How the private sector can really help the public sector rebuild America

Washington continues to debate how much government
should tax and spend and where government should cut and save. And
despite the partisan debate, the fact remains the U.S. government
continues to make investments in national defense and
critical infrastructure necessary to keep America safe and competitive.
President Obama recently outlined his commitment to advancing our
infrastructure with the announcement of the Partnership to Rebuild
America, calling for both investment and innovation
from the private sector.

We believe there is a third contribution from the
private sector that can support building our infrastructure while
reducing wasteful spending: through the implementation of effective
program management, an often under-appreciated, but
absolutely essential, element of business success and sound fiscal
health.

Today, government risks wasting nearly 15 percent of every
$1 billion spent on programs, due to ineffective program management,
according to Project Management Institute’s
2013 Pulse of the Profession^TM survey. In fact, both
public and private sectors report significant declines in both program
success rates and program management skills. More troubling is that government
lags behind the global average; the $148 million
at risk for every $1 billion spent on programs is 10 percent more than the
average in our survey findings.

{mosads}A major handicap for organizations everywhere is
lack of support among senior executives. This is especially true in
government — only 11 percent of government organizations have a senior-level
program management officer, compared with 22 percent in
the global average. Further, only 25 percent of government agencies report
having a defined career path for those engaged in project or program
management, a full 17 percentage points lower than the global average.
What can government do to bridge the gap and increase
its rate of success? PMI has identified three essential steps.

• First, develop and
reward project managers the same as any other high-value profession.
This means consistent and continuous training, well-defined career
paths, and investment in new
tools and techniques. We do see pockets of excellence within
government, such as the IT Program Manager Job Classification recently
established by US Chief Information Officer.

• Second,
standardize practices within the organization, elevating program
management from an ad hoc discipline to one that, like other essential
business professions, has well-established processes and
accountabilities.

• Third, align program management with strategic
mission objectives. High-performing organizations are at least four
times more likely than low-performing ones to have mature,
strategically-aligned program
management practices, according to our 2013 survey data.

When a project fails to meet its goals, more than
one-third of that project’s budget is lost forever. This is
irresponsible in the best of times; today, it is simply unsustainable.

Today’s professional program managers are essential to
execute the mission of government, plus they provide savings and
efficiency — avoiding some of the pain caused by imposing new tax
revenues or budget cuts. By simply managing existing programs more
efficiently the benefits realized will
bring confidence, enhance the impact of private capital, deliver
vital U.S. infrastructure while making American workers and businesses
more competitive and putting more Americans back on the job. All that holds us back is from adequate recognition
of program management, leadership and a willingness to replicate what works in the private sector.

Langley is president and CEO of the Project Management Institute.