Why Do Projects Go Sideways? Steve Kelly Literally Wrote the Book on It.

Every project manager knows the feeling. Things start out fine, the status report is green across the board, and then somewhere along the way it all goes sideways. Sound familiar?

Theoris change management consultant Steve Kelly has spent decades studying exactly that phenomenon, and he just published his first book, Governing the Chaos of Project Management, to help PMs do something about it.We sat down with Steve for a candid conversation about why project chaos is inevitable, what you can actually do about it, and a concept he calls the watermelon project — you will want to hear this one.

A few things you will hear in this interview:

• Why 70% of projects still fail to finish on time, even with modern tools and methodologies like Agile
• The chaos loop and how risk compounds across scheduling, cost, and planning
• The watermelon problem — why projects look green on the outside and are red on the inside
• Why change management is not a soft skill, it is a critical final step that most teams skip

Steve draws from real-world experience leading global projects, Department of Defense cybersecurity initiatives, and helping organizations achieve CMMI maturity. This is not theory. It is pattern recognition built over a career. Whether you are a seasoned project manager or just starting out, this conversation is worth your time.

Pick up a copy of Governing the Chaos of Project Management on Amazon.