Discussion

For this week’s interview, our group had the pleasure of interviewing Raymond Mullings, Program Manager with Econometrica, Inc. He has currently served as a Program Manager at this organization for 2 years and assists the Project Manager of National Content Developer (NCD) contract in providing technical support to Hospital Engagement Networks (HENs).

1. Specifically, identify how program management was introduced into their firms.

My firm was founded in 1998 to meet the growing demand for directed economic and analytical consulting services. As my company grew, and we expanded our services, we found that our projects were becoming larger with more requirements, more demands, and an increasing need for better project organization. My company then introduced program management as an effective and strategic way assist us in helping our clients meet their needs. We have positioned and assembled our program managers as competent and highly effective leaders to carry out the life cycle of a program from conception to completion. In my firm, program managers for a particular project bid on a proposal by their expertise, knowledge, and technical skills, as they relate to the RFP (request for proposal). Every program manager has their own unique style and, of course, every project is different requiring a different approach. No two projects are the same. Thus, program management in my company is executed is various ways, as determined by the program manager. Our company culture is that program managers own their work, so our managers are empowered to execute in their own way.

2. What was the business case for program management and what results have they realized from program management?

Our business case for utilizing program management was largely financial. As a smaller company, with just 50 individuals, we realized that we could grow as a company and take on larger, more complex projects by successfully managing the multiple pieces, as program...