The PMBOK standard evolution: leading the rising complexity

The aim of this work is to enlighten how the Standard for Project Management (part II of PMBOK® Guide) has evolved over the last 30 years as it has introjected the perspective of complexity. The several contexts (private firms, public institutions etc.) in which Project Management is applied become more and more complex (i.e. uncertain and characterized by unpredictable feedbacks among their own variables and their environments). This needs an enrichment (and perhaps a new conceptualization) of the endowment of information variety provided by the Standard for Project Management with respect to the specific requisite variety asked at a local level (i.e. the specific organizational contexts), to lead a project with efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability. The traditional Standard for Project Management can no longer be considered as a “comfort zone” (i.e. a set of established and “familiar” frameworks, rules and tools aiming to ensure certain and predictable results). On the contrary, the Standard for Project Management should shift towards an open standard, that is able to consistently co-evolve with the increasingly complex contexts that even more ask for new tools, creative solutions and original combinations between exploitative and explorative knowledge.