Project Recovery Support · Two–three weeks · ¥35,000
When the project's reported position and its actual position have moved apart
Projects that have exceeded their timeline or budget often become harder to read from inside them. This engagement begins with a clear account of where things actually stand, separated from what was originally planned — and moves from there to what is genuinely achievable.
Back to homeWhat this engagement delivers
A plain statement of where things are, and a path to a decision
Within two to three weeks, you will have a clear, written statement of the project's current status — separated from the original plan and from any accumulated optimism in the reporting. You will also have a set of options set out with their consequences, including the option of discontinuation where that is worth considering.
The engagement includes facilitation of the decision meeting with the project team and its sponsor — the point where the options are considered and a direction is chosen.
Specific outcomes
- A plain statement of the project's current position, without reference to earlier expectations
- Options set out with their consequences — including continuation on a revised plan and discontinuation
- A revised plan that accounts for what is actually there, rather than what was originally intended
- Facilitation of the decision meeting between the project team and its sponsor
- A clearer basis for whatever is decided — so the team can move forward without the ambiguity that slows recovery
How projects tend to arrive at this point
The gap between what is reported and what is happening is often gradual.
The optimism that accumulates
Project reporting tends to carry forward the assumptions of the original plan even after those assumptions have been tested by events. Delays get absorbed into future weeks; budget variances are described as temporary. The picture in the status report and the picture in the team's heads slowly diverge.
The difficulty of seeing it from inside
People who are close to a project find it genuinely hard to separate what they expected to be true from what is actually the case. This is not a failure of competence — it is a structural feature of being invested in the outcome. An external view changes what is visible.
The cost of continued uncertainty
Projects in uncertain status continue to consume resources. Decisions about them get deferred because the information needed to make them does not feel reliable. Getting to a clear account of the current position — even an uncomfortable one — tends to be less costly than the continued deferral.
Our approach
Concentrated work with the project team and its sponsor over two to three weeks
This is not a long engagement. The work is concentrated by design — because projects in uncertain status benefit more from a clear picture delivered quickly than from an extended review that becomes its own management overhead.
What makes this different
The assessment begins by separating the project's current position from its history. Earlier expectations — the original plan, the approved budget, the promised timeline — are set aside for the purpose of understanding where things actually are. Recovery planning from a realistic baseline tends to produce more achievable plans than recovery planning from the original one.
The options presented include discontinuation where that is a serious possibility — because a decision to stop is sometimes the more practical one, and it is more useful to make it deliberately than to arrive at it by exhaustion.
How the work proceeds
- 01 Current position assessed independently of the original plan — what has been completed, what remains, what the actual cost and time picture looks like
- 02 Options developed from the realistic baseline — revised continuation plan, scope reduction, and discontinuation each examined with their consequences
- 03 Decision meeting facilitated with the project team and sponsor — the options are presented, questions answered, and a direction chosen
- 04 Written record of the current status, options considered, and decision reached — so the team has a clear starting point for whatever comes next
Working together
What the two to three weeks look like from your side
Days 1–5
Assessment of current position
We work through the project's current state — what is done, what is not, where the budget stands, and what the team's actual read of the situation is. Status reports are useful here; what team members say in direct conversation is often more so.
Days 6–12
Options development
From the current position, we develop the available options — what continuation would require, what a reduced scope could look like, and what a decision to stop would involve. Each option is set out with its resource implications and likely outcomes.
Days 13–21
Decision meeting and written record
The decision meeting is facilitated with the project team and its sponsor. The options are presented, discussed, and a direction is chosen. A written record of the status and the decision provides the team with a clear basis for the next phase of work.
The investment
¥35,000
Fixed fee · Two–three weeks · Japan
The fee covers the full engagement: assessment of the current position, development of options with consequences, and facilitation of the decision meeting. There are no additional charges for the written record or for follow-up questions in the week after the decision meeting.
The duration — two to three weeks — is determined by the complexity of the project being assessed. We confirm the likely timeline in the initial conversation before the engagement begins.
What is included
- Assessment of the project's current position, separated from earlier expectations and accumulated reporting
- Plain statement of what has been completed, what remains, and where the cost and time picture stands
- Options developed from the realistic baseline — continuation, scope reduction, and discontinuation each examined
- Resource implications and likely outcomes set out for each option
- Facilitation of the decision meeting with the project team and its sponsor
- Written record of the status assessment, options considered, and the decision reached
- One week of follow-up access after the decision meeting for questions arising from the written record
How we know it works
A methodology that starts from what is observable, not what was planned
What we measure
The assessment draws on project documentation, budget records, and direct conversations with the people doing the work. The goal is a picture of the current state that anyone involved would recognise as accurate — not an interpretation shaped by what was originally intended.
Realistic expectations
This engagement does not guarantee that a project can be saved — because some projects, by the time this work begins, are better discontinued than continued. What the engagement provides is the information needed to make that determination clearly, and to act on it without further delay.
Why the decision meeting matters
Projects in difficult positions often stall not because no one knows what to do, but because the decision has not been made cleanly by the people who need to make it. Facilitation of that meeting — with the status and options in front of everyone — tends to resolve what has been drifting.
Our commitment
A direct conversation about the situation before anything begins
Before the engagement starts, we speak with the project sponsor and, where possible, someone close to the project work — to understand what is known, what is in dispute, and what a clear account of the current position would need to address.
If, based on that conversation, the engagement does not seem like the right shape for the situation, we will say so. The initial conversation carries no obligation.
If the assessment surfaces a situation that is materially different from what was described at the outset, we discuss that before continuing — not after.
How to proceed
The path forward from here is short
01 — Get in touch
Use the contact form on the home page or write to info@domain.com. A brief description of the project — what it is, how far along it is, and what the difficulty is — is enough to start. You do not need to have a clear picture already; that is what the engagement is for.
02 — Initial conversation
We respond within two working days. The call covers what is known about the project's current state and what a useful engagement would need to examine. We also confirm whether two or three weeks is the appropriate duration based on the project's scale.
03 — Begin quickly
If the engagement is the right fit, we agree the scope and start as soon as access to the project team and documentation can be arranged. Projects in uncertain status tend to benefit from beginning this kind of work promptly rather than waiting for a better moment.
Project Recovery Support
If progress reporting and observed progress have moved apart, a clear account of the current position is worth having
The longer that gap is left unexamined, the more it costs to close. Getting in touch is a small step that does not commit you to anything — it is simply the starting point for a conversation about what would help.
Get in touch about this serviceOther services
Two further engagements from Ishizue
Six weeks · ¥44,000
Growth Readiness Assessment
An examination of whether a company's internal arrangements — staffing, systems, cash, management attention — can carry the expansion it is planning. Written assessment with constraints prioritised and costed.
View detailsFour weeks · ¥37,000
Pricing Structure Consultation
A review of how a company prices its work — examining cost, market position, customer-described value, and the effects of existing discounting patterns. Documented model, sensitivity figures, and customer communication material.
View details