2018 10th Global Project Management Survey - Success in Disruptive Times - Expanding the Value Delivery Landscape to Address the High Cost of Low Performance

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Theodora

2018 Pulse of the Profession report presents findings from a global survey of project, program, and portfolio management practitioners and executives. It examines how organizations deliver strategic value amid disruptive times and quantifies the financial impact of poor project performance, including wasted dollars on low performance. Based on responses from thousands of professionals across multiple regions and industries, the report highlights top drivers of project success, executive sponsorship, scope control, and value delivery capabilities, supported by interviews and third-party data analysis.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages36

Reading Time1 h 31 min

AccessFree to download

ABOUT THIS REPORT

Executive Summary

Top Drivers of Project Success

Top Driver #1

Top Driver #2

Top Driver #3

New Ways to Work

Future of Value Delivery

Current State of Global Project Management

Explore the current state of project management

Insight

Managing Disruption

Conclusion

2018 10th Global Project Management Survey Success in DisruptiveTimes Expanding the Value Delivery Landscape to Address the High Cost of Low Performance Success in Disruptive Times | Expanding the Value Delivery Landscape to Address the High Cost of Low Performance ABOUT THIS REPORT Conducted since 2006, PMI’s Pulse of the Profession® is the premiere global survey of professionals who provide project, program, or portfolio management services within global organizations. The Pulse charts the major trends for project management now and in the future. It features original market research that reports feedback and insights from project, program, and portfolio managers, along with an analysis of third-party data. The 2018 edition of the Pulse highlights feedback and insights from 4,455 project management practitioners, 447 senior executives, and 800 project management office (PMO) directors from a range of industries, including government, information technology (IT), telecom, energy, manufacturing, healthcare, and construction. Respondents span the North America; Asia Pacific; Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA); and Latin America and Caribbean regions. The analysis in this report and other outputs from this project, also draws on the insights of interviews with eight corporate leaders and eight PMO directors. Industry and regional comparisons are available on [PMI.org/Pulse](PMI.org/Pulse). 5,402 P R O F E S S I O N A L S S U R V E Y E D PULSE OF THE PR OFESSION ® | 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS CEO Letter: Delivering Value 2 As the world’s leading advocate for the project management profession, we know that all strategic change in organizations happens through projects and programs. Executive Summary 3 Organizations that invest informal project management drive change more effectively and have better results. Top Drivers of Project Success 6 Based on a rigorous statistical analysis, three drivers help organizations save millions of dollars. Top Driver \#1 6 Executive Sponsorship New Ways to Work 10 11 Future of Value Delivery Turning Ideas Into Reality Every organization has to ﬁnd its ideal balance between having project managerson staff and project managers who serve as contractors. Current State of Global Project Management 4 Explore the current state of project management. Top Driver \#2 7 Controlling Project Scope Top Driver \#3 8 Value Delivery Capabilities Insight 2 12 Managing Disruption Conclusion 19 Success in Disruptive Times | Expanding the Value Delivery Landscape to Address the High Cost of Low Performance WE CAN DELIVER MORE VALUE 9.9% of every dollar is wasted due to poor project performance—that’s $99 million for every $1 billion invested Scaled to encompass total global capital investment, around $1 million is wasted every 20 seconds—or $2 trillion every year “If your organization isnot good at project management, you’re putting too much at risk in terms of ultimately delivering on strategy.” MARK A. LANGLEY, PMI President and CEO (Source: 2018 Pulse of the Profession®) (Source: Brightline Initative™) Too much money is being wasted on poor project performance, for many reasons: 1) Organizations fail to bridge the gap between strategy design and delivery. 2) Executives don’t recognize that strategy is delivered through projects. 3) The essential importance of project management as the driver of an organization’s strategy isn’t fully realized As the world’s leading advocate for project management, we know that behind every project is an idea. Some organizations want to be more efﬁcient, while others are trying to increase margins or drive innovation. Regardless of the beneﬁts they seek, organizations use projects to achieve their objectives. Project managers in those organizations are turning ideas into reality. In 2006, we began analyzing, studying, and researching the profession through our Pulse of the Profe

FAQs

What is the purpose of PMI’s Pulse of the Profession report?

It is a global survey of professionals who provide project, program, or portfolio management services, tracking major trends for project management now and in the future through market research and analysis.

How many respondents participated in the 2018 edition?

The 2018 edition includes feedback and insights from 4,455 project management practitioners, 447 senior executives, and 800 PMO directors, plus interviews with eight corporate leaders and eight PMO directors.

Which competencies are identified as improving project success?

The report highlights investing in actively engaged executive sponsors, controlling project scope, and growing value delivery capabilities.

Sep 20, 2026

Uploaded by Theodora