New Centre for "Major Programme Management" at Said

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New Centre for "Major Programme Management" at Oxford Saïd

16 March 2007

The world's first centre for major programme management is to be established by BT and Oxford University's Saïd Business School. It will support research into the management of major programmes such as the Olympics.

The BT Centre for Major Programme Management will carry out a programme of leading-edge and multi-disciplinary research, drawing together the expertise within the Saïd Business School and the broader University of Oxford (within departments such as engineering, computer science and law) and eminent practitioners from the global business community.

As well as carrying out research in this field, the Centre will also develop a ground-breaking teaching programme which will lead to an MSc in Major Programme Management to be launched in Autumn 2008.

Major programmes, such as the Olympics, which are characterised by being complex, high value, long-term projects, have proliferated in recent years. Typically their outcome impacts millions of people. Yet there is a shortage of rigorous, empirically grounded and intellectually robust support for this discipline.

Organisations are rethinking their approaches to major transformation programmes because of the increased complexity of operations in the public and private sectors around the world. The traditional tools and techniques of project management are no longer sufficient for the complex task of major programme management.

The BT Centre for Major Programme Management is intended to consolidate knowledge around this emerging and dynamic field which has considerable significance economically and often politically. It will foster a practical approach to the effective management of large scale programmes.

The BT Centre is expected to be fully operational in 2008. A Director of the Centre and a BT Professor of Major Programme Management will be appointed and further research appointments will follow.

Tim Smart, President BT Global Services UK, said:

“BT and the University of Oxford have initiated what I firmly believe will become a globally renowned research and teaching centre for major programme management. We will see an increasing number of these huge programmes as a result of rapid technological change and the effects of global connectivity, so there has never been a greater need to create a world-class research centre focused on improving overall predictability and performance. The combination of Oxford, with its international academic reputation, and BT’s global presence and practical expertise, means that the BT Centre will be uniquely placed to address this discipline. I am confident that the BT Centre for Major Programme Management will attract the leaders of the future for major programmes from the public and private sectors around the globe.”

In welcoming the establishment of the BT Centre, Dr John Hood, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford said:

“We are excited at this opportunity to be at the forefront of this emerging and important area for the economy. The Centre is an outstanding illustration of the potential that exists in the University of Oxford for the business community and academia to come together to carry out ground-breaking multi-disciplinary research of great practical relevance to business”.