Part 4: Clarity of purpose

Governance and accountability for three Christchurch rebuild projects.

In Parts 4-9, we take the collective findings from all three projects and identify lessons for each principle. We explain what helped make the projects' governance arrangements more effective and where improvement was needed. These lessons will apply not only to projects in Christchurch, but also to projects in the wider public sector.

In this Part, we discuss:

  • why clarity of purpose is important; and
  • our main findings about how well each project met our expectations of clarity of purpose.

Why clarity of purpose is important

People that set direction for projects need to clearly understand the project's purpose, including the limits to what they have to do and the project's intended outcomes. The people must also be able to understand the influence of their decisions and actions. If they do, goals are more likely to be met and intended outcomes achieved.

Individually and together, people in governance positions need to focus on more than just the reports on the project. They need to think at a strategic level, disseminate that thinking, and understand the effects of the directions they give.

Project purpose

When there is a clear purpose for a project, the people in governance can focus on delivering that project.

The Christchurch Central Recovery Plan and the Cost Sharing Agreement set out the purpose, location, scope, and budget for the Bus Interchange and New Central Library projects before their governance arrangements were put in place. This meant that the governance groups had a clear purpose, which was to deliver the project that had been defined.

The Government had also broadly agreed the parameters for the Acute Services Building project before appointing the HRPG.3 However, there are still some disagreements between the Ministry and the DHB about the scope. This has meant that the HRPG has to spend time confirming project scope and what is covered by the approved funding. Therefore, it has less time to focus on what is best for the project.

Governance versus management

Clearly separating governance and management helped governance groups to make decisions in the best interests of the project and take wider considerations into account.

Governance and management need to be separate because they have different functions and types of accountabilities. Governance involves making decisions about purpose and direction, and being accountable for those decisions. Project management involves putting those decisions into practice.

This separation was clear for the Bus Interchange project. CERA spent time preparing clear governance arrangements that explained the function of each part of the structure, as well as how those parts fit together.

The separation is also clear for the Acute Services Building project. The Government appointed the HRPG to provide governance and gave the Ministry the function of managing the project.

For these two projects, the governance groups took a broader and longer-term view when they made decisions. This allowed them to focus on the most important matters and leave more detailed decisions to project management. It also meant that they made decisions to achieve the best combined outcomes for related projects. For example, decisions about the Bus Interchange also considered how it would fit in with the objectives of An Accessible City.

The New Central Library project did not have a clear separation of governance and management. The Project Control Group was acting at a management level and did not show the level of oversight we expect for a governance group. No other group provided project-level governance.

The Project Control Group focused too closely on what its members wanted from the project and not enough on wider matters such as affordability within the Council's long-term plan. This meant that the project was at risk of failure.

The Council has introduced a Project Steering Group whose clear purpose is to provide governance oversight of the project. The Project Steering Group was set up in August 2015. Its members understand its function well and the level they need to operate at. The Project Control Group now has a clear management role.


A clear project purpose means that governance groups can focus on delivering project outcomes rather than trying to clarify the purpose and scope.

Clearly separating governance and management helps the right people to focus on, and be held accountable for, the right matters.

3: The Government set up the HRPG as a condition of approving the Canterbury District Health Board Facilities Development Project Indicative Business Case, which sets out the broad parameters for the Acute Services Building project.