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Project Portfolio Management

Leading the corporate vision

verfasst von: Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

Verlag: Palgrave Macmillan UK

Enthalten in: Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" , Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

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Über dieses Buch

Many companies and organizations are faced with a portfolio of projects that need to be managed effectively and successfully. This new book by leading practitioners introduces a framework and range of tools to enable the project portfolio to be strategically managed.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Frontmatter

Understand Project Portfolio Management

Frontmatter

1. Defining Project Portfolio Management

Abstract

Competition, new product development, mergers, outsourcing and offshoring all result in change and in today’s business climate ‘change’ is the only constant. As enterprises are forced to adapt dynamically to changing market conditions this necessitates engaging in the management of multi-project environments.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

2. Identifying areas of pain

Abstract

One of the most common issues facing companies today is that they concentrate their management efforts on executing individual projects, but fail to understand the impact of these on the wider business. The result is sub-optimal performance and lower returns for the business as a whole. The typical challenges facing business today when managing projects include:

Misalignment between projects and their business objectives: The purpose of a project is to advance one or more business objectives. Most projects start out closely aligned with these objectives, but gaps inevitably appear. Projects drift and business objectives change and evolve. Without redirection, projects and deliverables end up failing to meet expectations.
Late or delayed projects: Late projects wreak havoc, delaying the time at which a company can start reaping business benefits, thwarting precise payback period calculations and disrupting the long term return on investment.
Dependency conflicts: Most projects are interrelated, sharing people, equipment, resources and deliverables. These dependencies mean that a single project delay has a significant ripple effect on related projects, disrupting schedules, causing resource conflicts and even triggering expensive contingencies, in order to minimise risks.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

Prepare and organise for Project Portfolio Management

Frontmatter

3. Organise the business for PPM

Abstract

Executive radars are typically focused on the following concerns and issues:

What contribution is each specific project making to corporate objectives?
How do the costs and ROI compare with similar project investments?
Are we maximising on the investments generated by our projects, products, assets and resources?
In what areas should we focus our project investments and resources for maximum competitive advantage?
Should we kill any existing projects and reprioritise investment elsewhere within the business?
Do we have the right mix of low, medium and high project investments?
What resources do we need to complete each project as planned?
Do we have resources in place to accomplish business projects?
What is the status of each project and programme?
What is the history of schedule prediction vs performance?

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

4. Select the PPM tool-set

Abstract

Organising the business’s people, and organising its processes, are the most important components in deploying PPM successfully. The software tools used in PPM primarily represent a way to automate the processes, to make them more effective and efficient by reducing human error and tedious administration to a minimum. It is vital to understand that simply possessing a PPM software tool does not mean that you have a PPM process and are actively managing your projects as a portfolio of investments. Simply put, avoid ‘pure play’ software vendors who are unable to provide a detailed PPM process package. Instead manage tool-set selection as part of comprehensive consultation led programme that focuses on delivering the organisation of people, processes and software as part of an integrated package.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

5. Build a PPM framework

Abstract

Where do we start, and what is the makeup of the PPM process? In this chapter we will take a high-level view of the PPM framework and discuss its various component areas. While discussion here is designed to introduce and build a basic familiarity with the PPM process, Part III, comprised of Chapters 7 to 11, will explore the process’s mechanics in greater detail. We also examine in later chapters how the PPM process is successfully delivered into the business, how to utilise best practice methods to execute the process and how to embed it into the organisational culture to ensure sustainability and longevity.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

6. Kick-start the process

Abstract

Having understood the relevant issues that need to be addressed in order to start organising the business for PPM, we now need to translate this into reality.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

Execute and control Project Portfolio Management

Frontmatter

7. Establish corporate visibility and environment

Abstract

Continuous change is the only constant that will ring a bell with those who are in business today. The META Group study showed that 50 per cent of Global 2000 companies adopted some form of project portfolio management. Yet less than 10 per cent of the companies’ execution drove the portfolio value up by as much as 30 per cent, while each of the other attempts became just another failed project!

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

8. Create prioritisation procedures and guidelines

Abstract

The purpose of this chapter is to suggest how to establish procedures and guidelines for prioritising the organisation’s projects. It is intended to provide a starting point from which to establish a project prioritisation process. Prioritisation is the process in which some project work is given preference over other project work, based on specific prioritisation criteria which represent the business strategies.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

9. Map resource capacity and demand

Abstract

In organisations the resource capacity is pulled from all sides by project demand. The resource capacity is defined as the organisation’s facility or power to produce or deploy resources for project work. The resource demand is the quantity and skill requirements of resources needed for project work at a specified time.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

10. Optimise and balance the project portfolio

Abstract

Optimisation is the tactical step of balancing resource requirements with resource demand and ensuring that authorised project work is specifically linked to the strategic goals of the organisation. The result of the optimisation process is a prioritised list of projects, with authorised assignment of resources to specific project work. The primary focus is on consciously aligning project work with business strategies using fact based information and good business sense. The ultimate goal is to accomplish the business strategies.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

Embed the Project Portfolio Management capability

Frontmatter

11. Embed the PPM culture and capabilities

Abstract

The word ‘culture’ is used a great deal by management and organisational development practitioners to describe the climate and practices that organisations develop around their handling of people. A great deal of work has been done on corporate culture and its relationship to business performance.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

12. PPM business scenarios

Abstract

In this chapter we map out some of the typical business scenarios that we have encountered when implementing PPM. We discuss from a high-level viewpoint the typical business challenges faced, the solution and processes implemented, and then round off with how the business has benefited.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

13. PPM action checklists

Abstract

These checklists are designed to complement the PPM processes explained within the book by providing you with key features (section 13.1) and questions (section 13.2) concerning how to help implement and maintain a successful PPM process.

Shan Rajegopal, Philip McGuin, James Waller

Backmatter

Titel: Project Portfolio Management
verfasst von: Shan Rajegopal
Philip McGuin
James Waller
Verlag: Palgrave Macmillan UK
Electronic ISBN: 978-0-230-20649-6
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-35344-6
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230206496