What is the discipline that focuses on the interdependencies between projects to determine the optimal approach for managing them?

Project management focuses on the planning and execution of a single project to deliver specific outputs within scope, schedule, and budget constraints - it does not address interdependencies between multiple projects.

Program management involves coordinating a group of related projects, subsidiary programs, and program activities so that their interdependencies are managed and benefits are realized that could not be achieved by managing them individually. The program manager analyzes how changes in one project affect others, resolves resource conflicts, and optimizes sequencing to maximize overall benefit delivery. This focus on interdependency management is the defining characteristic that distinguishes program management from both project and portfolio management.

Portfolio management focuses on strategic alignment and value optimization across a collection of components that may not be related - it does not focus primarily on interdependencies between specific projects.

Operations management governs ongoing, repetitive business processes to sustain the organization - it is not concerned with managing interdependencies between temporary project work.