Selling project management to senior executives: the case for avoiding crisis sales?

Abstract

Worldwide, project management is gaining acceptance as a business competency for many organizations. On one hand, it is noted that there is a growing interest in the use of elements of project management in virtually every segment of every industry. On the other hand, long-term investment in project management remains a tough sell at the executive level. Knowing that the lack of senior management support is consistently identified as a key factor in failed projects, this disconnect is a growing concern for practitioners. This paper presents the preliminary results of the first phase of a research project designed to develop an understanding of the reasons for this conundrum.