Planning
The upfront work of defining how a project will actually be delivered — sequencing, resourcing, and packaging decisions that shape every cost and schedule outcome that follows.
What’s included
- Scope definition and work breakdown structure development.
- Delivery sequencing and phasing strategy.
- Resource strategy and team structure planning.
- Work packaging for procurement.
- Sequence dependency identification and management.
- Delivery plan documentation and stakeholder sign-off.
Planning, in the program management sense, is the upfront work of defining how a project or program will actually be delivered — establishing scope definition, delivery sequencing, resource strategy, and the overall approach that subsequent scheduling, budgeting, and procurement decisions will be built around. This is distinct from design planning or master planning; it is the operational planning that turns a project's objectives into an executable delivery plan.
We treat this planning stage as one of the most consequential in any program, because decisions made here — how a project is phased, how work is packaged for procurement, what sequence dependencies exist between different scopes — shape almost every subsequent cost and schedule outcome. Getting this planning right early is far more valuable than trying to correct a poorly conceived delivery approach once it's already underway.
Other parts of Program Management
