What is the importance of an active sponsor? That is the question that many seem to be asking. It is hard to have sponsor’s realise how important their role is to a project and the difference they make to the successful roll-out of the project.

Let’s first start off with what is a project sponsor:

The project sponsor is an individual with an overall accountability for a project. They usually fulfil a Senior Manager or Executive position and are therefore ideal to keep projects aligned with organizations’ strategy and portfolio direction, administer project risks as well as have regular contact with other sponsors.

According to Schibi, O. & Lee, C’s paper on Project Sponsorship: Senior Management’s role in the successful outcome of projects, presented at PMI® Global Congress 2015, is primarily concerned with ensuring that the project delivers the agreed upon business benefits and acts as the representative of the organization, playing a vital leadership role through a series of areas:

• Provides business context, expertise, and guidance to the project manager and the team;
• Champions the project, including “selling” and marketing it throughout the organization to ensure capacity, funding, and priority for the project;
• Acts as an escalation point for decisions and issues that are beyond the authority of the project manager;
• Acts as an additional line of communication and observation with team members, customers, and other stakeholders; and
• Acts as the link between the project, the business community, and strategic level decision-making groups.

The focus of this article will be on the second point of the above-mentioned areas, especially focusing on what is expected of the Champion role and how that contributes to the success of a project.

A “Champion” is defined by the Project Management Institute as an individual who:

“identifies with a new development (whether or not he made it), using all the weapons at his command, against the funded resistance of the organization. He functions as an entrepreneur within the organization, and since he does not have official authority to take unnecessary risks … he puts his job in the organization (and often his standing…) on the line… He (has) great energy and capacity to invite and withstand disapproval.” [1]

The sponsor could contribute to the success of a project when fulfilling a Champion role of the Project as that is where the sponsor’s assistance is greatly needed. One of the most common reasons why projects fall short is a lack of executive sponsorship and management buy-in, according to the KPMG New Zealand Project Management Survey 2010. In addition, PMI’s 2010 Government Program Management Study found that 81% of program managers at U.S. government agencies said that strong support from at least one executive-level sponsor had a high impact on project success.

What is expected of an engaged Executive Sponsor/Champion?

1. They need to be the project’s advocate at all times to ensure buy-in from other executives.
2. They must know how to convey the project’s vision to anybody who can influence the outcome that will assist in eliminating road blocks or even result in the wanted outcome.
3. They must have a storytelling skill to ensure that the intended message is received at formal executive meetings or informally in the organization’s corridors to again assist in buy-in from managerial stakeholders.
4. They need to support and motivate the project team through regular and consistent interaction as this will ensure a productive team willing to go the extra mile and being aware of the organization’s vested interest in the project.
5. They should have a good and allied relationship with the project manager to ensure mutual expectations and direction of the project.

Therefore, an engaged executive sponsor, with a vested business interest in the project from kick-off to close, with sufficient visibility will allow for improved stakeholder buy-in, which will result in projects being more successful and proves the importance of an active sponsor.

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