Alice AshPhD student| Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane, AustraliaBrisbane, Australia
Hi everybody
I'm currently in the process of doing my PhD proposal and my area of interest would be project governance. Would any of you could throw some ideas or suggestions on what is actually Project Governance and what are the current issues mainly in Project Governance. I really appreciate your ideas Saving Changes...
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My ideas of project governance can vary based on context. In a non-PPM environment, project governance, to me, usually means the processes through which a project gets sheparded along with the escalation structure of the project (i.e., PM ---> Steering committee ---> Owner ---> Sponsor). Likewise, in a mature PPM environment project governance can also relate to the groups and committees that review projects and "escalate" them towards final approval. I've heard the term "project governance" used in various ways in practice. Saving Changes...
Mark Price PerryBusiness Driven PMO Evangelist| BOT InternationalOrlando, Fl, United States
I agree with Ed. In terms of current issues, a couple of interesting areas would be an analysis of project governance with respect to size and complexity of organization, by industry, by geography, etc. And of course, it is always insightful to take up a case study or two examining the degree of success achieved in Project Governance and the reasons why or why not. An issue that many organizations face in Project Governance is understanding and commitment by those involved within the organization. As Ed mentioned, Project Governance can vary based on context. Sometimes, this context is viewed differently or misunderstood by those in the organization. Some organizations seek to get the commitment established first and then go about execution and tools implementation. Other organizations go about Project Governance is almost a trial or proof of concept mode implementing tools and performing a de facto kind of Project Governance prior to the executive team totally buying into the program. Both approaches are perfectly acceptable and can work. But do they? And in what degrees of success? Saving Changes...
Alice AshPhD student| Queensland University of Technology (QUT) Brisbane, AustraliaBrisbane, Australia
Talking about project governance is definitely a very interesting topic but I don't think that there is the implementation of it. From my point of view, we need to have a framework that really can support the implementation of project governance especially in public sector Saving Changes...
Jack BlackChief Project Officer| PMConnectionJackson, Oh, United States
Aliza,
You may find an article or two on Project Governance that will be useful from here: http://tinyurl.com/5htrl7 Saving Changes...
To me Project Governance is a subset of IT Governance. Incase if you are so specific about the Project Governance and not about IT Governance then you need to select the LOB(Health, Insurance, Finanace or Stocks etc).
The Framework might look different for different project governance based on the LOB. Incase if you have LOB in mind put forth to take it further. Saving Changes...
Chitra DhayalanManager Program Management| Sapient CorporationMclean, Va, United States
Project Governance is the framework around selection, prioritization and project oversight for continued adherence to business objectives. This is a function normally facilitated by the PMO and consists of a steering committe both from the business and technical groups with a quorum. One of the main outcomes of the governance is not only oversight but also to terminate projects if justification no longer exists given the project's triple constraint. The Governance should also be willing to change project's scope based on project oversight. Resource management and utilization is another facet of project governance.
All the best! Saving Changes...
Hans RobbersSenior Director| SalesforceVlissingen, Netherlands
Project governance is the way a project manager controls (governs) the project and its evironment which is pre-determined by the contract set between the parties. Based on the contract the objectives a project maanger develops a project organisation including the roles and responisbilities of the project members.
This organisation needs to be managed by a meeting and reporting strucuture and a set of procedures how to deal with changes, issues, etc.
Finally the governance will arrage the acceptace of the project, the hand-over to the organisation and in case of contracting the billing.
Normally this can be found in the project charter or project management plan.
Personally, I look at project governance as a part of normal organizational controls, policies, and procedure. It should be a part of the organization's overall governance rules and procedures.
I do not look at it as part of IT governance, because projects happen outside of IT. A good IT governance strategy should address project governance, of course, but the issue is bigger than just IT.
I like Hans' definition a lot, but I would expand it a bit. To me, project governance is not just about how the project manager governs the project, but also how the sponsor and the leaders of the organization control the project and the project manager.
I worked several years with internal auditors doing a SOX audit. They reviewed project policies and procedures along with other operational rules in the company. They audited these project governance controls the same way they would audit any type of key control in the company. They did not see these project governance issues as significantly different than a financial control, operational control, or other SOX-related control.
In fact, the auditors gave me a great, integrated view of how my projects fit into the organization. The project controls over cost variances really supported and aligned with company expense and budget controls. Through their audit, we were able to make sure the dollar values and procedures were complimentary. We reduced a lot of duplication and conflict between what the project management group required and what the Finance department required. It made things much simpler in the company, and the senior executives appreciated having ONE standard that applied across projects, operations, and other parts of the business.
Best wishes on the research. I see this area as an important, growing issue. If I can help with your PhD research, let me know. Saving Changes...
George JucanManaging Partner| Organizational Perfomance Enablers NetworkWoodbridge, Ontario, Canada
Hi Aliza,
I would suggest to take a look at PMI standards, both for project (PMBOK Guide) as well as programs and portfolios. OPM3 will also provide you with some good insight into projects governance. I think you will be able to identify couple of interesting research paths starting from these documents.
Best of luck,
