The 3 Hidden Blocks Stalling Your Project (And How to Unstick Them)
- Ben Jennings
- Jun 6
- 5 min read

You’ve got the plan. You’ve got the people. You’ve got the calendar booked out with well-intentioned meetings. But if you’re reading this, chances are something still isn’t working. Progress feels sluggish. People seem disengaged. And for reasons you can’t quite name, the energy has gone out of the room.
Sound familiar?
In my work supporting complex projects across sectors—public, private, regional and national—I’ve learned that what stops a project in its tracks often isn’t what’s written in the risk register. It’s what happens between the lines. Between people. Between intentions and understanding.
Here’s what I see most often—and how to spot it before things grind to a halt.
1) People Don’t Understand the Why (So They Don’t Trust the What)
Understanding and trust go hand in hand. You simply can’t ask people to move forward with conviction if they don’t fully understand what they’re being asked to build—or why it matters.
And yet, this is one of the most common breakdowns I encounter: incredibly smart, well-intentioned teams working in isolation, unsure how their piece fits into the whole. They’re delivering, but with hesitation. Their questions go unasked. Their ownership is muted.
In a large-scale regulatory reset I worked on, momentum was slow until we did something deceptively simple: created space for each team to explain, in plain terms, how their work connected to the wider goal. Once we made those links visible, the work accelerated—and trust grew. A policy team member said, "I finally understand how the modelling teams work affects our timeline. No one had ever explained it like that."
Similarly in a public works act acquisition, we took the time to create visual overlays on maps to represent what the proposed acquisition really affected. What emerged from the stakeholders wasn’t just understanding, it was a new appreciation of the scale of the project.
Tip: Before jumping into detailed planning ask your team to map out the purpose and value of the project in their own words. You might be surprised by the gaps that surface—and how quickly you can bridge them with a shared conversation.

2. Emotional Under-currents Are Driving the Bus
Here’s the truth most delivery frameworks don’t account for: progress is emotional. Fear, fatigue, doubt, or misalignment on unspoken expectations—these feelings shape outcomes whether we acknowledge them or not.
I’ve worked on projects where everyone was nodding in the boardroom—but offline, mistrust, territorialism, or past wounds were quietly draining energy. No matter how many tools you throw at it, the project will feel heavy until you surface what’s really going on.
In a joint agency transformational project, senior team members from different agencies avoided collaborating as they were focused solely on their own objectives, were used to working in their own silo and didn’t know each other. We introduced a few cross sector informal sessions to get to know each other, share understanding, it was a safe space to bounce questions off each other and test our thinking, with the aim to build trust.
It took awhile, but these session became fortnightly check-ins, collaboration improved dramatically and we saw our Seniors trust and work to remove blocks together when they arose.
Tip: During your next workshop or leadership session, ask: "What’s the conversation we’re not having?" Then hold the space long enough to actually hear the answers.
3. People Aren’t Really Talking—They’re Updating
Just because people are in meetings doesn’t mean they’re connecting. Often, we default to status updates and reporting—without actually discussing what’s getting in the way.
In one multi-agency policy project, each agency was technically showing up, but it was to give advice from a distance and leave. But it wasn’t until we introduced working sessions, where we captured and track all feedback to ensure everyones voice was heard, these were rated by importance, and then followed up multiple times with actual working sessions with our architects. It was after a few iterations of these sessions that we gained momentum. It gave a much safer space for the architects and designers to reduce the risk noise, and focus on the most important design features with the now clearer guard-rails our policy and legal experts were giving them. Collaborating on deliverables as we went, rather than sending them across the fence to be batted back.
We added fortnightly informal check-ins with our key experts. No formal agenda, no slides, and a standard set of talking points: 1. Top of mind thoughts 2. Concerns/issues 3. What information or follow up do you need. That shift improved transparency, understanding, trust that we were listening and pace by more than any new software could.
Tip: Introduce a standing agenda item called “what’s not working yet?” or “what’s missing from this picture?” It’s a simple shift that creates room for the real work to emerge.

Bonus Block: The Project Has Outgrown the Process
This one’s less obvious—but powerful. Sometimes the project isn’t stalling because people are stuck. It’s stalling because the current way of working is no longer fit for purpose.
Maybe the governance model was built for a smaller scope. Maybe the decision-making cadence doesn’t match the pace of external change. Maybe the reporting mechanisms have become so time-consuming they’re draining delivery capacity.
The original governance structure meant all agencies signed off on moderate and major decisions. But when moving in such a fast paced programme the rigid sign off model created delays, frustrations and disengagement. As we moved stages and trust and understanding had been established, by agreement a lighter decision model based on risk was implemented where key leaders were given the autonomy to sign off on moderate decisions, as long as these were captured and communicated, which gave teams the freedom to move faster, while still managing risk.
Tip: Build in checkpoints every 6–8 weeks where you reflect not just on progress, but on whether your process still fits the scale and stage of the project. Adjust as needed—no shame, no blame.

What This Means for Leaders
If you’re in a leadership role, your job isn’t just to drive delivery. It’s to steward clarity. Culture. Connection.
Ask yourself:
Do people genuinely understand the big picture—and where they fit?
Have we created emotional safety to say hard things?
Are our conversations honest, or just performative?
Does our process still serve us—or are we serving the process?
These aren’t soft questions. They’re the bedrock of delivery that lasts.
And if it feels like something in your project is off but you can’t quite name it—that’s a good time to bring in someone who can.
Let’s Unstick What Matters
I work with teams across Aotearoa to name what’s holding them back and find their next gear. Whether it’s community infrastructure, climate strategy, housing partnerships, or policy delivery—if it’s important and stuck, I can help.
Let’s create projects that feel lighter. Smarter. And human.
Because when we get that right, the rest follows.
Let’s build something solid.
Got a project that needs direction, clarity or momentum?
I’d love to hear from you.
Whether you’re in the early planning stages or knee-deep in delivery, we can help you bring your project into focus — and move it forward.

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