Book excerpt: Programs are critical to organizations looking to optimize benefits and achieve strategic objectives. From initiation to benefits realization, program managers and teams unite the efforts of related projects to create more benefits than the sum of their component parts, adding value through the principles of program management.The Standard for Program Management— Fifth Edition is the definitive standard for individuals and organizations seeking to enhance their program management practices. This edition identifies the eight principles that guide behavior within program management practices and trends, establishing the publication as a principle-led standard.A new program management performance domain— Collaboration— is introduced andincorporated with reorganized content for a streamlined approach to reading, understanding, and using the standard. The Project Management Institute (PMI) offers this updated standard as a powerful tool for a broad range of organizations, regardless of their project delivery approach.This edition of The Standard for Program Management is closely aligned to and builds upon the knowledge captured in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK&® Guide)— Seventh Edition. It can equip anyone involved in program management with clear, complete, and relevant information to improve their practices. This standard is an invaluable resource for portfolio, program, and project managers, as well as senior managers and stakeholders.This standard, which is aligned with other PMI standards, underwent a rigorous review process and is approved by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).