Acknowledgement

AUTHOR: BRIONI BALE

What is Human Centred Project Management

Human Centred Project Management (HCPM) is an approach to managing projects that puts the needs, experiences and well-being of people involved first. This includes team members, stakeholders and end users, throughout the entire project lifecycle. This approach prioritises empathy, collaboration, inclusion and adaptability to ensure that the delivery and the outcomes of the projects are aligned with people’s needs.

How can Human Centred Project Management be used

HCPM can be used to deliver many different types of projects e.g., IT, policy, construction, legislative reform and infrastructure. I have delivered projects using the HCPM approach including large, complex and high-profile Commonwealth projects such as the Medicare Benefit Schedule (MBS) Review which reviewed the 5700 MBS items to align them with contemporary clinical evidence and practice, and the Vaping Regulation Reform and Smoking Cessation Program which supported new and amended legislation to control e-cigarettes, reduce youth vaping, and making it illegal for non-pharmacy retailers to sell any vapes.

I have also delivered some smaller, less visible, but still impactful projects using HCPM. While working for the CSIRO, I designed and delivered vegetative propagation training for the Papua New Guinea Forest Research Institute, I project managed the Australian Low Rainfall Tree Improvement Group – a collaborative initiative involving stakeholders from government, research, and industry sectors to develop and improve tree growth and timber traits in low rainfall regions, and I managed the Commercial Seedling Seed Orchard Project which established seed orchards for selected native Australian tree species with improved desirable traits.

The Human Centred Project Management Principles and How to Use Them

• Empathy First – Understanding and valuing different perspectives, experiences and needs of everyone involved in the project. Actively listening to everyone. Considering design solutions and workflows that support human well-being. Take the time to learn about team members, their needs, challenges and what motivates them. Better engagement from team members comes from a greater understanding of what drives them.
• Inclusive Stakeholder Engagement – Involvement of a wide range of stakeholders early and often. Prioritising transparency and open communication. Ensuring diverse voices are heard and respected throughout the project lifecycle. Early and frequent involvement of stakeholders makes a huge difference by bringing people along on the project journey. Diversity of thought is a valuable way to innovate and it makes team members feel needed and heard. You do not need to use every idea that is shared, most people are OK with this as long as they had the opportunity to share, and they understand why their idea was not used (if it is not used).
• Collaboration over Command – It is about teamwork and co-creation rather than top-down control. Empowering individuals. Fostering a culture of trust, psychological safety and mutual respect. This can be difficult in high-paced and stressful delivery environments, but I believe that you need to go slow, to go fast. Empower individuals through sharing, there are no silly ideas, everything on the table. Foster a culture of trust, psychological safety, and respect so team members feel confident to collaborate.
• Ethical Responsibility – Consideration of the social, environmental, and long-term consequences of decisions. Promoting fairness, accessibility and sustainability. Avoiding harm and respecting privacy and autonomy. Much of my recent project management has supported delivery of new or amended policy change or legislation. Long-term consequences must be considered during the policy or legislation design to limit unintended consequences. And they must be sense checked and confirmed throughout the delivery period to ensure risks haven’t changed or new risk emerged, that will impact long-term outcomes.
• Adaptability and Flexibility – Being responsive to change and evolving human needs. Using iterative methods to refine approaches. Encouraging continuous learning and feedback loops. Projects never get delivered exactly the way they are planned. As project managers we expect this, so it is not a big jump to expect human needs to change as well. Use iterative methods to refine approaches. This might be through an Agile approach, design thinking or co-design. Or in smaller or less complicated projects it could be through workshops with as many of the team as possible. Encourage continuous learning and feedback loops. This needs to be done regularly and in real-time wherever possible.
• Clarity of Purpose and Meaning – Aligning project goals with values and human-centered outcomes. Ensuring everyone understands not just what is being done, but why. Creation of a shared vision that motivates and guides the team. I support delivery of policy change which can have widespread impacts. Ensuring everyone understands the what and the why. I have found that even in situations where people don’t necessarily agree on the what, if they understand the why, they are more likely to get behind the project. Create a shared vision that motivates and guides the team.
• Well-Being and Work-Life Balance – Recognition of the human limits of time, energy and attention. Design of processes that support sustainable work practices. Promotion of mental health and inclusive work environments. The limits of time, energy, and attention are often overlooked. Human energy limitations are a hugely important consideration. We only have so much energy in our bucket, so we need to be aware of where we chose to use it. Design processes that support sustainable work practices – schedule regular team meetings after 9 am so that team members can complete school drop off, where teams work in a hybrid arrangement schedule a day where the team works from the same location. Promote mental health and inclusive work environments – this can be harder to do working remotely or in hybrid times, so there must be a deliberate effort to make this a priority.
• Value Delivery, Not Just Task Completion – The focus is on delivering meaningful outcomes, not just hitting deadlines. Taking time to deliver quality can be more important than on-time delivery. In a recent delivery role, I convinced the Program Board to allow the delivery team to present their updates directly. The team had increased visibility of the areas the Program Board focused on and they got to answer the questions from Board members directly. This gave delivery ownership back to the project team and increased their understanding of the need for reporting.

Benefits for Team Members

The human centred project management approach offers powerful benefits across team performance, stakeholder engagement, and project outcomes:

• Increased Team Engagement and Motivation – Team members who feel valued are more involved in decisions, boosting ownership and commitment. Acknowledging individual and group contribution improves morale. Connecting daily work to meaningful goals increases motivation.
• Better Communication and Collaboration – Team members who feel safe to express ideas and concerns are more positive. HCPM encourages regular check-ins, feedback and collaborative planning. Empathy and mutual respect help manage differences constructively reducing conflict.
• Improved Problem-Solving and Innovation – Encouraging diverse input from team members in different roles empowers them to share insights. A supportive environment boosts experimentation and innovation. Mistakes are seen as opportunities to grow, not as failures.
• Stronger Ownership and Accountability – Team members are trusted to take initiative and make decisions. There is a shared responsibility with everyone contributing to success, not just the project manager. There are clear roles and expectations reducing confusion and overlapping efforts.
• Higher Resilience and Lower Burnout – HCPM is more workload aware and considers team capacity, avoiding overload. It emphasises well-being, leading to healthier work habits and better team support. It encourages realistic deadlines and respect for work-life balance.
• Professional Growth and Satisfaction – Team members gain leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills and job fulfillment and career satisfaction are boosted.

Benefits for Accountable Project Executives

For sponsors, directors, or senior leaders responsible for project outcomes HCPM offers strategic benefits that align with leadership responsibilities, risk management and organisational goals.

• Improved Project Outcomes and Success Rates – HCPM ensures deliverables meet real stakeholder and user needs, reducing rework and increasing impact. It reduces the mismatch between expectations and outputs, leading to higher quality outcomes and projects that solve the right problems deliver greater value.
• Reduced Risk and More Informed Decision-Making – Early and continuous engagement with users and teams helps surface issues sooner. Human-centred insights reduce blind spots in planning and execution. Stakeholder needs are understood and addressed, increasing project buy-in and reducing resistance to change.
• Stronger Stakeholder Relationships and Trust – Demonstrating empathy and responsiveness builds trust and credibility with clients and partners. Open communication reduces surprises and builds confidence in leadership. HCPM promotes a social licence to operate, this is especially important in public or community-focused projects.
• Enhanced Team Performance and Accountability – Human-centred teams are more motivated, productive and resilient. Empowered teams take initiative, freeing executives for strategic focus. Teams understand the “why” behind the work, which supports goal-focused execution.
• Positive Organisational Culture and Reputation – Executives who support people-first projects are seen as forward-thinking and ethical. Cultural alignment reinforces values such as respect, inclusion, and collaboration. Human-centred environments are appealing to top performers and have increased retention rates.
• Strategic Agility and Innovation – Responsive planning based on real human needs allows for greater agility. A human-centred culture supports innovation, experimentation and continuous improvement. This builds organisational capacity to handle uncertainty and complexity and leads to future proofing.

Benefits for Consumers

HCPM puts people at the core of project planning and delivery, directly enhancing the consumer experience and the value they receive.

• Products and Services That Truly Meet Their Needs – Consumers are involved through feedback, testing and research, so outcomes match real needs—not assumptions. The final product fits into consumers’ lives more naturally, solving actual problems.
• Improved Usability and Experience – Human centred project management prioritises intuitive interfaces and user-friendly experiences. A more inclusive design ensures people of all abilities can use the product or service effectively. Consumers feel understood and respected, improving brand connection.
• Faster Resolution of Pain Points – Human-centred approaches involve ongoing consumer input, allowing teams to identify and fix issues early. Solutions are crafted from a deep understanding of user frustration and needs.
• Increased Trust and Loyalty – When users see that their feedback is acted on, trust grows. HCPM encourages honest, responsive engagement with consumers. People are more likely to stay loyal to a brand or product that “gets” them.
• More Ethical and Inclusive Outcomes – By considering the human impact, HCPM avoids building features or systems that exclude or disadvantage users. It supports inclusive practices that reflect a diverse range of users and experiences. And respecting human needs and values builds a sense of agency and respect.
• Better Long-Term Value – Leads to products and services that are more future-proof when built with long-term human needs in mind. Well-designed, user-informed solutions reduce the need for constant updates or overhauls and consumers spend less time troubleshooting or adapting workarounds.

Conclusion

This people-centric approach improves collaboration and ideation across all stakeholders. It gives everyone involved in the project more opportunity to have a voice, to be heard and to influence the projects direction. This ultimately has a positive impact on the project delivery, frees up project executive, it improves the project’s success and leads to fit for purpose deliverables and outcomes that are better suited to the consumer.

AUTHOR: JAMES CHAPMAN

The Promise vs. the Reality

AI has been widely identified as the next great engine of productivity growth; often compared to the transformative impacts of electricity or the internet. Yet despite billions of dollars invested, the productivity boost so far has been modest. Real-world gains remain incremental, narrow in scope, or uneven across sectors[1]. For many organisations, expectations have outpaced actual outcomes.

Why This Shouldn’t Surprise Us

This gap between hype and reality should not surprise us. We are living through a period of structural uncertainty; caught between the established environment and an emerging one still taking shape. This uncertainty is reflected in organisational investment behaviour. In November 2024 a Detons’ survey identified 69% of business leaders were pausing capital expenditure[2]. Similarly in July, The Cube Research identified that 87% of businesses were taking a ‘cautious approach’ to tech spending[3]. In both cases, AI uncertainty was identified as a key contributor to this decision.

This makes sense when you imagine uncertainty in the context of a new project. Imagine you are responsible for:

• Launching a new public-facing ICT service – would you design your customer support entirely through a chatbot, knowing public trust in AI is still forming?
• Delivering a new case management system – do you integrate a generative AI search capability now, or wait until regulations clarify how client data can be processed?
• Leading a major workforce redesign – do you restructure roles now based on current automation capabilities, or wait, knowing AI may soon take on tasks we still consider uniquely human?

Each of these scenarios highlights the uncomfortable but inevitable reality of transition: we are building the plane while flying it.

The Role of Project Professionals

While there are significant ethical, regulatory, and technical challenges associated with AI adoption, the focus here is narrower and more practical: the role of project professionals.

We are not passive bystanders. We have a responsibility to optimise our approaches, sharpen our processes, and support our stakeholders so that projects can navigate this uncertain terrain more effectively.

If AI is to deliver on its promise, it will not be solely because of algorithms or cloud infrastructure; it will be because project professionals made it possible to align people, process, and technology during a volatile period.

Principles for Managing the Transition

I believe there are four key principles that can help project professionals manage uncertainty:

1. Clarity of strategic planning – In a volatile environment, clearly articulating project goals and objectives is essential. Defining, documenting, and securing agreement on these goals ensures your project can navigate a radically changing landscape. Equally important is documenting assumptions — they provide a vital reference point when assessing whether the project is drifting off course.
2. Flexibility in execution – Embracing agile delivery methods provides the adaptability needed in times of change. I often use a Horizon delivery approach: setting regular planning windows to reassess progress and define the next tranche of outcomes, followed by focused delivery phases. This approach provides enough certainty for teams to deliver priority work while avoiding over-planning into an uncertain future.
3. Flexibility in project governance – Rigid governance can block timely decision-making. In volatile environments, this undermines a project’s ability to deliver value. Instead, governance should empower teams with the autonomy to make tactical decisions while maintaining alignment with strategic goals. Real-time automated dashboards should replace static status reports, providing decision-makers with up-to-date visibility and reducing response lag.
4. Embrace graceful project failure – Even with the best planning and flexibility, project delivery remains risky. We need to foster an environment where failure is not stigmatised but managed. A graceful failure closes cleanly, recycles resources, and preserves trust. A catastrophic one bleeds money, morale, and credibility. Encouraging frank advice and trusting leadership to act decisively allows organisations to recover quickly and redirect investment to more viable initiatives.

AI may yet deliver a productivity revolution, but for now the returns are uneven and the environment unsettled. In this transitional era, project professionals are not just implementers — we are stewards of resilience and enablers of progress. By applying disciplined yet flexible practices, project professionals can ensure that AI’s eventual productivity revolution is realised responsibly, efficiently, and with purpose.

[1] https://opendatascience.com/most-enterprise-ai-investments-deliver-no-return-mit-report-finds/

[2] https://www.dentons.com/en/about-dentons/news-events-and-awards/news/2024/november/ai-investment-trapped-by-regulatory-uncertainty

[3] https://thecuberesearch.com/283-breaking-analysis-tech-spending-remains-persistently-uncertain

AUTHOR: SAHANA SREENATHA

Government delivery has never been more complex. Policy priorities shift throughout project or program delivery, budgets are tightened, emerging technologies cause disruption, and teams restructure at a fast pace. Uncertainty is not going away. The challenge for agencies is not how to eliminate it, but how to build resilience so that projects, programs, and people can thrive in spite of it.

For many, the Project Management Office (PMO) has been seen as an administrative layer, a compliance checkpoint, or a collector of status reports. In practice, when resourced and empowered, it becomes something much more valuable. At its best, it is the Peace of Mind Office, providing clarity, confidence, and continuity in an unpredictable environment.

Rethinking the Value of PMOs

It is easy to define a PMO by its functions such as governance, reporting, risk management, and assurance. But a more useful perspective is to consider it through a Value Proposition Lens.

When the PMO is treated as a product and the public sector as its customer, its role becomes clearer. As per the Value Proposition Canvas diagram below; the product side encompasses the benefits it delivers, the experience it creates, and the features it provides. The customer side reflects the aspirations of leaders, the needs of various departments and agencies, and the fears that influence decision-making.

This framing highlights the difference between a PMO that enables resilience and one that simply ticks compliance boxes. Leaders want impact and credibility, they need decision-ready information and trusted frameworks, and they fear failure, wasted resources, and reputational damage. A well-positioned PMO addresses these directly, while a poorly supported one risks amplifying them.

Why Experience and Capability Matter

The value of a PMO is seen not only in what it delivers, but in how it shapes the experience of delivery. Organisations that position PMOs as trusted partners create cultures of openness, where project managers feel safe to escalate risks early and leaders feel supported rather than scrutinised. This shift from defensiveness to collaboration is where resilience begins to take hold.

Capability is the defining factor. Skilled staff transform the PMO from a reporting channel into a trusted advisor. A clear mandate allows it to influence decisions rather than simply reflect them. When these conditions are in place, the PMO provides foresight when priorities change, reduces risk under scrutiny, and enables leaders to make confident and credible choices.

Adaptability also matters. Delivery approaches across government have shifted significantly, with many Information Technology based projects moving away from traditional Waterfall methods towards Agile or hybrid models. These shifts offer opportunities for greater flexibility and responsiveness, but they also create new challenges, including increased documentation, additional approvals, and the need to balance agility with assurance. PMOs play a critical role in navigating this transition. By embedding governance frameworks that are scalable, proportionate, and responsive to context, they allow agencies to capture the benefits of Agile without losing the discipline required for accountability and oversight.

Examples from recent government initiatives that have demonstrated this outcome:

• Where PMOs were empowered to align frameworks with workflow systems, administrative burden was reduced and compliance strengthened.
• Where they were deliberately staffed and resourced, they helped the department/agency adapt quickly to shifting priorities, providing both stability and foresight.

These are practical outcomes that reflect the difference a strong PMO can make.

Meeting the Needs of the Public Sector

Public sector leaders want PMOs that are enablers of outcomes, not blockers of progress. They need compliance and governance that do not drown delivery in red tape. They are concerned about reputational damage from failed projects, the strain of under-resourced PMOs, and delays when timely advice is needed.

Meeting these aspirations, needs, and concerns requires more than just focusing on the delivery processes. It requires PMOs that build strong relationships, tailor frameworks to project context, and provide reliable information at the right time. Above all, it requires capability. Without skilled staff, the PMO charter risks being watered down, reducing its ability to influence and increasing the risks it is meant to manage.

The Future of the PMO

PMOs tend to operate in a landscape defined by uncertainty, shifting priorities, and an increasing demand to do more with less. Organisations are moving away from rigid Waterfall delivery models toward Agile or hybrid approaches, requiring PMOs to evolve from traditional oversight functions to dynamic enablers of delivery. PMOs will need to provide flexible governance frameworks that support both speed and accountability, acting as a bridge between leadership and delivery teams.

Key takeaways from recent observations highlight that PMOs must:

• Focus on value over compliance: The PMO’s role will increasingly emphasise driving tangible benefits for the organisation rather than purely monitoring adherence to process.
• Enable informed decision-making: By providing timely, clear insights into risk, progress, and resource allocation, PMOs can empower leaders to make strategic decisions even in uncertain contexts.
• Support hybrid delivery models: With the shift to Agile or hybrid approaches, PMOs will need to adapt tools, reporting, and governance to suit iterative delivery while maintaining oversight.
• Champion capability and culture: Beyond process, PMOs will play a critical role in shaping organisational capability, fostering collaboration, and embedding a culture of learning and resilience.
• Operate as a hub for stakeholder engagement: Acting as a single source of truth, the PMO ensures alignment across multiple initiatives, connecting executives, delivery teams, and external partners.

Looking forward, PMOs that embrace flexibility, value creation, and adaptive governance will be best placed to support organisations in navigating complexity, uncertainty, and accelerated change. The PMO is no longer just a control function; it provides practical support to keep projects on track and the organisation responsive.

AUTHOR: BRIONI BALE

The Australian public service supports Government to develop, implement and update Australian policy which can have population-wide impacts. Project managing policy change can be a challenge due to the complexity, tight delivery timeframes, inclusion of many stakeholders and the high sensitivity to risk, uncertainty and changing political environments. Outputs stemming from policy change are often less specific and are more focused on longer-term outcomes. How policy outcomes will be achieved can be unclear and can continue to change as the policy is developed, negotiated and agreed to by Government. The implementation of policy is typically more contentious or polarising than other types of change.

Good project management is essential to ensure successful delivery of policy outcomes, which can be significant, challenging to deliver and may require a different project management approach, when compared to other types of large-scale projects. This article explores how policy project management differs and provides techniques that can be used to improve successful delivery of policy in Australia.

Why is policy project management different?

• When compared to other types of projects, policy projects typically attract broader stakeholder interest (Ministers, their staff, government agencies, industry, industry bodies, consumers and, the public more generally) due to their potential for broad population impact. Other project types have more limited and specific stakeholder interest. There may be a large number of stakeholders, but the variety is generally less.
• Communication is important on all types of projects, but effective communication is essential in policy projects to gain support from stakeholders, influence public opinion, and ensure successful implementation. Communication in other types of projects tends to be more focused on internal updates, user engagement and marketing type activities.
• Developing policy involves extensive research and analysis (data collection, impact assessments and evaluation of pre-existing policies). Evidence-based decision-making is crucial to show the need for the policy, as well as supporting the development of sound policy. Research and analysis may also be important in other types of projects but it’s generally market research, technical feasibility, or user experience.
• Policy projects must consider legal and regulatory frameworks, compliance issues, and the potential for legislative changes. Public consultations are often necessary and there is generally always a need for some sort of legal advice. Where legislation is part of the policy, Parliamentary processes must be followed, which can take considerable time. Non-policy projects may need to consider regulations and compliance but typically not to the same extent.
• Implementation often involves multiple phases and can include pilot programs to better understand impacts. Specific evaluation points can be established to measure the effectiveness of the policy to allow for adjustments if needed. Other project types focus more on project roll-out, user adoption and iterative improvements over time based on feedback.
• Policy projects are generally funded by public money or grants, which comes with an increased need for transparent reporting and accountability to ensure value for money. Formal policy authority from Government is required. Other project types are funded by private investments, internal budgets, or revenue, with different accountability mechanisms.

Understanding the differences between policy and other types of large-scale projects is crucial to establish fit for purpose project management, to ensure policy-specific challenges and requirements are addressed throughout the project delivery.

The challenges and complexities of policy projects

There are many challenges and complexities associated with the development and implementation of policy.

• Policy projects often have interdisciplinary needs, requiring expertise from multiple disciplines i.e. economics, legal, clinical, sociological, technology. Different disciplines and the greater numbers of stakeholders involved in policy development create different project outcome expectations.
• It can be difficult to define the scope of a policy project due to ongoing changes as the policy intent is established and the realities of implementation are realised. A further contributor to scoping difficulties is the funding process, which can contribute to outcome expectation inconsistencies when requested and allocated funding are not the same, limiting or changing achievable outcomes.
• Uncertainty i.e. economic fluctuations, changes in political environment, natural disasters can impact policy outcomes and effectiveness. It can also complicate the translation of policy into action. Implementation complications could include logistical planning, management, monitoring, resistance, lack of capacity, or unforeseen changes.
• Gathering, analysing, and interpreting large volumes of data, is often necessary to inform policy decisions, which can be resource-intensive, time consuming and technically challenging. Privacy requirements always must be taken into consideration. Balancing competing ethical considerations, such as equity, fairness, and the public good, can add another layer of complexity to policy design and implementation issues.
• Policy benefits are often intangible and can be hard to identify and baseline in a manner that can be effectively measured. Often, benefit realisation cannot occur for considerable time after the completion of the project making evaluation difficult.
• Project management in policy environments is often undertaken by teams with limited dedicated project management capability and capacity which can impact project delivery and implementation success.

How to improve policy project delivery efficiency and effectiveness

With an understanding of how a policy project differs to other project types, and recognition of the complexities and challenges associated with policy project management, there are steps that can be taken to increase policy delivery success.

• There is a need for a deep understanding of the policy intent and any changes made to the policy through its development and implementation. Establishing artefacts and processes to underpin the project is important, but understanding the policy itself will improve delivery and outcomes.
• Taking a flexible project management approach, with consideration of the public sector team’s capability, maturity, capacity, risk appetite and leadership expectations can increase buy-in and improve internal capability.
• Building trusting relationships with public sector team members and leadership. Policy-specific subject matter expertise is generally found in operational team members. It is just as important to have good relationships with project team members as it is with leadership. Being in the trenches with the team is one of the best ways to build trust.
• Make exceptions when they are needed. Hard and fast rules sometimes do not work, and they do not win you friends or influence people. Sometimes, it is appropriate to make an exception where it supports the team.
• There is a need for fluid contingency planning, done in a flexible way, which considers the complexities of the project. There are often too many moving parts to set up one or two contingency plans and stick with them.

Building true partnerships with policy delivery teams leads to more successful delivery outcomes. The use of our project management capability alongside the policy subject matter expertise in the public sector leads to improved policy delivery and outcomes.