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The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition
Programs have proven vital to implementing strategic initiatives—and critical to organizational success.
The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition is the definitive guide for individuals and organizations seeking to mature their program management practices. It is principle-based, making it a powerful tool for a broad range of organizations, regardless of project delivery approach.
The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition provides clear, complete, relevant information generally recognized as good practices for most programs, most of the time. It’s an invaluable tool for anyone who works with programs, from project, program and portfolio managers to project stakeholders and senior managers.
The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition is the definitive guide for individuals and organizations seeking to mature their program management practices. It is principle-based, making it a powerful tool for a broad range of organizations, regardless of project delivery approach.
The Standard for Program Management – Fourth Edition provides clear, complete, relevant information generally recognized as good practices for most programs, most of the time. It’s an invaluable tool for anyone who works with programs, from project, program and portfolio managers to project stakeholders and senior managers.
179 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2017
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June 7, 2023
This book is the 4th Edition of "The Satandard of Program Management" which was published by the leading organisation in Project management field, "Project Management Institute (PMI)" in 2017.
The "Program" according to PMI is composed of Projects, sub-programs, operation activities and program related activities. It comes in an intermediate level in the organization strategical hierarchy (between Portfolios and Projects), despite the fact that these names may differ in different organizations/countries/practices (subject to the EEFs and the organization's culture), yet distinguishing between these levels is important to understand the concept and methodology of Program Management.
Program is different from portfolio in the aspects of that it is time bound and it's components suppose to be related, while it is more complicated than projects since it consider managing number of components (projects) simultaneously, in purpose of delivering these components that will achieve (and sustain) the planned Benefit, which can only be achieved in the context of Program - delivering these project in an interrelated manner compared to delivering it in silo.
The Book do provide sufficient guidance to program management for those whom seek to implement it, yet, tailoring, identfing the benefits through establishing a business case and applying this concept and methodology in actual -suitable- cases, is the only way to proof the added value of implementing The program management.
An advance level of management, it is and important book to read.
Quotes:
"A program is defined as related projects, subsidiary programs, and program activities managed in a coordinated manner to obtain benefits not available from managing them individually." Page 2
"The primary difference between projects and programs is based on the recognition within programs that the strategies for delivering benefits may need to be optimized adaptively as the outcomes of components are individually realized." Page 4
"The primary value of managing an initiative as a program is based on the acknowledgement of the program manager's readiness to adapt strategies to optimize the delivery of benefits to an organization" Page 4
"Program management is defined as the application of knowledge, skills, and principles to a program to achieve the program objectives and to obtain benefits and control not available by managing program components individually. Program management involves the alignment of program components to ensure that program goals are achieved and program benefits are optimally delivered. Program management is performed by a program manager who is authorized by the organization to lead the team(s) responsible for achieving program goals and objectives." Page 8
"The program manager ensures the effective alignment, integration, and control of a program's projects, subsidiary programs, and other program activities by actions taken in five interrelated and interdependent Program Management Performance Domains: Program Strategy Alignment, Program Benefits Management, Program Stakeholder Engagement. Program Governance, and Program Life Cycle Management Program." Page 9
"Program managers focus on delivering organizational benefits aligned with the organization's strategic plan through the coordinated management of projects, subsidiary programs, and other supportive work." Page 12
"During the program delivery phase, program components are initiated, planned, executed, transitioned, and closed, while benefits are delivered, transitioned, and sustained." Page 26
"The program is closed when the desired benefits are achieved or when reasons for closure arise. Programs may close when the benefits and objectives to be achieved by the program are no longer in alignment with the organization's strategy or when measurements against the program's key performance indicators reveal that the business case for the program is no longer viable." Page 26
"While project managers lead and direct the work on their projects, it is the program manager's responsibility to ensure alignment of individual project management plans with the program's goals and intended benefits to support the achievement of the organization's strategic goals and objectives." Page 34
"The goal of linking the program to the organization's strategic plan is to plan and manage a program that will help the organization achieve its strategic goals and objectives and to balance its use of resources while maximizing value." Page 35
"A benefit is the gains and assets realized by the organization and other stakeholders as the result of outcomes delivered by the program." Page 44
"Depending on the nature of the program, the program roadmap is a graphical representation of the incremental benefits and provides a visual of when the return on investment may help fund the future program benefits and outcomes." Page 45
"The business case serves as a formal declaration of the program benefits, the expected delivery, and the justification for the resources that will be expended to deliver it." Page 47
"The benefits management plan is the baseline document that guides the delivery of benefits during the program's performance."Page 50
"The benefits management plan should:
Define each benefit and associated assumptions and determine how each benefit will be achieved; Link components outputs to the planned program outcomes; Define the metrics (including key performance indicators) and procedures to measure benefits:
Define roles and responsibilities required to manage the benefits. Define how the resulting benefits and capabilities will be transitioned into an operational state to achieve benefits;
Define how the resulting capabilities will be transitioned to the individuals, groups, or organizations responsible for sustaining the benefits; and Provide a process for managing the overall benefits management effort." Page 50
"Value is delivered when the organization, community, or other program beneficiaries are able to utilize these benefits." Page 53
"Stakeholder engagement is often expressed as direct and indirect communication among the stakeholder and the program's leaders and team. Engagement with the program team may be performed by people with different roles in the program and project teams. Stakeholder engagement, however, includes more than just communication. For example, stakeholders can be engaged by involving them in goal setting, quality analysis reviews, or other program activities." Page 57
"People have the propensity to resist change whenever they have not directly requested it, have not participated in creating it, do not understand the necessity for it, or are concerned with the effect of the change on them personally." Page 59
"The focus of program governance is the delivery of program benefits by establishing the systems and methods by which a program and its strategy are defined, authorized, monitored, and supported by its sponsoring organization." Page 67
"The purpose of the program governance plan is to describe the systems and methods to be used to monitor, manage, and support a given program, and the responsibilities of specific roles for ensuring the timely and effective use of those systems and methods." Page 70
"Program Life Cycle Management is the performance domain that manages program activities required to facilitate effective program definition, program delivery, and program closure." Page 89
"Reassignment of resources at the component level could include transitioning resources to another component already in execution or another program within the organization that requires a similar skill set." Page 102
"The plan should be open for changes, taking into consideration that the success of a program is not measured against its baseline but is measured by how an organization is able to realize benefits from the program outcomes. The program management plan is therefore a reference document and should be seen as a managed baseline." Page 110
"In the case of human resources, the sum of resources needed to successfully complete each component can be less than the total quantity of resources needed to complete the program because the resources can be reallocated between components as the components are completed." Page 119
"The majority of the program's cost is attributable to the individual components within the program and not to managing the program itself." Page 129
"Program managers utilize multiple tools and techniques to conduct program procurements, but the key objective of conducting program-level procurement is to set standards for the components. These standards may come in the form of qualified seller lists, pre-negotiated contracts, blanket purchase agreements, and formalized proposal evaluation criteria." Page 131
"The program manager ensures resources are released for other programs when they are no longer necessary for the current program." Page 133
"Program managers should restrict their activities to managing scope only to the allocated level for components and should avoid controlling component scope that has been further decomposed by the project manager or by subsidiary program managers." Page 137
"Program financial transition is complete once sustainment budgets are developed, benefits are delivered, and sustainment has commenced." Page 139
"Program Management: The application of knowledge, skills, and principles to a program to achieve the program objectives and to obtain benefits and control not available by managing program components individually." Page 166
The "Program" according to PMI is composed of Projects, sub-programs, operation activities and program related activities. It comes in an intermediate level in the organization strategical hierarchy (between Portfolios and Projects), despite the fact that these names may differ in different organizations/countries/practices (subject to the EEFs and the organization's culture), yet distinguishing between these levels is important to understand the concept and methodology of Program Management.
Program is different from portfolio in the aspects of that it is time bound and it's components suppose to be related, while it is more complicated than projects since it consider managing number of components (projects) simultaneously, in purpose of delivering these components that will achieve (and sustain) the planned Benefit, which can only be achieved in the context of Program - delivering these project in an interrelated manner compared to delivering it in silo.
The Book do provide sufficient guidance to program management for those whom seek to implement it, yet, tailoring, identfing the benefits through establishing a business case and applying this concept and methodology in actual -suitable- cases, is the only way to proof the added value of implementing The program management.
An advance level of management, it is and important book to read.
Quotes:
"A program is defined as related projects, subsidiary programs, and program activities managed in a coordinated manner to obtain benefits not available from managing them individually." Page 2
"The primary difference between projects and programs is based on the recognition within programs that the strategies for delivering benefits may need to be optimized adaptively as the outcomes of components are individually realized." Page 4
"The primary value of managing an initiative as a program is based on the acknowledgement of the program manager's readiness to adapt strategies to optimize the delivery of benefits to an organization" Page 4
"Program management is defined as the application of knowledge, skills, and principles to a program to achieve the program objectives and to obtain benefits and control not available by managing program components individually. Program management involves the alignment of program components to ensure that program goals are achieved and program benefits are optimally delivered. Program management is performed by a program manager who is authorized by the organization to lead the team(s) responsible for achieving program goals and objectives." Page 8
"The program manager ensures the effective alignment, integration, and control of a program's projects, subsidiary programs, and other program activities by actions taken in five interrelated and interdependent Program Management Performance Domains: Program Strategy Alignment, Program Benefits Management, Program Stakeholder Engagement. Program Governance, and Program Life Cycle Management Program." Page 9
"Program managers focus on delivering organizational benefits aligned with the organization's strategic plan through the coordinated management of projects, subsidiary programs, and other supportive work." Page 12
"During the program delivery phase, program components are initiated, planned, executed, transitioned, and closed, while benefits are delivered, transitioned, and sustained." Page 26
"The program is closed when the desired benefits are achieved or when reasons for closure arise. Programs may close when the benefits and objectives to be achieved by the program are no longer in alignment with the organization's strategy or when measurements against the program's key performance indicators reveal that the business case for the program is no longer viable." Page 26
"While project managers lead and direct the work on their projects, it is the program manager's responsibility to ensure alignment of individual project management plans with the program's goals and intended benefits to support the achievement of the organization's strategic goals and objectives." Page 34
"The goal of linking the program to the organization's strategic plan is to plan and manage a program that will help the organization achieve its strategic goals and objectives and to balance its use of resources while maximizing value." Page 35
"A benefit is the gains and assets realized by the organization and other stakeholders as the result of outcomes delivered by the program." Page 44
"Depending on the nature of the program, the program roadmap is a graphical representation of the incremental benefits and provides a visual of when the return on investment may help fund the future program benefits and outcomes." Page 45
"The business case serves as a formal declaration of the program benefits, the expected delivery, and the justification for the resources that will be expended to deliver it." Page 47
"The benefits management plan is the baseline document that guides the delivery of benefits during the program's performance."Page 50
"The benefits management plan should:
Define each benefit and associated assumptions and determine how each benefit will be achieved; Link components outputs to the planned program outcomes; Define the metrics (including key performance indicators) and procedures to measure benefits:
Define roles and responsibilities required to manage the benefits. Define how the resulting benefits and capabilities will be transitioned into an operational state to achieve benefits;
Define how the resulting capabilities will be transitioned to the individuals, groups, or organizations responsible for sustaining the benefits; and Provide a process for managing the overall benefits management effort." Page 50
"Value is delivered when the organization, community, or other program beneficiaries are able to utilize these benefits." Page 53
"Stakeholder engagement is often expressed as direct and indirect communication among the stakeholder and the program's leaders and team. Engagement with the program team may be performed by people with different roles in the program and project teams. Stakeholder engagement, however, includes more than just communication. For example, stakeholders can be engaged by involving them in goal setting, quality analysis reviews, or other program activities." Page 57
"People have the propensity to resist change whenever they have not directly requested it, have not participated in creating it, do not understand the necessity for it, or are concerned with the effect of the change on them personally." Page 59
"The focus of program governance is the delivery of program benefits by establishing the systems and methods by which a program and its strategy are defined, authorized, monitored, and supported by its sponsoring organization." Page 67
"The purpose of the program governance plan is to describe the systems and methods to be used to monitor, manage, and support a given program, and the responsibilities of specific roles for ensuring the timely and effective use of those systems and methods." Page 70
"Program Life Cycle Management is the performance domain that manages program activities required to facilitate effective program definition, program delivery, and program closure." Page 89
"Reassignment of resources at the component level could include transitioning resources to another component already in execution or another program within the organization that requires a similar skill set." Page 102
"The plan should be open for changes, taking into consideration that the success of a program is not measured against its baseline but is measured by how an organization is able to realize benefits from the program outcomes. The program management plan is therefore a reference document and should be seen as a managed baseline." Page 110
"In the case of human resources, the sum of resources needed to successfully complete each component can be less than the total quantity of resources needed to complete the program because the resources can be reallocated between components as the components are completed." Page 119
"The majority of the program's cost is attributable to the individual components within the program and not to managing the program itself." Page 129
"Program managers utilize multiple tools and techniques to conduct program procurements, but the key objective of conducting program-level procurement is to set standards for the components. These standards may come in the form of qualified seller lists, pre-negotiated contracts, blanket purchase agreements, and formalized proposal evaluation criteria." Page 131
"The program manager ensures resources are released for other programs when they are no longer necessary for the current program." Page 133
"Program managers should restrict their activities to managing scope only to the allocated level for components and should avoid controlling component scope that has been further decomposed by the project manager or by subsidiary program managers." Page 137
"Program financial transition is complete once sustainment budgets are developed, benefits are delivered, and sustainment has commenced." Page 139
"Program Management: The application of knowledge, skills, and principles to a program to achieve the program objectives and to obtain benefits and control not available by managing program components individually." Page 166
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