadlines

Last week felt like another step forward.

We closed another client and have a few more in serious talks - mostly SaaS and fintech companies. It feels like momentum is finally starting to build, and the business is entering that phase where opportunities start compounding.

But one recurring challenge has been staring me in the face: communication.

Founders are busy people. They juggle multiple priorities and issues, and try to keep their teams moving forward at the same time. And when that happens, important decisions often get delayed, messages get lost, and projects slow down.

Part of my role becomes reminding them of the next best step and creating clarity about where we are and what comes next. Because without clarity, progress stalls - both in business and in life.

This has been my biggest learning recently: progress compounds fastest when you help people cut through the noise and focus on what matters most.

And that lesson brings me to one of the most common problems I see in IT projects.

The Issue With “Small Favors” in IT Projects

The biggest issue in IT projects isn’t missed deadlines or bad code. It’s the endless stream of “small changes” that creep in after the project is nearly complete.

It always begins innocently enough. A client asks for a small tweak - a button moved slightly, a script adjusted, a minor design change. And you think to yourself:

“It’s no big deal. Goodwill matters. Let’s just do it.”

But goodwill has a hidden cost. One small tweak turns into three. Three become five. Five becomes an unending stream of requests.

And suddenly:

• Timelines stretch far beyond what was planned.

• Margins begin to shrink with every additional hour.

• Morale drops, not because the work is hard, but because the work never ends.

I have seen projects that were 90% done drag on for months simply because of never-ending revision cycles. And it’s rarely about the technical work - the real problem is a lack of boundaries.

Why This Matters More Than You Think

Every favor you do without boundaries shifts the client relationship. It resets expectations and silently moves the goalposts.

And in IT, scope creep is a financial risk. Each "small" change consumes more time, piles up on top of other requests, and eats into margins.

Worse, it sends a message to the client that revisions are free by default, which means they will keep coming back with more.

This is how a project that should have been profitable becomes a slow drain on your team’s energy and resources.

The Fix: Boundaries That Keep Projects Healthy

The solution doesn’t have to be complicated.

1/ Set revision caps – Tie a fixed number of revisions to each deliverable, so both sides know when the scope ends.

2/ Define scope clearly – Changes beyond the agreed scope should be billed, not absorbed for free.

3/ Communicate early – Be transparent from day one. Don’t wait until the tenth revision to bring up scope limits.

These small changes in how you set expectations can save weeks of frustration and protect thousands of dollars in lost productivity.

Because goodwill is valuable, but goodwill doesn’t pay salaries.

TL;DR

The number one project killer isn’t missed deadlines - it’s endless small revisions that never stop.

Without boundaries, those revisions eat your time, destroy margins, and drain team morale.

Set clear scope, cap revisions, and communicate early. Clarity finishes projects. Boundaries keep your business healthy.

Conclusion

Healthy client relationships are built on clarity, not on saying yes to every request.

When you set clear boundaries from the start, you’re not just protecting your team’s time - you’re helping the client finish their project faster and with fewer frustrations.

In IT and SaaS projects, your best value as a partner is not unlimited flexibility. It’s creating a framework that gets work completed on time, within budget, and without scope creep.

Clarity gets projects across the finish line. Boundaries keep both sides happy long after delivery.