When Business-as-Usual and Projects Collide
You’ve got your roadmap. You’ve got your backlog. And you’ve got the everyday chaos of ecommerce to deal with.
So when the project that’s meant to move the business forward… doesn’t?
It’s rarely down to effort. It’s usually down to structure.
Projects Shouldn’t Stop When Business-as-Usual Starts
If your team has to pause progress to keep the lights on, that’s not resilience — it’s a red flag. Because the best-run ecommerce functions aren’t waiting for calm. They’re building and shipping inside the storm.
It’s not about choosing business-as-usual or transformation. It’s about building a system that can carry both.
So Why Do Projects Keep Stalling?
Sometimes it’s leadership air cover. Sometimes it’s an internal bottleneck. But often? The issue sits in the gaps — between agency and client, strategy and execution, big picture and day-to-day.
You can have the best tech and the best team. If they’re not aligned, you’ll stay stuck in start-stop mode.
Why This Is Hard (and What to Do About It)
Running projects alongside business-as-usual sounds simple. In practice, it’s anything but.
Because even with a smart team, a clear roadmap, and a motivated agency, most ecommerce projects stall for reasons no one puts in the deck:
- Priorities shift daily.
- Stakeholders multiply.
- Trading moments hijack the schedule.
- Your best people get pulled into the urgent stuff — again.
You’re not doing it wrong. You’re just running into the reality most plans don’t account for.
So how do you make progress anyway? Start by pressure-testing your structure with five sharp questions:
- Are project and trading priorities planned together — or in silos?
- Does your team know how to pause work cleanly if business-as-usual takes over?
- Do you have clear ownership for decisions — or is it whoever replies first?
- Are you tracking outcomes — or just outputs and dates?
- Does your partner understand what progress feels like to you — not just what it looks like in a slide?
You don’t need perfect answers. You need alignment. Between people, pressure, and pace.
Welcome to what makes ecommerce so brilliant to work in. Hard problems, moving targets — and just enough chaos to keep it interesting.
Elite Practice Looks Like This
The best ecommerce teams are running:
Agile iteration without derailing progress
Multiple workstreams in parallel
Project layers on top of business-as-usual
Cross-functional stakeholders with different goals
And the agencies they rely on?
- Bring rhythm, not chaos
- Can scale up or down without friction
- Aren’t waiting to be spoon-fed the plan — they’re helping shape it
- See what’s coming before you do, and adapt with you
A True Partnership Means Shared Load and Shared Growth
The most important decision you’ll ever make is who you marry. Because the right partner lifts you, grows with you, and helps you become who you’re meant to be.
Choosing your agency should feel the same.
They should raise your standards. Support you through hard times. Help you develop, professionally and personally. And win with you — not just deliver to you.
If they’re not doing that, they’re not your partner. They’re a supplier.
You Can’t Afford to Pause Projects
Not in this market. Not when the ceiling’s getting closer. Because progress is no longer a luxury — it’s the difference between leading and lagging.
So if your projects always seem to stall when business-as-usual ramps up? Ask yourself this:
Is it your structure — or your agency?
JH – The Breakthrough Agency.
If your team’s ready to stop choosing between progress and survival — we can help.
JH partners with ambitious ecommerce teams who need more than just delivery.
We build the kind of alignment that turns smart ideas into real outcomes — even when business-as-usual doesn’t slow down.
Because momentum doesn’t come from working harder. It comes from working in sync.