Project Portfolio and Program Management

Because so much organizational work is done in silos, we sometimes forget the common skills and approaches that can be leveraged across the enterprise. One such skill is portfolio management, the application of systematic tools for reducing risks and maximizing the return on investments.

Portfolio management is conventionally associated with financial strategies: Instead of putting all of your money in one place, you spread it around and create a diverse portfolio of different types of investments — stocks, bonds, small-cap, large-cap, domestic, international, etc. You then manage the risk and return in the portfolio by adjusting the mix and amount of investments, since it is unlikely that all of them will rise or fall to the same degree simultaneously.

But what most people don’t realize is that this thought process can be applied to other organizational areas. If you want to increase your impact, think about whether portfolio management thinking might be useful in your area. If so, consider the following questions:

  • What’s included in the portfolio that you are trying to manage? What data and information do you need to determine what’s in and what’s out, and where items fit in the portfolio?
  • Is the portfolio effectively diversified so that you can spread the risk?
  • What criteria can you use to make decisions about the portfolio — to remove some items and increase investment in others?

We can help with the following project management services

  1. Develop project prioritization criteria
  2. Analyze resource capacity
  3. Evaluate project portfolio
  4. Implement an ongoing project portfolio management process