What is the difference between programs and projects

Your articles are indeed in-depth and interesting ones. Appreciate all your help in advance. Share Tweet Share Share Pin. The Difference Between a Project and a Program. Related Posts. Dave W Farthing says The table of differences is succinct and very useful. Rajashree says Hi Very nice article. Denis says Hi Raj, Thanks for the comment. Abhishek says Hi Denis, I was looking for info on program management on web and found very few and shallow pieces. Program success is measured in terms of business benefit, ROI, or new capabilities.

Benefits outcomes are managed using a benefits realisation plan. Project success is measured in terms of producing specific deliverables in terms of time, quality, and cost. Programs have a wide scope, focussing on benefits, and may have to change scope dramatically during their execution to meet the changing needs of the organisation.

Projects are typically confined to a single functional unit vertical unit within an organisation. Programs are typically executed over a much longer timescale than projects, often several years. Projects are typically of a shorter duration than programs, often just a few weeks, and by definition have a finite duration. Program Managers create high-level plans used to provide guidance to projects. Detailed plans are created from this guidance by the Project Managers. Focus is on leadership, as Program Managers manage managers.

Program Managers need to facilitate and manage political aspects, relationships, and conflict resolution. A program is a group of projects united by a single goal, management, resources, mission. Their result is a qualitative state change caused by the implementation of planned tasks. How the Projects and Programs are Different?

The Defining Standards The organization has one or more portfolios, each of which contains a variety of programs and projects. PMI Standards The project is a temporary undertaking undertaken to create a unique project service or result. Standardization The definition of a program is consistent, as can be seen in the examples. Measurements of a Project or Program A project is well-defined, with a project charter that spells out exactly what the scope and objectives are for the project.

A program tends to have greater levels of uncertainty. The team is also bigger. The program team supervises and coordinates the work on several projects, so while the core team may not have that many people in, the wider team includes the project managers and all the project team members. This is the most significant difference between projects and programs. A project represents a single effort.

It is a group of people forming a team working towards a common goal. A program is different; it is a collection of projects. Together all the projects form a cohesive package of work. On the other hand, programs are longer. As they set out to deliver more stuff, they take longer. Programs tend to be split into tranches or phases.

Some projects are also split like this, but not all projects last long enough to be delivered in multiple phases. A project team works towards achieving certain outputs, that is, what you get at the end. For example, this could be a set of deliverables that form a software package, a new retail branch, or whatever you are working on.

A program team works towards delivering outcomes. Outcomes can be tangible but are often not. The benefits of a program are the sum of the benefits of all the different projects, which could amount to a policy or cultural change, or a shift in the way an organization works.

What Does the Program Manager Do? What Does a Project Manager do? Project manager vs Program manager comparison table Comparison Project manager Program manager Role Control and monitor project tasks Control and monitor projects Focus The project staff, i.

Specialists and technicians Management of relationships with project managers, their teams, and their staff. This will allow you to free up resources and resolve conflicts. Who manages The project team Other managers Planning level A detailed project plan is created for resources, cost, timeliness, and delivery.

High-level plans are created by project managers to guide them in the development of detailed plans. The outcome is managed using a benefit plan. Project success is measured regarding producing specific deliverables regarding time, quality, and cost. They are more strategic than projects. They are concerned with tactics, not strategy. The scope of projects is tight — they are limited to producing deliverables. Programs will span multiple functional units within an organization Projects are typically confined to a single functional unit within an organization.

This demonstrates the level of analysis and control of expected benefits when comparing programs to projects. The management of change should be considered formal. Whether the change is at the project or program level, change is approved, applied, and verified when it is necessary. Program management ensures a consistent level of performance from the components of the program. Change, therefore, is integrated between projects and between projects and the administrative work that supports the program.

In comparison, projects use change to control variance from planned cost and schedule while protecting various aspects and characteristics of the planned outputs. Projects always work towards minimizing or avoiding risk as it can impact the project severely. Projects exist in an environment where the output, benefits, or outcome of the work may be uncertain and unpredictable. Since projects have more or less fixed constraints at the outset, there is a lower chance of certainty. In comparison, programs at their start are a little less defined and may have more significant uncertainty than projects, even projects that define the programs.

The same occurs throughout the life of the projects— as the projects progress, they become more defined. This, in turn, ensures less risk for projects and greater risk for the programs. Projects and programs may respond to complexity in different ways and due to different types of complexity, but generally respond to complexity in similar ways: it takes more time and increases uncertainty to both.

Program complexity may arise from governance, stakeholders , definition agreement of the future state among stakeholders , benefits delivery, and interdependency connections between components. Governance is the monitoring, management, and support applied to meet goals. For projects, the goals support the deliverable and its enablement of objectives. For programs, governance establishes program support and maintains oversight. Another difference between projects and programs regarding governance is the way it is implemented.

In projects, governance is implemented and integrated through a collection of organizational, project, and stakeholder requirements and constraints. The job of the project manager is to lead and manage—direct the team, engage the stakeholders, and influence and motivate.