Project Governance: Getting Investments Right

Large projects are complex undertakings representing major investments. Often problems arise because of failure at the start of a project in terms of establishing governance, choosing the appropriate concept, analyzing the proposal and environment, and maximizing the utility of the investment, all within complex and political decision-making structures. As a result, many projects fail even though they were implemented successfully, simply because the project concept was wrong. While attention has been paid to project execution, this area is underrepresented in literature. However, considerable advances have been made, both practical and in putting the behavior and management of major projects on a proper theoretical basis. This volume therefore provides a resumé of the state of this domain. It is a guide for practitioners, decision-makers and their advisors, as well as students. It takes a narrow view of the project, widening to place it within the organization, then the organizational nexus, and finally the political environment, to give a holistic view on how bad ideas can be avoided and good ideas developed into successful projects.