The Project Management Manifesto!

By David L. Pells

A major initiative has been launched in the United States in an effort to gain the attention of the new Obama Administration and to promote better project management (PM) on publicly funded programs and projects. The new effort, embodied in a “Project Management Manifesto for America”, is being led by project management pioneer Russell Archibald and a group of senior project management experts and authorities who met at The George Washington University in Washington, DC on 19 December, 2008.

While there has been a recognized need for better PM on government projects and programs for decades, the issue has taken on new urgency for two main reasons: (1) the current economic recession, and (2) President-elect Obama’s announced plans for an economic stimulus package of up to $1 trillion investment by the US government into infrastructure and other projects across the country.

While the emphasis of the federal government’s massive investment strategy will be job creation and economic stimulus, the invested funds cannot be wasted through mismanagement and inefficiency. The economic stimulus package will also drastically increase the federal debt in the United States. The funds must be invested wisely and managed judiciously in order to achieve the objectives without fraud, waste or the need for additional funding. Clearly the best way to do this is by ensuring that appropriate and proven project management is applied to all programs and projects that receive federal funds.

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