Project Portfolio Management
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Your Discipline to Ensure Project Investment Success
Project Portfolio Management for Project Selection Process
Project Portfolio Management (PPM) coordinated approach enables your organization to efficiently and effectively evaluate, select, invest resources, initiate and manage projects.
The PPM approach brings discipline to an organization's collection of projects and programs to facilitate more effective project management, to meet specific strategic business objectives.
Typically, smaller companies do not use a Project Portfolio Management approach. This is often due to cost concerns - which would be out-weighed by ensuring the selection of the "right" projects.
Likewise, some larger companies chose not to use a PPM approach, again usually a cost decision. Due to the number of project investments, implementing a PPM approach in a larger company, often requires the selection and implementation of a PPM software application.
As briefly described on other pages, larger project management applications, such as Microsoft Enterprise Project Management (EPM), Oracle's PPM (formerly Primavera) and Clarity, facilitate a PPM approach. There are several other software applications from smaller vendors, such as OpenAir’s Integrated PPM Suite, Micro Focus (formerly Serena Software) Portfolio Edge, Casewise’s ITA Accelerator, Planview PPM Pro™ software as a service (SaaS) solution, and others.
Although I am able to provide a recommendation based on your project volume and business requirements, my fundamental recommendation regarding your selection of a Project Portfolio Management software application is to follow a disciplined, competitive selection process with broad-based participation.
Selection of your PPM software tool should follow these guidelines:
- ALWAYS DO A COMPETITIVE SELECTION!
- Base your RFI or RFP (the document you use for selection) on your internal guidelines (financial, IT, and operational) and short-list based on pre-determined, quantified selection criteria.
- Unless your organization has specific guidelines for selection
of enterprise applications (e.g., must be a hosted solution, must run on
Windows, must be an enterprise license, etc.) look at applications which
“fit” the size of your organization.
Although smaller organizations (less than 10 projects per year)
may chose to implement a PPM “approach”, the cost of an in-house PPM
application may be prohibitive (upwards of $1,000/seat). You have two
choices: 1) explore an SaaS/”Subscription-based” service (such as
Innotas or OpenAir), or 2) implement a "hybrid" PPM using tools such as MS-Excel,
MS-Project, and your current accounting application.
Mid-sized organizations (with 10 to 100 or more projects each
year) can benefit from the discipline of a PPM application.
- Initially, I recommend an SaaS or Managed Services approach. The closer you get to 100 projects per year, you may re-consider the approach and bring the PPM application in-house. Larger organizations (over 100 projects per year) may have the flexibility of competitively selecting between an in-house and SaaS solution.
- Since a Project Portfolio Management application involves ROI metrics for project selections and financial metrics to measure performance, involve members of your finance team early in the project selection process. Finance is one of your primary Stakeholders.
Because of the high visibility of project selection and success in a PPM environment, your Leadership skills will be in more demand during project selection.
As the PPM “Leader”, you will be interacting with your Senior Management Team on a regular basis. Your leadership qualities will need to extend across multiple functional teams – to Finance, HR, Operations, and into the Executive Offices.
You will need a thorough understanding of your organization’s business plan and objectives; financial metrics; resource utilization targets; cost accounting and time tracking; and revenue recognition practices – in other words, a more “strategic” understanding than with typical project management.
Difference Between PPM and a PMO
After several years of establishing PMO operations and running others previously established, I have found that a successful PMO provides:
- Consistent, regular communications to all team members and stakeholders; and
- Is a reliable resource to all project team members and coach/mentor to all PM’s.
Fundamentally, the PMO provides the centralized coordination of the project portfolio management discipline, rigor, and control for the organization.
PPM is the focus for and coordination of project selection and investment alignment.
The PMO is the focus for project planning, resource utilization, training, project performance, monitoring, controls, reporting, and the liaison between business governance teams and project governance.
Unlike a PPM approach, there may be minimal relationship between the various projects and programs managed by the PMO.
In some organizations, the PMO has delegated authority and is a key decision-maker on each project. In other organizations, the PMO is simply a monitoring and reporting vehicle to senior management on project progress and performance.
I have observed and participated in successful implementations of a PMO in a PPM environment.
Implemented together, the PMO provides structure and the PPM approach provides the strategic perspective for project selection and involvement of the senior business management team.
Project Management Body of Knowledge
Apply the Project Management Body of Knowledge for consistent project success!
Project Management Process & Lifecycle
Using the Project Management process and the lifecycle of projects to ensure your project’s success
Project Management Office - The Advantages to Your Organization
Establishing a Project Management Office – Realize improved project performance and project ROI benefits
Project Initiation – Critical steps in starting the project which will ensure its eventual success
Practical Project Management Tools & Resources
Your source for useful project management tools and implementable resources and information
Project Management Information - Questions & Requests
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