97 Things Every Project Manager Should Know

Chapter 40. IT Program Management: Shared Vision

MBA, PMP. David Diaz Castillo

ORGANIZATIONS OFTEN GROUP SEVERAL RELATED individual technology projects into a larger program. The strategy is to complete these projects in a more cost-effective way and to bring strategic benefits to the organization by avoiding overlap or gaps. However, it is vital that the software project manager convey to the project team members the real business objective that their individual project must achieve, as well as how this team aligns to the other projects. Team members must also understand how the achievement of their specific project goals contributes to the success or failure of the overall program objectives.

Here are some key tasks:

• Find the connections that expand the importance of this project beyond its mere standalone value.

• Define the relationships, deliverables, and risks shared among all projects in the program.

• Keep all the team members in alignment with the final solution that the program is trying to achieve.

• Understand the business, to propose solutions aligned to the strategic objectives of the program as the inevitable problems appear.

This concept of bundling projects into programs is not very mature in Latin America yet, but we are gaining experience managing programs with a common set of governance policies. Clearly there are rich benefits to be found when each team has a clear vision ...