Programme Governance
Programme governance is the structure that decides things: who can approve what, at what forum, on what evidence. Most programme delay is not work that could not be done — it is decisions nobody had the authority to make.
If you change this
It implies 5 topics across one module.
See the path ahead →Why it matters
Governance is often built as a reporting structure and then used as a decision structure, which is why steering committees receive status packs and produce no decisions. The design question is not who attends — it is what each forum can settle.
- It converts escalation into decision: A defined path means an issue ends somewhere rather than circulating.
- It protects the schedule: Decision latency is a direct schedule cost and it compounds.
- It creates the audit trail: For public and government-owned entities, evidence of how decisions were made is itself a requirement.
The workflow
- 01
Structure design
Forums defined by what they decide, not by seniority.
- 02
Terms of reference
Each forum's authority, membership, quorum, cadence and inputs, written down.
- 03
Delegation mapping
Financial and scope authority traced back to the organisation's delegation instrument.
- 04
Operation
Forums run to cadence with papers circulated ahead, not read in the room.
- 05
Decision recording
Every decision captured with its rationale, owner and date.
- 06
Escalation
A defined route and a service level for issues that exceed a forum's authority.
- 07
Review
Governance itself reviewed — forums that decide nothing get removed.
Design each forum around the decisions it owns. A forum with no decision rights will fill its time with status, and the decisions it should have made will be taken by whoever is closest to the deadline.
What you need in place
- Terms of reference per forum: Including what it explicitly cannot decide.
- Delegation alignment: Programme approval limits consistent with the organisation's own instrument.
- A decision log: One, owned, and referenced rather than rewritten.
- Papers ahead of time: With a recommendation, not just information.
- Escalation service levels: How long an issue may sit before it must move up.
- Business representation with authority: A representative who must check with someone else is a delay, not a decision-maker.
Questions to ask
01Decision rights
What does each forum actually decide?
If the answer is unclear, it is a reporting meeting.
02Authority
Do the attendees hold the delegation they are exercising?
Approvals outside delegation are a finding waiting to be made.
03Latency
How long does a typical decision take?
Measure it. It is usually the largest single source of slip.
04Reversal
How often are decisions reopened?
Repeated reopening means the wrong people are deciding.
05Evidence
Would an auditor find the rationale for a material decision?
Minutes recording the outcome without the reasoning fail this.
Metrics and KPIs to track
Decision latency
Days from request to decision, by forum.
Decisions reopened
Share of decisions revisited after being made.
Escalation ageing
Issues sitting beyond their escalation service level.
Forum attendance
Quorum achieved, and delegate attendance instead of members.
Papers on time
Circulated ahead of the meeting as required.
Covers
Alongside this