Sponsoring Projects

According to the PMI 2018 Pulse of the Profession in-depth report, one in four organizations—26 percent—report that the primary cause of failed projects is inadequate sponsor support. In contrast, organizations with a higher percentage of projects that include actively engaged executive sponsors report 40 percent more successful projects than those with a lower percentage of projects with actively engaged sponsors.

Project sponsors are expected to have a keen knowledge of the organization’s business, corporate strategy, and working relationships with other members of senior management, associated boards, other departments, and external stakeholders. In addition, they are expected to have sound knowledge of the business case and an understanding of essential project management practices.

Unfortunately, most sponsors are unaware of these tacit expectations and are often uninformed about the aspects of project management that are relevant to them. The better the role of the project sponsor is understood, the more the entire organization, the project team, and the project itself will benefit.

10 Jun Sponsoring Projects