You Say ISO 19650. They Hear Blah Blah Blah. Let’s Fix That.

ISO 19650 is supposed to help - bringing structure, clarity, and collaboration to project information. But in practice? It often sounds like white noise.

The intention is great. The outcome? Sometimes just more documents nobody reads and more admin nobody wants.

So how do real-world teams make ISO 19650 actually work?

Let me break down the five biggest challenges I have seen and what smart teams are doing to solve them - with less scattered documents, fewer spreadsheets, fewer headaches, and way more alignment.

Challenge #1: Everyone’s using a different template

The problem:

One person’s using last year’s BEP format. Another is working off a PDF emailed in Week 2. The new hire downloaded something from a LinkedIn post.

The solution:

Teams that adopted a shared, online workspace (like Plannerly) created one central source of truth—with drag-and-drop templates aligned to ISO 19650 and auto-versioning built-in.

Key takeaway:

Give your team one place to find the right format, every time. Bonus points if it updates automatically.

Challenge #2: Admin overload kills momentum

The problem:

Project leads spend more time chasing sign-offs and organizing folders than they do actually managing information.

The solution:

Teams used structured workflows to automate who needs to do what, and when - including e-signatures, reminders, and verification steps built right into a simple workflow.

Key takeaway:

ISO 19650 compliance doesn’t have to be manual. Let the system handle the structure so your team can focus on strategy.

Challenge #3: Nobody really understands the requirements

The problem:

Teams are handed a long requirements doc or crazy spreadsheet and just nod through it. Then 6 months later… surprise!

The solution:

Smart scopes - with both visual clarity and machine-readable efficiency - with the ability to quickly filter tasks by role helped teams break things down into bite-sized, understandable chunks.

Key takeaway:

Make your information requirements understandable - not just accessible. Collaborative tools allow teams to review, comment, understand what’s expected and actually agree.

Challenge #4: “Collaboration” is still just email

The problem:

Most coordination still happens via email threads that even Sherlock Holmes couldn’t trace.

The solution:

Real-time commenting, task assignments and shared dashboards brought everyone into the same digital room.

Key takeaway:

Get out of inbox chaos and into a shared platform. One that makes collaborating part of the workflow -not an afterthought.

Challenge #5: You’re doing the same tasks over and over

The problem:

Copy/pasting from old projects is risky, time-consuming and a bit soul-crushing.

The solution:

Teams created standard libraries for repeatable scopes, templates, and checks—saving hours and improving consistency.

Key takeaway:

Scale your success. If a scope or process works once, make it repeatable across every project.

ISO 19650 has the potential to transform the way teams manage project information, but the challenges of implementation can often overshadow its benefits. From scattered templates to admin overload, many teams struggle to turn the standard into a practical, day-to-day tool. However, as we've seen, the right strategies and tools can make a world of difference, cutting through the noise and bringing real clarity and structure to your projects.

About the author

Plannerly helps teams looking to make ISO 19650 compliance seamless and effective. By centralizing templates, automating workflows, and providing a shared, collaborative platform, Plannerly eliminates the guesswork and busywork that often bog down project teams. It simplifies complex requirements into manageable steps and ensures everyone stays aligned, no matter the size or scope of the project.

Learn more: https://plannerly.com/

Breakwithanarchitect © 2025 by Nicoleta Panagiotidou. Licensed under Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). Sharing is encouraged with credit and link to the original post, but full reproduction requires prior written consent.