Not every struggling project should be rescued. Here is how to tell the difference and what to do once you decide.
Not every struggling project should be rescued, and not every one should be restarted. The decision depends on what is actually wrong underneath the slippage.
Rescue is right when the goal is still valid and the problem is execution — a missing owner, weak reporting, drifted scope. The work is recoverable; it just needs a firm hand and a re-baselined plan.
Restart is right when the original goal or scope has proven wrong. No amount of momentum fixes a project aimed at the wrong outcome. In that case, the honest move is to stop, re-scope, and begin again with what you now know.
The way to tell them apart is to ask: if we fixed the execution, would this project still be worth doing? If yes, rescue. If the question itself is uncertain, spend a week assessing before committing either way.
