It was a relief to know that it was just bad management and not technical problems.
Development manager after firing the head of IS
The rapid development of new tools and operating environments has meant that many information systems development management staff have little understanding of the technical issues and risks involved in these new technologies. As we have said, a key role of a project manager is to manage risk. Rapidly changing technology increases risks dramatically. Technical managers must understand the technology sufficiently to assess risk and act appropriately. The management structure might need to change to ensure that managers are close enough to the technical issues to manage risk. This generally means flattening the structure and devolving responsibility. The implications of this type of change extend to all facets of the information systems development organization, including organizational structures, salary and reward structures, skills planning, and training.
If a project involves prototyping, it might be necessary to give more responsibility at lower levels for managing user relationships and expectations. Prototyping provides an opportunity for developers to work more closely with users and to become more involved with business issues.