Only 19 Percent of HR Teams Excel at Project Management, McLean & Company Finds

As HR departments take on a growing range of strategic and operational initiatives, from organizational redesign and employee listening strategies to HR technology and AI implementations, effective project management has become critical to HR’s ability to deliver measurable business value. However, new research from McLean & Company finds that few HR departments currently have the project management fundamentals in place to consistently deliver projects on time, in scope, and with clear impact. According to the firm’s 2023–2025 HR Management and Governance Survey, only 19% of HR respondents report their department is highly effective in project management (n=1,681).

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To help HR leaders close this execution gap, McLean & Company has released its latest blueprint, Get Started with HR Project Management. The research provides a structured framework to help HR teams clarify project scope, engage key players, plan and execute work, manage risk, sustain communication, and close projects in a way that captures lessons learned and demonstrates value.

“Successful HR projects don’t happen by chance,” says Lexi Hambides, Director, HR Research & Advisory Services at McLean & Company. “Success results from deliberate planning and execution grounded in project management fundamentals that drive progress, optimize resources, build key player trust, and deliver measurable value to the organization.”

McLean & Company explains in the blueprint that ineffective HR project management is not a result of a lack of intent or effort. Instead, gaps often stem from missing fundamentals, including structured planning, effective scoping, proactive risk assessment, key player engagement, and ongoing communication. Without these foundations, HR projects are more likely to experience missed deadlines, rework, scope creep, and dissatisfaction from key players, limiting HR’s ability to deliver on strategic priorities.

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The firm’s research emphasizes that project management is no longer a nice-to-have capability for HR. As the scope of HR’s work expands, structured planning and execution enable HR teams to deliver strategic impact without sacrificing operational rigor, consistency, or credibility. By applying project management fundamentals, HR leaders can improve workload management, build key player trust, and deliver stronger outcomes for employees and the organization.

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