Program Controls: Keeping Complex Infrastructure Delivery on Track

Infrastructure delivery today often involves multiple projects, each with its own schedule, budget and stakeholders working toward a shared goal. As programs grow in size and complexity, keeping everything aligned can become a real challenge for owners.

When programs fall out of alignment, the impacts are real. Schedules slip, costs increase and decision-making becomes reactive instead of proactive. For public agencies and utilities, that can mean delays in delivering critical infrastructure to the communities they serve.

Freese and Nichols helps clients navigate this complexity through a structured approach to program and project controls, bringing visibility, accountability and coordination to every stage of delivery. This approach is supported by integrated tools such as program management information systems, scheduling platforms and data dashboards that provide real-time insight into program performance. It is also supported by teams that can adapt to each client’s needs, working across planning, design and stakeholder coordination to keep programs moving forward.

This is especially important for programs that involve multiple stakeholders, governing bodies and public engagement, where coordination is just as critical as technical delivery.

Program Controls and Project Controls

Project controls focus on the fundamentals. They include the tools, systems and practices used to plan, monitor and manage performance across cost, schedule, risk and change. At the project level, these controls help teams stay aligned with defined budgets, timelines and scopes, providing the structure needed to deliver individual projects successfully.

Program controls operate at a different level. They are not simply project controls applied at a larger scale. Instead, they provide a strategic layer of oversight across the entire program, focusing on factors that are often difficult to see when projects are viewed in isolation.

Simply put, project controls help deliver individual projects successfully, while program controls ensure all projects work together to achieve a larger goal.

At the program level, teams manage the interdependencies between projects, adjusting sequencing and priorities to maintain overall momentum. They balance budgets across the portfolio, offsetting overruns in one area with efficiencies in another. They also shift the focus of reporting from individual project performance to overall program progress, helping stakeholders understand how each effort contributes to broader goals.

Freese and Nichols continues to strengthen and expand its program controls capabilities as part of a deliberate, long-term strategy, combining program controls with deep technical expertise in infrastructure planning, design and delivery.

City of Hickory Bond Program

The following example highlights how owners are applying program and project controls, with support from Freese and Nichols, to manage complexity, maintain alignment and deliver measurable results.

The City of Hickory, North Carolina, launched a $40 million bond program, combining local funding with federal investment to deliver a wide range of infrastructure improvements. To date, the City has leveraged this funding to secure more than $75 million in additional grants, supporting a growing portfolio of projects across the community.

The program includes multiple projects, a 42-member bond commission and significant stakeholder coordination. Early in the process, the City planned for many projects to move forward on similar timelines. At the individual project level, this approach appeared manageable. However, when viewed across the full program, it created significant challenges.

By applying program controls, the City evaluated the combined schedule, workload and key milestones across all projects. This analysis showed that critical activities such as plan reviews, public meetings and decision points were heavily concentrated within short timeframes. In some cases, multiple major milestones would have occurred within the same month, creating unrealistic demands on staff and stakeholders.

Working with Freese and Nichols, the City resequenced the program to spread these activities across a more balanced timeline. This reduced bottlenecks, improved coordination and allowed decision-makers to stay engaged throughout the process.

“Program controls give clients the ability to see how everything connects across a program,” said Morgan McIlwain, Program Manager. “That visibility makes it easier to adjust early and keep projects moving in the right direction.”

The City strengthened budget development, improved coordination with design consultants and enhanced communication across the bond commission. With better visibility across the full program, leaders were able to maintain alignment between projects while advancing broader community goals.

The impact extends well beyond project delivery. The program has already generated over $1.08 billion in private investment, contributed to 1,869 new jobs and supported 1,396 new housing units near key project areas. It has also helped the City leverage its initial $40 million bond referendum to secure more than $75 million in additional grant funding, significantly expanding the program’s reach and long-term impact.

Looking Ahead

As infrastructure programs continue to grow in scale and complexity, the role of program controls is becoming more critical. Owners are asking for greater transparency, more integrated systems and better access to real-time information to support decision-making.

Freese and Nichols is actively advancing its program controls capabilities to meet this need. As part of its long-term strategy, the firm is focused on strengthening its approach to scheduling, cost management and program-level coordination while expanding the use of digital tools and data-driven insights.

“We are continuing to build and strengthen our program controls capabilities,” said Jeff Hammond, Program Management Technical Leader. “It is an important part of how we support clients managing more complex programs.”

This effort includes integrating dedicated program controls leadership to guide strategy, implement best practices and expand the use of digital solutions that enhance how programs are planned, tracked and delivered. By continuing to invest in people, processes and technology, Freese and Nichols is elevating its program management services and delivering greater value to public agencies and utilities.