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Standards Development
This document proposes the development of an ISO international standard for requirements for
establishing, developing, implementing, evaluating, maintaining and continually improving project,
programme and portfolio management and related governance (“the project environment”) within the
context of an organization.
The ISO standard will help organizations to govern, manage and support projects, programmes or
portfolios responsibly in pursuing its objectives and to meet applicable obligations and specific
requirements related to interested parties and expectations, giving them confidence and providing
evidence through conformity assessment (e.g., for certification).
This document will focus on what needs to be achieved, not how to achieve it, so it will provide a
management framework that serves as an umbrella for all types of projects, programmes and
portfolios. What will be certified are not the individual projects, programmes and portfolios, but the
organization's ability to manage and govern the project environment for the successful realization of
their projects, programmes and portfolios.
The scope of the new standard is expected to align with the related ISO/TC 258 21500 series of
standards, such as it adapts from those guidance-based standards the various concepts that are
considered to be essential requirements, as applicable. Given the scope’s general alignment to the ISO 21500 series, it gives users the flexibility to apply either the guidance in the current standards or the requirements in this proposed standard, as applicable to their organization.
The ISO standard is intended to be applicable to all organizations (including temporary organisations,
like joint ventures), regardless of type, size and nature of activity, and whether in the public, private or
not-for-profit sectors that manage projects, programmes and portfolios.
ISO/TC 258 / AHG 13 has confirmed from a survey among its members and liaisons in 2020 (details in Attachment 1) that there is a problem faced by the market, particularly by organizations in developing countries, but also for smaller and medium sized organizations in developed countries, that can be addressed by ISO/TC 258. This problem is the lack of an ISO standard for the project environment that specifies clear requirements for third-party auditing and certification. Many organizations would benefit by being able to provide to their national, regional and global stakeholders, including prospective customers, funding bodies, investors and governments, written assurance by an independent body that its project environment services, products, processes, and systems meet specific, internationally recognized requirements. Conformity assessment (e.g., for certification) to a requirements standard can provide evidence that an organization has implemented and continues to improve the necessary practices and systems to demonstrate conformance when funding, sponsoring, implementing, supporting, and governing and managing projects, programmes and portfolios. Many organizations in developing countries could gain more credibility and a level playing field in world markets. One way of demonstrating that their project environment capabilities are as effective as those of their larger, better-known counterparts in other countries is that they adhere to the same requirements, as proven through a conformity assessment. In short, certification would provide these organizations with more access to world markets and open up new opportunities. ISO/TC 258 has a unique opportunity to help strengthen the capacity of such organizations and empower them, particularly related to global trade and other economic challenges, that can contribute to their long-term sustainability, growth, and competitiveness. This is a commendable goal to take on and could be an important contribution by ISO/TC 258 to implementing ISO’s Action Plan forDeveloping Countries, 2021 – 2025. Additionally, the World Trade Organization agreed on six principles for guidance in the development of international standards. This proposal adheres to the 6th principle, the Development Dimension, which states that “constraints on developing countries, in particular, to effectively participate in standards development, should be taken into consideration in the standards development process. About half (30 of the 65) of the ISO/TC 258 P- and O-members are developing countries and they will be invited to participate in the standards development and organizations in these countries will directly benefit from the new requirements standard when it is available. Apart from the benefits to organizations worldwide, there is also a benefit for ISO/TC 258. This standard can be justified as a needed alternative to the many guidance documents available around the world in this profession. It is a crowded field, so it should not be surprising that there has been relatively low purchase, use, and adoption of the current ISO 21500 series of standards when other providers of such guidance also support users with memberships, conferences, certifications, books, webinars, websites full of content and templates, etc. What generally is missing in the market is a requirements version, that will be distilled from all of this guidance over the years and it is now to be developed and agreed to by subject matter experts from around the world, who represent the members of ISO/TC 258. This fills a gap in the market, giving users a valuable new alternative to consider, as applicable to their organization, and an opportunity to significantly increase the sale and use of ISO/TC 258 standards. The proposed requirements standard is an important addition to the guidance standards in the ISO 21500 series and satisfies some specific needs of the stakeholders mentioned in the ISO/TC 258 Strategic Business Plan 2023: • “…Organizations and individuals providing project management education, training, consultation, certification, models and tools; • Organizations and individuals conducting research, audits or quality control of project management projects, organizations or individuals; • Developing regions and nations…”
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