How Programs Differ From Projects?

There are two different views of how programs differ from projects.

On one view, projects deliver outputs; programs create outcomes: On this view, a project might deliver a new factory, hospital or IT system. By combining these projects with other deliverables and changes, their programs might deliver increased income from a new product, shorter waiting lists at the hospital or reduced operating costs due to improved technology.

The other view is that a program is nothing more than either a large project or a set (or portfolio) of projects:  On this second view, the point of having a program is to exploit economies of scale and to reduce coordination costs and risks. The project manager's job is to ensure that their project succeeds. The programme manager, on the other hand, may not care about individual projects, but is concerned with the aggregate result or end-state. For example, in a financial institution a programme may include one project that is designed to take advantage of a rising market, and another to protect against the downside of a falling market. These projects are opposites with respect to their success conditions, but they fit together in the same programme.

According to the view that programs deliver outcomes but projects deliver outputs, program management is concerned with doing the right projects, whereas project management is about doing projects right.