Webinar of book: Megaproject leaders — Reflections on personal life stories
Project Half Double — Thought Leader Session — Part 1 Project Leadership and Success
Project Half Double — Thought Leader Session — Part 2 Project Governance
Interview with Prof Ralf Müller at IPMA Global Research Award Ceremony
Prof Ralf Müller on governance and governmentality in and for projects
An interview with Prof Ralf Müller on leadership in project management
An interview with Prof Ralf Müller on governance and governmentality
The terms project, program and portfolio management pervade everyday life in business. However, rarely it is defined what is meant by it. What is implied in the terms is a matter of perspective. It means different things to different people.
Managing projects means
managing a temporary organization
to which resources are assigned
to undertake a unique, novel and transient endeavour
managing the inherent uncertainty and need for integration
in order to deliver beneficial objectives of change
Managing programs is
managing a temporary organization
in which a group of projects are managed together
to deliver higher order strategic objectives
not delivered by any of the projects on their own
Whereas managing a portfolio of projects means
managing an organization, (temporary or permanent)
in which a group of projects are managed together
to coordinate interfaces and prioritise resources between them
and thereby reduce uncertainty.
The differences of perspective are obvious. Managing projects has direct and measurable goals, while programs serve higher order strategic objectives in which synergies among the objectives of the individual projects are sought. Portfolio management is a long term, resource optimizing perspective within which projects and programs are executed.