Navigating “Never-Ending” Projects in
Highly Regulated Industries Through Governance,
Strategic Prioritization, and Emotional Intelligence
SECOND EDITION
By Shawna Calhoun, DBA Student, MBA, PMP
Texas, USA
Introduction
Most strong project managers have heard (or will hear) the phrase, ‘You’re too valuable to move.’ In most professional contexts, this is a compliment. In project management, particularly within highly regulated industries, it can become a professional paradox–a trap built of your own competence. This case study explores that paradox through the lens of a complex, multi-year healthcare information technology initiative: the implementation of electronic claims attachments under evolving federal mandates. The program was intensified by shifting regulatory requirements, multi-vendor dependencies, and the political sensitivity common to publicly funded healthcare programs.
The project manager at the center of this case study repeatedly demonstrated the capacity to translate regulatory complexity into structured delivery. Leadership, recognizing this capability, made a strategic decision not to reassign her–ever. The result was a “never-ending” project with no defined finish line and no clear mechanism for closure. What began as a regulatory compliance initiative grew into a perpetual program fueled by continuous scope change, evolving payer requirements, and unresolved stakeholder accountability.
This paper examines how structured governance, strategic prioritization, and emotional intelligence (EI) were deployed to transform the project from reactive delivery to governed execution. Specifically, it addresses how a Change Control Board (CCB) with transparent evaluation criteria, a disciplined scope management framework, and advanced leadership capabilities–particularly the ability to influence without authority–helped move stakeholders from avoidance to accountability. These interventions align directly with the newly released PMBOK® Guide–Eighth Edition (PMI, 2025), which elevates Governance to a standalone performance domain and introduces “Lead Accountably” as one of six core principles guiding effective project management behavior.
The lessons drawn from this case study (illustrated in Figure 1 below) are broadly applicable to any program manager operating in a regulated environment where mandates evolve faster than project charters, and where organizational politics create invisible scope that quietly grows until it consumes all available capacity. The timing of this case study is also instructive: the structural and behavioral solutions described here mirror the very competencies the PMBOK 8th Edition now codifies as essential to modern project governance and stakeholder accountability.
The governance structures and leadership practices described in this case ultimately enabled the program to transition from individual dependency to institutional capability. By the end of the initiative (or rather, a phase of it), the program manager was able to transition to new professional opportunities while the governance framework continued to support ongoing regulatory implementation.
Case Study Approach. This paper uses a single-case practitioner analysis of a multi-year healthcare IT initiative in a highly regulated environment. The organization is anonymized. Observations draw on governance artifacts (intake submissions, change logs, and decision records) and retrospective synthesis of stakeholder and vendor interactions. The intent is analytic generalization: identifying transferable mechanisms and failure modes applicable to similarly regulated programs.
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Editor’s note: Second Editions are previously published papers that have continued relevance in today’s project management world, or which were originally published in conference proceedings or in a language other than English. Original publication acknowledged; authors retain copyright. This paper was originally presented at the 18th Project Management Symposium at the University of Texas at Dallas in May 2026. It is republished here with permission of the author and conference organizers.
How to cite this paper: Calhoun, S. (2026). When Project Success Becomes the Trap: Navigating “Never-Ending” Projects in Highly Regulated Industries Through Governance, Strategic Prioritization, and Emotional Intelligence; Originally presented at the 18th Project Management Symposium at the University of Texas at Dallas in May, republished in the PM World Journal, Vol. XV, Issue VII, July. Available online at https://pmworldjournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/pmwj166-Jul2026-Calhoun-When-Project-Success-Becomes-a-Trap.pdf
About the Author
Shawna Calhoun
Texas, USA
Shawna Calhoun is an accomplished Program and Project Manager with extensive experience leading large-scale healthcare IT initiatives in highly regulated environments. Known for transforming complexity into clarity, she has delivered high-visibility programs spanning Medicaid modernization, electronic claims attachments, payer–provider interoperability, and regulatory compliance. Shawna’s leadership blends strong technical execution with advanced Power Skills—emotional intelligence, conflict navigation, and strategic stakeholder alignment—enabling her to guide organizations through shifting mandates, multi-vendor landscapes, and politically sensitive decision environments.
She is currently completing her Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) in Project Management at Liberty University, where her research explores stakeholder influence, emotional intelligence, strategic prioritization, and governance effectiveness in complex projects. Shawna is also the author of the newly released book “If Jesus Was a Project Manager,” the first in her Faith at Work leadership series. She is passionate about elevating the profession through speaking, writing, mentoring, and project management excellence.
Shawna can be contacted at scalhoun@faithfwdlife.com
