Sustaining progress of portfolio management

Many stakeholders in an organization get excited when a new initiative is started. However, enthusiasm usually reduces with time and eventually dies out. This is particularly true for situations where benefits take time to materialize. This can happen irrespective of whether the approach is big bang, evolution or ad hoc. Unlike projects that result in material benefits, a portfolio management implementation results in process changes, which can also be plagued with resistance to change.

Recommendations for Sustaining Progress

The following recommendations are to ensure portfolio management implementation takes place progressively.

• Senior sponsor from the organization: A C-level leader acting as a sponsor is necessary for the successful implementation of portfolio management. The chosen leader (the portfolio director) must continuously promote portfolio management to key stakeholders and engage them. The director will be supported by the portfolio manager, who is given the responsibility of implementing the portfolio will act as the facilitator and provide key technical inputs to make things successful.
• Evolutionary approach: The evolutionary approach results in quick wins and it is the recommended approach in most cases. It also demonstrates the value of portfolio management to a larger audience. When benefits are visible to stakeholders, there is a natural tendency to adopt it. However, it is important to look at the environmental factors of the organization and then decide whether this is the right way to go.
• Reusing existing processes: If the organization already has some processes in place, they do not need to be changed, unless there is a real reason to do so. For example, some organizations may already have a process to prioritize projects, because they have understood that they cannot do everything at the same time. If the existing processes are good enough, there is no reason to change them. They can be used with portfolio management practice.
• Success criteria: Success criteria measures outcomes of efforts. Success criteria should be in place for everyone, including the portfolio director and the portfolio direction group. They should also be made clear to everyone so that every individual is aware of their part. Regular progress reviews should also include a review of success criteria.
• Individual Performance Criteria: In most organizations, individual performance is assessed regularly. In most cases, the individual performance criteria are specific to their own department’s tasks. To extract the best out of the portfolio, individual performance criteria should envisage a broader organizational context. This will enable portfolio management to be adopted quickly. Portfolio management is always cross-functional. It is not limited to one function alone.
• Continuous improvement: Portfolio management practices should also evolve and continuously improve according to the organization’s business needs, strategy and environmental changes. Assessing the impact of portfolio management will ensure these forces are addressed and will helps in the on-going development of more effective portfolio management practices.
• Tailoring: Portfolio management practices should be tailored to suit local circumstances. This will ensure the organization’s existing maturity of delivering projects and programmes are leveraged, to sustain progress of portfolio management.

Value of Lessons Learned

Projects and programmes always have a start and an end. A portfolio is a continuing effort. There are always lessons learned in projects and programmes, which can be reused in other projects. Lessons learned for project implementations can be collected from the internal organization in most cases. On the other hand, a portfolio implementation is always a one-off effort. Some ways of capturing lessons learned in a portfolio implementation, is to retrieve them from other organizations, professional forums or through consultants.

Software Systems

Software systems can certainly help to achieve implementation and continual operation of project portfolio management. They are helpful but not mandatory. They can certainly make data available as and when needed. They can also help to map processes and perform other key functions. Effective use of software is always encouraged. But if the software system itself consumes significant time and effort, then it may not be the right way to go. It is always a good idea to look at tools that are already available within the organization first and then assess whether another tool should be brought in.

Written by Inham Hassen

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