11/21/2025 - Network
Focused on project success: How GDPM provides clarity and direction for projects
The new guest article by Projektron editor Kai Sulkowski on the IAPM blog impressively demonstrates why many projects stall despite good planning and how Goal Directed Project Management (GDPM) can provide guidance right from the start. The method focuses radically on results rather than collecting activities and provides project teams with a clear structure for goals, milestones, and responsibilities. What's particularly exciting is that GDPM is especially effective when combined with modern project management software such as Projektron BCS.
GDPM: A classic approach that fits perfectly with today's project world
GDPM originated in the early 1980s. Interestingly, it never gained widespread acceptance, yet it remains highly relevant today. The approach does not begin with task lists or workflows, but with the questions:
“What do we want to achieve?
”Who is responsible for what?"
This focus seems astonishingly simple, but it resolves many typical project problems right from the start.
The focus is on two central tools: the Milestone Plan and the Project Responsibility Chart. They clearly define goals, dependencies, and responsibilities. This is ideal for teams that work in dynamic organizations or have to collaborate across departments.
The benefits are particularly evident in software support: milestones can be visualized in tools such as Projektron BCS, responsibilities can be clearly mapped, and plan/actual comparisons remain transparent at all times. In this way, GDPM combines methodological clarity with the operational strength of modern PM systems.
When projects become complex: Why GDPM provides guidance
Digital transformation, ERP implementations, and system conversions regularly involve a high degree of complexity. This is precisely where GDPM comes into its own. Instead of getting lost in detailed plans, the method creates a common understanding of which results must be available at what point in time. This takes the pressure off project management in particular: reporting becomes leaner, decisions become clearer, and risks become visible earlier.
Modern software solutions further reinforce this approach. Tools such as milestone trend analysis, dashboards, and resource overviews visualize what GDPM structurally specifies: only the essentials are measured, visualized, and communicated. Teams remain focused on results, not on activities that can easily take on a life of their own.
Companies that combine GDPM with digital tools therefore benefit twice over: The method creates order and clarity, while the software ensures transparency and binding control in real time.
Want to learn more about GDPM? Read the full guest post on the IAPM blog
A detailed introduction, practical examples—including an exciting use case for ERP implementation—and the strengths and limitations of the method can be found in the new guest article by Kai Sulkowski on the IAPM blog.
Screenshot of the article “Targeted for success: How Goal Directed Project Management (GDPM) gets projects on track right from the start” on the website of the IAPM International Association of Project Managers. The article was written by Kai Sulkowski from Projektron GmbH.
