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Strategic Alignment in Project Management
Loren Karl Schwappach
Project Management Processes in Organizations, Colorado Technical University (CTU)

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Abstract
This paper argues the importance of strategic awareness and alignment of projects to corporate
objects at HLR Inc. It uses an example from my previous carrier in the Military to emphasize
the consequences that occur when projects and strategic objects are not harmonized as well as
the impact and how the problems might have been avoided. The paper ends with a discussion
about strategic alignment and the tools a corporation should use before projects are even
considered to ensure they are amenable with organizational goals.

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Strategic Alignment in Project Management
In order to ensure the success of HLR Inc.’s Standard Customer Relationship
Management Processes (SCRMP) project it is essential that the HLR Inc. leadership and division
managers understand the importance of the project and are willing and able to work together
towards completing this project and realizing HLR Inc.’s strategic business goals. Furthermore,
in order for this project to be effective it should be continuously monitored and audited to ensure
it stays within the projects scope and that it continues to enhance organizational strategic
objectives. This will involve constant participation by employees, division leads, and corporate
leadership support as well as a large amount of organizational resources and communication. In
this paper I will present the importance of strategic alignment and give a brief example of the
consequences that occur when an organization fails to clearly match organizational goals with a
projects direction and purpose.
Six years before I joined on with HLR Inc. as the IT department lead I worked as a non-
commissioned officer (NCO) for the US Air Force Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
Communications Maintenance Team. My team was responsible for maintaining the global war
fighting UAV and the communications equipment (PPSL, Satellite Link, etc.) that allowed the
system to work. However, in a time when the need for UAV’s was high our organization was
facing the next year’s budget and needed to increase spending to ensure that the next year’s
budget was sufficient to meet Air Force mission requirements. However, a lack of strategic
direction forced large sums of money to be spent on projects that were not aligned with
organizational deployment readiness (like building remodeling, the purchase of numerous new
plasma televisions, etc.). While the projects were successful in improving squadron moral they
were unsuccessful for preparing the squadron for the increased deployment and equipment

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demands called for by the Department of Defense (DoD). As a result numerous airman were
deployed double and triple rotations, equipment UAV turnover rates were taxing on the
equipment and personnel, increased funds were spent in a game of constant maintenance and
attainment, squadron moral faced all time lows and the squadron was barely able to meet DoD
requirements. Many of these problems could have been avoided by leadership and management
if projects chosen during the budget spending dilemma were closer aligned with strategic
objectives like the purchase of new UAVs, maintenance equipment, and an increase to personnel
requests.
In order to align projects like these closer to corporate goals at the initiating phase of the
project corporate organizational objectives require formal coordination and detailed planning in
order to ensure that the projects continuously flow in an arrow like direction towards corporate
success. Projects should never be hurdled carelessly and forgotten by senior executives to
uninvolved or uninformed project management groups. Everyone that has a stake in the project
must be on board and understand and clearly communicate the strategic direction, and resources
needed if the project is to succeed.
There are four basic things that should be accomplished before projects like this ever
break ground.
First, the corporation should commit to using project management strategically. Most
corporations have numerous amounts of projects under way at any given instant (Dinsmore,
2006). These include transformation projects, improvement initiatives, corporate expansions,
daily maintenance, employee empowerment and training, corporate restructuring, outsourcing,
and quality of life projects. Most project managers in organizations were thrown into their
position from managerial positions where daily activities involved information exchange and

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employee supervision. These new project managers must now have an understanding of the
nature of project management and should be toughly trained and coached by organizational
leadership so that they know the direction and have the resources to see the project to its
successful conclusion.
Second, there needs to be a policy of formally preparing project charters within the
organization (Dinsmore, 2006). Projects are the means in which corporate strategy is made
manifest. It is therefore fundamental that projects be chartered and developed in a former
manner in accordance with corporate strategy and intent. Project charters are the tools needed to
accomplish this. The project charter should have the participation and approval of upper
management and should be an answer (or part of an answer) to a corporate objective. The
project should have its objectives well defined, as well as stakeholder roles and responsibilities,
methodologies, a corporate philosophy that it is in harmony with, a well structured scope, and a
brief, usable, versatile, and efficient project management plan.
Third, there needs to be a positive synergy developed between those required to manage
and implement the project and the corporation’s business group (Dinsmore, 2006). For this to
happen there should be proactive, early involvement by corporate leadership and the project
implementation members. Organizations planning and scheduling human resources may not
align themselves with perceived outsiders (project managers) that are outside of their corporate
structure. This can cause a headache for project managers and the death of many projects. If the
chance for this circumstance exists it is more than likely that leadership has failed to correctly
communicate the importance of the project to these individuals and the need for positive
relationships between the corporate planners and the project management team.

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Fourth and finally, senior management needs to closely monitor corporate projects to
ensure that they don’t stray from their concise chartered objectives in alignment with the
corporate vision (Dinsmore, 2006). Many project management teams and corporate executives
use maintenance events to keep the projects aligned with corporate vision. Project audits are one
effective maintenance event and are utilized to compare on site practices against project planning
while looking for areas that stray from corporate objectives (Sveinun, 2007).
The move toward globalization and virtualization of the realm of business has moved
forward unabated and has given birth to numerous transformations as most organizations are
forced to reconstruct or modernize their corporate ethics and values in order to strive for stronger
relationships between business partners and customers. As a result of these changes most
organizations are launching information technologies at rapidly increased rates. Achieving
strategic alignment in these IT projects and other projects is viewed by most as a continuous job
due to the ever shifting organizational environments operating conditions. Although it may seem
difficult strategic alignment of projects has been shown to be the top deciding factor in corporate
flexibility and growth (Sveinun, 2007).
When looking into a corporation a vast palate of differing elements become visible;
people, departments, strategies, organizational practices etc. Senior executives are typically
interested in a more holistic view of the organization as opposed to looking at each separate
piece. Executives should strive to ensure there is a harmony and effective connection between
the organizations separate elements and divisions. Organizational divisions can be another
hurdle for project management. This organizational harmony when tied and focused to the
organizations primary purpose can be the seen as another method of alignment (Sveinun, 2007).

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What is essential is to ensure that project goals and priorities are also in cohesion and ensuring
that organizational goals and growth is at the front of every decision making step.
Strategic alignment is described by Sveinun (2007) as a concept that stresses “the
harmonization of the goals and implementation plans of IT with the goals and
organizational structure of the business”.
Most early research into project management was heavily directed towards internal
alignment. This alignment focused on how IT and divisions worked together (supports strategies
and goals, etc.) However, now that we live and are immersed in a constantly changing
information concentrated world where information flows steadily both up and down stream there
is also a strong need for inter-organizational alignment. Inter-organizational alignment implies
that organizations should refocus their objectives and strategic plans for how IT can support
strategies and alliances (Sveinun, 2007).
The importance of strategic alignment should not be under valuated. Projects closely
aligned and harmonized with corporation’s strategic objectives can be of great value and success
to organizations. However, as this paper has shown, projects misaligned can cost millions of
dollars and have devastating consequences to an organizations reputation, corporate atmosphere,
and growth.

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References
Dinsmore, P. (2006) Bridging the Gap between Company Strategy and Strategic Alignment of
Projects. American Management Association. Retrieved August 8, 2011, from
http://www.amanet.org/training/articles/Bridging-the-Gap-Between-Company-Strategy-
and-Strategic-Alignment-of-Projects.aspx
Sveinun, G. (2007) Strategic Alignment. Retrieved August 9, 2011, from
http://wikibin.org/articles/strategic-alignment.html