The Value of Project Management

The Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Pulse of the Profession report of 2025 identified that only 50% of projects qualified as successful. This definition of success was measured not by the traditional measures of meeting cost and schedule, but rather by “the extent to which global projects delivered value worth the effort and expense.”¹

For engineers and engineering organizations, this raises an important question: how can teams reliably deliver value in increasingly complex projects? The answer lies in strengthening project management capability across the organization.

This article explores why project management is becoming indispensable for engineering teams and how developing these skills supports consistent value delivery.

Why Project Management Matters in Today’s Engineering Environment

As expectations for value delivery rise, engineering organizations increasingly rely on both quality management and project management to meet stakeholder demands and improve outcomes.

The measures of project success are evolving, with stakeholders demanding more transparency, alignment, and measurable value. Stakeholders now expect project teams to fully understand the project vision and to consistently measure progress while prioritizing value creation. This requires engineering teams to be fast‑paced, flexible, innovative, and open to change.

To meet this challenge, engineering organizations are recognizing the value of developing standardized practices that support project management, competency development and the delivery of project benefits.

First Approach: Quality Management Standards

Quality management standards encourage the development of uniform management systems for production consistency and continual improvement; however, projects are performed within unique contexts. The question then centers around how to develop a universal, all-encompassing management system in the ever-changing world of projects.

Global standards, such as the standards from the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the Project Management Institute, are a starting point for answering this kind of question.

Organizations following the ISO 9000 Quality Management system standards report improved productivity and company growth.

Second Approach: Project Management (and Why Training Matters)

It is a challenge to obtain the same quantitative statistics for projects; however, qualitative surveys indicate a trend towards improved performance for those organizations with staff trained in project management and contributing to management systems based on the principles promoted in globally accepted standards. As an example, PMI’s PMBOK^® Guide identifies the principle “Focus on Value” as foundational for good project performance.

Why this matters for engineers: Project management training equips teams to define the “why” of a project and sets a firm foundation for project performance and measurement of success.

PMI’s research indicates that projects with a clear vision achieved a success score of 41, signalling strong perceived value delivery and alignment to purpose. Projects where project managers were focused on the execution of tasks achieved a success score of −18², indicating weak value realization and misalignment with stakeholder expectations

Why Project Management Training Matters for Engineers

For engineers, strengthening project management skills is no longer optional—it is essential for delivering value, improving project outcomes, and supporting organizational performance. Developing these competencies elevates engineering work from task execution to strategic contribution.

Elevate your skills from task-focused engineering to proactive project management with OSPE’s Project Management for Engineers – The Essentials course. Register for Spring 2026: Click here Register for Fall 2026: Click here

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¹ PMI Thought Leadership. (2025). Step Up: Redefining the Path to Project Success with M.O.R.E. Project Management Institute. Retrieved March 12, 2026, from https://www.pmi.org

² Ibid.

By: Darya Duma, MEng, P.Eng., PMP

Darya Duma is the President of 4DPM and an adjunct lecturer in the Master of Engineering programs at Queen’s University and the University of Toronto. Darya is the course instructor for OSPE’s Project Management for Engineers Essentials Course.