Throughout the history of Moravio, we’ve had years where software Project Rescue work accounted for nearly 50% of our revenue. There’s a saying that one bad developer can easily create work for five good ones - and that still holds true. But the root of this problem goes much deeper. Poor technological execution is only a fraction of the reasons why so many IT projects fail.
We’ve encountered many types of problems while helping clients save their IT projects. When people think of Project Rescue, they typically imagine malfunctioning apps, amateurish development, or just an overall poor IT job. But if that were the only issue, it would actually be easier to solve.
Unfortunately, in our extensive experience, the real problems usually start long before development even begins. In our opinion, the number one issue is insufficient business validation and the tendency to go “all in” instead of adopting a POC/MVP strategy.
A typical rescue client is a small to medium business, often a startup, with an IT project at the core of their operations. Usually privately financed, they run out of money and come to us with a project that doesn’t work or is nowhere near completion. They've burned through their estimated budget and have little to show for it.
Had they worked with a venture capital firm or professional investor, things might have gone differently. Investors are used to managing capital, controlling budgets, and validating ideas before scaling. Enthusiastic founders with some savings often aren’t. They hire the cheapest agency or freelancer available and become completely dependent on them.
We once had a client in a dire situation - they’d spent a significant amount of money on a poorly performing app and were already preparing a legal case. The contract with the original vendor included a clause forbidding the client from ever disclosing the vendor’s identity to anyone. Major red flag.
At Moravio, we’re proud of the work we do. We encourage our clients to mention our partnership in their marketing - because we stand behind our results.
At that point, we’re facing multiple challenges. We must evaluate the technical side of things, gather incomplete specs, assess the state of the project, and recommend whether to fix, partially keep, or rebuild - all while the client has already exhausted most of their budget.
Despite our efforts to be efficient and cost-conscious, Project Rescue is often financially out of reach for clients in this situation.
Another frequent issue is clients trying to build the entire product at once, pixel-perfect, feature-rich, design-heavy, before ever testing the market. They skip validation and double down on assumptions about what the market might want.
One client spent several years and almost a million dollars on a product that still hasn’t launched. Despite our multiple interventions, they stubbornly refuse to publish it until it’s “perfect.” Meanwhile, market conditions keep shifting, and the requirements keep evolving. These clients are definitely not budget-sensitive. But that doesn’t mean they’re building wisely.
It’s a common trap. Instead of validating early and iterating, clients invest in building out the full vision without confirming demand. We always advocate for POC/MVP strategies, and fortunately, more clients are arriving with this mindset already.
Often, the client isn’t from the IT world and places full trust in their provider. By the time they realize things aren’t going well, it’s usually when the provider asks for more time and money, and by then, it’s too late.
One of the biggest advantages of agile development is the ability to communicate and course-correct continuously - to track what’s being done, what it costs, and whether it’s on track. Even in fixed-price, fixed-scope projects, it’s critical to define and monitor milestones from day one. The worst scenario? Giving vague instructions and waiting six months for a surprise - and it's rarely a good one.
Large enterprises rarely approach us for full project rescues - they have internal resources to oversee and guide development. But ironically, they often face the same problems.
We’ve worked on many corporate projects, typically as co-development partners. We usually didn’t have influence over project management or product ownership - and those are often the exact areas where things go wrong. Apps get built that nobody needs, or budgets get mismanaged.
In these environments, ROI often isn’t the primary metric. It can be easier (though it shouldn’t be) to write off the money, time, and effort spent. The result? Teams become frustrated and feel unheard. The best developers often see the issues coming, raise concerns, and are ignored.
Once again, technological shortcomings are rarely the primary cause of failure. They’re just the final nail in the coffin.
Project rescue in the public sector is virtually nonexistent. We’ve had a few opportunities to work in this space, and in our experience (particularly in the Czech Republic), public clients often combine the downsides of both small startups and large corporates.
On the plus side, the projects themselves are often meaningful and have real value. But requirements and budgets are rigid, and processes are long. Like in the corporate world, failed projects are often written off rather than salvaged.
Because these clients usually require fixed-price, fixed-scope contracts and rarely work in an agile way, project management becomes absolutely critical - and unfortunately, often inadequate.
At Moravio, we’ve successfully rescued many projects over the years. Without naming specific clients, here are the most common categories we work with:
These clients have nearly depleted their resources on a project that isn’t launch-ready, lacks key features, or doesn’t survive real-world testing. We assess their options and try to get the product to production within a limited time and budget. Sadly, some projects are too far gone. Success would require more resources, a strategic rethink, or even a different target market.
The client realizes their original idea isn’t viable and wants to pivot. They want to salvage parts of the platform or codebase. If this happens early enough, there’s a good chance of a successful rescue.
The product owner goes rogue, adds features endlessly, and strays from the MVP. The project manager fails to enforce milestones. Estimates are inaccurate, timelines slip, and no one intervenes. This is typical in large businesses. Escalation often helps - replacing the provider or the project leadership can reset the process.
Sometimes, the root cause is bad IT. Poor solution architecture or lack of scalability becomes obvious only when it’s too late. Non-technical clients often can’t detect this until the system implodes. We’ve seen cases where the original vendor admitted they were out of their depth and asked for help.
Project rescue work is more common in the IT world than most people think - and at Moravio, it's made up a significant portion of our business over the years. While many assume failed projects stem from poor technical execution, our experience shows that the real issues usually begin much earlier: lack of business validation, unrealistic budgets, perfectionism, and poor project management.
Startups often run into trouble by spending their entire budget on an untested idea, while larger companies suffer from inefficient leadership and a disconnect between development and business goals. In the public sector, rigid processes and fixed-scope contracts leave little room for course correction.
At Moravio, we’ve helped rescue projects across all these scenarios - from strategic pivots and tech failures to mismanaged development processes. The key is early recognition, realistic goals, and ongoing communication. In our next article, we’ll dive into the red flags that signal a project may be heading for trouble.
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Do you want to know the early signs of a project that will need rescuing? Do you want to know what are the statistics and how many projects are dying for reasons mentioned above? What are the experiences of the global market, red flags and, and what is the usual strategy for project rescue? Read Project Rescue - Red Flags, Warning Signs and Strategy for Mitigation
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Jakub Bílý
Head of Business Development
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