According to the PMBOK® Guide, specifically in the sections regarding Project Initiation and the Develop Project Charter process, projects are authorized by an organization to respond to specific business drivers.
Internal Business Needs: This is the foundational factor for project selection. A project is a means to achieve a strategic goal or solve a specific problem within the organization. These needs are typically documented in the Business Case, which justifies the investment based on market demand, organizational need, customer request, legal requirement, or ecological impacts.
Strategic Alignment: Projects are selected based on how well they align with the organization ' s strategic objectives. If a project does not meet an internal business need or provide value to the organization, it is unlikely to be selected, regardless of its budget or schedule.
The Selection Process: Organizations often use a variety of selection criteria (such as Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, or scoring models) to evaluate which projects best address their internal business needs and offer the highest return on investment.
Analysis of Other Options:
A. Types of constraints: While constraints (such as scope, time, and cost) are critical to manage once a project is selected, they are secondary to the reason for doing the project in the first place.
C. Budget: The availability of a budget is a requirement for a project to proceed, but the decision to allocate that budget is based on the underlying business need. A project is not selected simply because money is available; it is selected because there is a need that justifies the expenditure.
D. Schedule: Similar to budget, the schedule is a constraint. A project must be feasible within a certain timeframe, but the timeframe itself is not the most important driver for selection—the business outcome is.
