{"id":54654,"date":"2026-08-22T17:40:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T15:40:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.turner.nl\/uncategorized\/project-and-program-management-is-an-absolute-must-the-initiative-doesnt-end-until-youre-truly-finished\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T17:40:37","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T15:40:37","slug":"project-and-program-management-is-an-absolute-must-the-initiative-doesnt-end-until-youre-truly-finished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.turner.nl\/en\/strategy-execution\/project-and-program-management-is-an-absolute-must-the-initiative-doesnt-end-until-youre-truly-finished\/","title":{"rendered":"Project and program management is an absolute must. The initiative doesn’t end until you’re truly finished."},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Strategy = Execution<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Project and program management is an absolute must. The initiative doesn't end until you're truly finished. <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Project and program management is an absolute necessity. Good project and program managers act as the conscience of Strategy Execution. They don\u2019t stop until the job is done. <\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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Effective program and project management delivers results.<\/strong><\/h1>

At the end of the day, only one question matters: Have we achieved the project\u2019s or program\u2019s objectives? Pure professional pride is what drives good project and program managers to care more about this question than anyone else. They act as the conscience of Strategy Execution. There are countless examples of programs aimed at increasing sales effectiveness where the sales director or client pulls out toward the end, once enough attractive benefits have been achieved. It\u2019s even worse when they do so at the first sign of setbacks\u2014which are always bound to happen. In both cases, the real harvest and consolidation have yet to begin. <\/p>

Another, equally important question is whether the result is sustainable and whether we have learned from the execution. This must be stated explicitly so that there is a very high probability that we will definitely do a project or program better next time. This is the subject of Accelerator 4 in the model presented in *Strategy Execution*<\/a>: securing sustainability and learning. <\/p>

The program will not stop until it is finished<\/strong><\/h3>

The relationship between programs and projects and the line organization is and always will be a tricky one. But in reality, this is a non-issue that you\u2019re better off not wasting too much time on. If a program- or project-based approach has been chosen, it\u2019s far too soon after the launch and the initial planning to start saying, \u201cNow it\u2019s up to the line organization to make it happen.\u201d That\u2019s a perilous move. Of course, the line organization has to \u201cdo\u201d a lot right from the start\u2014namely, staff the project or program! <\/p>

But both the project or program, on the one hand, and the line organization, on the other, must be fully engaged throughout the entire execution process. There are three generic principles that apply from the start to the very last implementation activity: first, a project or program is merely a means to renew the line\u2014the \u201cgoing concern\u201d\u2014and is therefore temporary in nature. Second, the line organization is accountable for results from day one; the program is accountable for execution\u2014all the way to the end. And third: successful approaches recognize three stages in the line-program or line-project co-production. The project or program plays a role right up to the very last day and should not be sidelined halfway through execution. See Figure 1. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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