Introduction
One of the ideas I often share in my Project Your Life newsletter is simple: Your career should not happen by accident. You should design it intentionally.
In January 2026, I officially became a Program Manager at Volkswagen Financial Services. But the truth is that this journey started much earlier. It started with a question many experienced project managers eventually ask themselves:
What comes next?
When I Realized I Needed the Next Step
Earlier in my career, while working at Bosch Car Multimedia Portugal, S.A., I had the opportunity to lead very complex projects.
These projects involved:
- Very demanding customers (German and Japanese automotive OEMs)
- Simultaneous engineering disciplines (Mechanical, Hardware, Software, Display, Process, …) to develop and manufacture highly technological automotive components (Head-Up Displays and Instrument Clusters)
- Project Team Members distributed across five countries (Germany, Portugal, Hundary, India, Japan)
- Extended project teams with more than 20 people of several nationalities.
After successfully delivering the project results, I felt I had reached the level of a senior project manager.
At that moment, I started thinking about the next step in my career. One role particularly caught my attention: Program Manager.
In my organization at the time, this role existed mainly in Germany and was strongly connected to strategic leadership. From my perspective then, it felt like a position reserved for very senior leaders located in Germany.
Therefore, I asked myself: In this current situation – being in Portugal without anyone with that position – will I really have the opportunity to develop myself in this career path?
Preparing for Program Management
My passion for project management made the answer clear: If I wanted to grow, I needed to prepare for that next level.
That is why I decided to pursue the Program Management Professional (PgMP®) certification from the Project Management Institute. This certification was much more than a credential. It helped me understand:
- Strategic alignment
- Program governance
- Benefits realization management
- Managing multiple related initiatives to deliver business value
More importantly, it gave me confidence. Confidence that I had the knowledge and skills to operate at a program level. It also positioned me as someone capable of contributing to the growth of project and program management in Portugal, which is something I deeply care about.
Turning an Initiative into a Program
When I joined Volkswagen Financial Services Portugal, an opportunity emerged.
In October 2022, I kicked off a project initiative. However, thanks to the mindset I developed through the PgMP preparation, I did not see it simply as a project. I saw the potential of a program. Over time, the initiative evolved naturally. Instead of managing a single project, the scope expanded to include:
- Multiple components
- A wider set of stakeholders
- Up to 17 different potential beneficiaries or customers
By January 2026, this evolution became official when I assumed the role of Program Manager.
But the real transition had already happened much earlier — in the way I was thinking and managing the work.
The Real Difference Between Project and Program Management
One of the biggest lessons from this journey is understanding the true difference between managing projects and managing programs.
Project management focuses primarily on delivering outputs. Program management focuses on delivering outcomes and benefits.
In my experience, three aspects became particularly clear:
1️⃣ Stakeholder complexity increases significantly: Programs involve a much broader ecosystem. Instead of serving one customer or business unit, you might serve many different beneficiaries simultaneously.
2️⃣ Strategy becomes central: Every initiative must be connected to organizational objectives.
3️⃣ Work does not stop with delivery: In program management, the real question is: Did the organization realize the intended benefits? If the answer is not yet, then the work continues.
This mindset is increasingly relevant today with modern frameworks such as SAFe (that includes value streams) and emerging AI approaches such as CPMAI (where operationalization is a phase inside the project), where value realization is the true measure of success.
Lessons from My Journey
Looking back, several lessons stand out.
1️⃣ Do not stagnate: If you feel that your current environment does not offer the growth you seek, explore other opportunities. Your career deserves momentum.
2️⃣ Focus on benefits, not only delivery: The real measure of success is whether the customer or organization perceives the value. This mindset will become even more important in modern frameworks and complex transformations.
3️⃣ Certifications matter: Professional certifications like PgMP® provide more than recognition. They provide knowledge, credibility, and confidence that you are ready for the role.
4️⃣ Programs often start as ideas: Sometimes you do not start with a program, You start with an initiative. With the right strategy, vision, and persistence, that initiative can evolve into the program you imagined to manage.
5️⃣ Be clear about your goals: Talking about your ambitions with your leaders and managers matters. When opportunities arise, they will remember your vision and your commitment.
Summary and Practical Tip:
Becoming a Program Manager was not the result of a single promotion. It was the result of intentional career design. It required preparation, courage to explore new opportunities, and the ability to see strategic potential where others saw only projects. And most importantly, it reinforced a belief I often share: You should project your life — including your career.
💡 Practical tip: If you are a Project Manager thinking about the next step in your career, invest in continuous learning through certifications and structured study, while actively applying those concepts in your daily work to strengthen your experience. At the same time, communicate your career aspirations clearly to your leadership, because managers cannot support goals they are not aware of. 🚀
Wishing You a FabuLux Weekend! 😉
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