Do you know who I am?! Project and program directors in the portfolio

We encounter them everywhere in the Dutch government: the project and program directors who are flown in to “implement a major change”. They are especially common in ICT projects and programs.

This 🏆 league of their own 🏆 consists of self-proclaimed deities who are said to have built up an impressive “track record” within the government. And when their own organization can’t handle it, this superhuman is brought in – of course for an exorbitant hourly rate.  

The reality? Those so-called track records are often not that successful. It's more about the right contacts: a shared boardroom, a significant other at the same yoga club 🧘♂️, or a meeting at an influential networking party.

And so this deity ends up in your portfolio, often after internal project and program managers have already bitten their teeth into it. The entrance of this lifesaver in need always means four things in practice:

1. ✨ Own shine first ✨ – An extensive staff of external people must be flown in to put the deity in the spotlight.  

1. ⏳ Everything has to change! ⏳ – Plans are thrown out, while underwater work continues as planned.  

2. ⛔️ No difficult questions! ⛔️ – Portfolio management is sidelined, because they would only slow things down.  

3. ❌ Portfolio? No thanks! ❌ – Because there you have to explain why your court costs so much and what exactly it yields.  

As if we, as portfolio management professionals, invent obstacles as a hobby for project and program directors to climb over.

I encounter these immortals 🌟 regularly. And the response is always: “Do you know who I am?” – followed by a list of all the miracles he or she has performed. And then inevitably: “Let me go my own way and don’t bother me.”   

And that is exactly where the shoe pinches. As a portfolio manager, you look at the whole: is the expensive court of this project or program in proportion to the result? 

⚠️ Fact: Research shows that these large projects and programs within the government suffer from enormous overhead.  

But do these deities really do a better job than other project or program managers? No. The only difference is that they are trusted by the executives.  

❗ Never has a project or program run better or faster simply by replacing the manager. It is the belief in miracles that keeps them on board. And if you, as a portfolio manager, have an opinion about that? Then you are a nuisance.  

So let's stop this and tackle the real problem: the government sets unrealistic end dates, underestimates complexity and ignores the dependency of chain partners.

Hiring these project or program deities is not the solution, but a symptom of the problem. 

Time for a realistic approach! 📈💡