Project management principles

Principle

Foundational guideline for strategy, decision making, and problem solving.

12 principles of project management

Stewardship

Team

Stakeholder engagement

Value

Systems thinking

Leadership

Tailoring

Quality

Complexity

Risk

Adaptability and resiliency

Change

#1. Steward

Having care, integrity, and being trustworthy while doing your work

#2. Team

Collaborative project team environment with a large skillset and can effectively and efficiently finish a shared objectively

#3. Stakeholder engagement

Engage stakeholders proactively and to the point needed to contribute to project success and customer satisfaction. Define now, when, how often, and under what situations stakeholders want to be and should be engaged.

#4. Value

Continually evaluate and adjust project alignment to business objectives and intended benefits and value

#5. Systems thinking

A project is a system of interdependent and interacting domains of activity. Recognize, evaluate, and respond to dynamic circumstances within and surrounding the project in a holistic way to positively affect project performance

#6. Leadership

Demonstrate and adapt leadership behaviors to support individual and team needs.

#7. Tailoring

Tailor based on context. Understand that each project is unique. Tailor the project approach to suit the unique characteristics of the project and its environment.

#8. Quality

Build quality into processes and deliverables. Measured using metrics and acceptance criteria. Objective is to help ensure that what is delivered meets the objective of the customer and other relevant stakeholders.

#9. Complexity

Navigate complexity. Identify elements of complexity and use different methods to reduce the amount or impact of complexity.

#10. Risk

Optimize risk responses. Risks can be positive (opportunities) or negative (threats). Constantly evaluate exposure to risks to maximize positive impact and minimize negative impacts to the project and its outcomes.

#11. Adaptability

Embrace adaptability and resiliency. Keeps project teams on track to the desired outcomes when internal/external factors inevitably change and it helps them recover from setbacks.

#12. Change

Enable change to achieve the envisioned future state. A structured approach will facilitate the transition from the current state to the future desired state. Knowing and addressing the needs of stakeholders to embrace change throughout the project life ride helps to integrate the resulting change in the project work, making a successful outcome more likely.