Product Operations Program ManagerBarcelona, Cataluña, Spain
In many companies, especially larger ones, Steering Committees are seen as essential decision-making forums, meant to keep projects aligned with strategy. But then we hear Steve Jobs saying Apple had zero committees and ran like a start-up.
How do you appraise it : are Steering Committees truly enabling progress, or are they a bureaucratic layer that kills speed and ownership? I’d love to hear your real-world experiences! Saving Changes...
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Thomas WalentaGlobal Project Economy ExpertHackenheim, Germany
Eduard,
In my experience, Steering committees are part of project governance and should ensure decisions can be made quickly and all relevant parties are in the room. Then they add value to the organization and the project, the project manager, and the project team.
They come with different names, such as project board, governance body, advisory group, north star council, and more. I don't know how Apple made decisions for projects, but I am sure even Steve Jobs was not involved in all of them. Even startups have informal steering committees, called coffee corner, or do it by IM.
Quick decisions can be detrimental in the long term, since they lack consensus and buy-in, and are based on less information than group decisions. Saving Changes...
Luis BrancoCEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, LdªCarcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Eduard Hernandez A Steering Committee is like fire:
Well-designed, I’ve seen it fuel alignment and protect teams from politics.
Poorly run, it burns time and freezes ownership.
In my experience, the value is never in the committee itself — only in the clarity and courage of its decisions. Saving Changes...
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Eduard, in my view, it really depends on the purpose and composition of the committee. In our organization, we have a Building Committee that plays a key role in overseeing construction-related decisions. Most members are seasoned professionals from the construction industry, which definitely helps streamline decision-making and ensures projects stay aligned with best practices and regulatory requirements. Their expertise brings clarity and confidence to the process, which is invaluable.
However, challenges arise when committee members lack domain-specific knowledge about certain technical aspects, especially when we're dealing with innovations or niche systems. In those cases, decision-making can slow down, or we risk oversimplifying complex issues. So, while Steering Committees can absolutely enable progress when structured well, they can also become bottlenecks if not aligned with the evolving needs of the project or staffed with the right expertise. It’s all about balance and clarity of roles. Saving Changes...
As usual, the devil is in the details. Steering committees can be an extremely efficient and effective vehicle to ensure key stakeholder buy-in and engagement as well as to guide project/program directions taking a system-level view, but if they are implemented without consideration for what their role is (and isn't) they can be a waste of highly paid talent's time OR a bottleneck.
Program Manager| HARPER SRLSanto Domingo / Distrito Nacional, Dominican Republic
In my experience, Steering Committees can be either a catalyst or a bottleneck depending on how they’re run. When they act as enablers, making fast, strategic decisions, unblocking resources, and aligning priorities, they add real value. But when they slip into micromanagement or endless approvals, they slow teams down and drain ownership. The key is clarity of role: they should govern and enable, not execute or control.
Product Operations Program ManagerBarcelona, Cataluña, Spain
Thank you all for your valuable insights and be part of the discussion. It can be concluded that SCo can highly beneficial or detrimental based on how it is conceived and managed. In my experience, I have witnessed SC with too many individuals following the "we can't leave this person out" principle (politics), which led to ineffective and cumbersome meetings. Saving Changes...
Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
The key point here is information. Not data, information. Different levels have access to information with high degree of impact in the organizational strategy then it will impact in the initiative. So, you need the steering committee. Saving Changes...
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