Start With The Failure

Whenever I’m in a room talking to a bank about a big implementation we pulled off, the instinct is to lead with the success. But I’ve learned something over the years—sometimes what actually connects is the story of how we almost messed it up.

I remember a project early in my international stint. We had landed a promising deal, but underestimated the complexity of integrating with the client’s legacy systems. Weeks passed, and we were behind. The client was losing patience. Honestly, we were scrambling.

That experience taught me more about execution than any win ever did. We fixed it. But the scars stayed—and made us sharper.

Today, when I talk to my team or a potential client, I don’t just share what worked. I also make it a point to share about where we failed, what we missed, and how we recovered.

Because everyone fails. Not everyone talks about it. And that’s where real trust begins.