Domain 3 of 3 · Chapter 1 of 8

Project Governance

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Included in this chapter:

  • What governance establishes, and who holds authority
  • Tailoring governance rigor to the delivery approach
  • Define success metrics that measure value
  • Escalation paths, thresholds, and who decides
  • Ethics built into the governance framework
  • Exam-pattern recognition

Governance rigor by delivery approach

Governance dimensionPredictiveAdaptiveHybrid
Decision cadenceFormal phase gates and sign-offs at each transitionFrequent lightweight checkpointsPhase gates on predictive parts, iterations on adaptive parts
Who holds day-to-day decisionsGovernance body, via stage-gate approvalsTeam and product owner, within guardrailsSplit by component
What formal governance reservesAuthorization at every phase transitionRelease, funding, and value decisionsPhase gates plus release and value decisions
Documentation weightHeavier formal sign-offsLighter, working-agreement basedMixed to match each part

Decision tree

Within your authority and tolerances? Project manager resolves it A conflict of interest for you? Disclose to governance, then abstain Crosses org boundaries or exceeds the mandate? Sponsor or steering committee decides Escalate along the agreed path Yes No Yes No Yes No
Cheat sheet

Cheat sheet

  • Governance sets decision rights and reporting before execution
  • Governance rigor is tailored to project complexity and delivery approach
  • Ethics and policy obligations are built into the governance framework
  • Success metrics are defined up front and go beyond the triple constraint
  • Success metrics are agreed with the sponsor and governance body
  • Escalate only when a decision exceeds PM authority or a defined threshold
  • Escalation paths and thresholds are agreed during governance setup
  • Cross-organizational decisions route to the sponsor or steering committee
  • The steering committee holds decision authority above the project manager
  • The sponsor is accountable for the business case and strategic alignment
  • Adaptive governance empowers the team to decide within guardrails
  • Hybrid governance mixes phase gates with iterative decision-making
  • The PMI Code of Ethics rests on responsibility, respect, fairness, and honesty
  • Disclose conflicts of interest proactively and step back from the decision
  • Decline improper gifts, award work impartially, protect confidential information

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References

  1. PMP Examination Content Outline (July 2026)
  2. Project Governance: Pivotal Role of the Executive Sponsor Blog
  3. Project governance Blog
  4. Decide which project delivery approach is best Blog
  5. Beyond project success: Benefits realization opportunities and challenges Blog
  6. Escalate Decisions to Project Sponsors Blog
  7. PMI Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct