Project portfolio management (PPM) software can help you plan, prioritize, and execute multiple projects efficiently and effectively. But how do you balance the costs and benefits of investing in such a tool? In this article, we will explore some key factors to consider when choosing and using PPM software for your organization.
Before you start comparing different PPM software options, you need to have a clear idea of what you want to achieve with them. What are your main PPM challenges and pain points? How do you measure the value and performance of your projects? What are your strategic objectives and alignment criteria? By defining your PPM goals, you can narrow down your software requirements and focus on the features and functions that matter most to you.
The question that you need to ask yourself is. What do you want the software to tell you that your program and project leaders can't? If what you need them to tell you takes them away from leading and consumes a lot of their time, then you have a business case for costs and benefits. Portfolio Management comes down to actionable insights, not information. Your PPM goals will tell you if you've got a communication issue or tool problem. Address the communication issues first, and they may highlight underlying issues that a new tool wouldn't have been able to resolve.
As a project portfolio manager, it is essential to build focus and prioritization when it comes to setting your PPM goals. By carefully selecting the most crucial and strategic initiatives, we can ensure that our limited resources, time, and efforts are channeled toward the projects that align best with our organization's long-term objectives, ultimately maximizing our chances of success.
I would agree with many of the perspectives added by the Linkedin members so far regarding the questions that need to be taken into account before embarking on the PPM journey. I had the privilege to work with many of the best in class PPM tools like Primavera and PlanView, but in my opinion I have not seen yet an implementation that leverages the Total Cost of Ownership view and actively measures the benefits of these tools.
Is your organisation ready for a PPM tool? Maturity of existing project, programme and portfolio management processes plays a huge part in successful adoption - as does a willingness to inspect and adapt those processes to optimise workflow across the organisation. If existing processes are not defined and repeatable, moving to a PPM tool will be a struggle.
?? In my experience, setting PPM goals is an intricate task, with various facets deserving attention. ?? Alignment with Business Strategy Ensure PPM goals sync with overall business aims. This synergy ensures optimal resource allocation. ?? Flexibility in Approach Goals should be adaptable. Given project dynamics, having malleable objectives can save time and costs. ?? KPI-Driven Objectives Establish clear Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). This gives tangible metrics for assessing project performance. ?? To strike a balance, align PPM goals with the business strategy, ensure adaptability, and focus on KPIs for measurable outcomes.
PPM software costs are not limited to the initial purchase or subscription price. You also need to consider the total cost of ownership (TCO), which includes the ongoing expenses of maintenance, support, upgrades, training, integration, customization, and security. To calculate the TCO, you need to estimate how much time, money, and resources you will spend on each of these aspects over the expected lifespan of the software. You also need to factor in the potential risks and opportunity costs of not having the software or choosing a cheaper but less effective alternative.
This is metaphorically the "Cobbler's kids" project of a PMO. This article lines out all the right reasons why a PPM Project needs to be treated like any other Strategic project, but often times gets the dribs and drabs of resources, priority, and efforts from the Sponsoring organization. Why is this? The value gap between running a PPM from a spreadsheet that is "cheap and easy" and is "working just fine" is hard to knock, compared to the difficult work of implementing a sophisticated system that enforces accountability, traceability, and visibility that ultimately may be uncomfortable and unwanted. Getting a strong Sponsor that will champion the PPM, who understands the value, underlying needs, and connecting KPI's is the key success.
To balance the costs of PPM software, you also need to estimate the expected return on investment (ROI), which is the ratio of the benefits to the costs. The benefits of PPM software can be tangible or intangible, such as improved efficiency, quality, customer satisfaction, innovation, risk management, decision making, and stakeholder engagement. To measure the ROI, you need to quantify the benefits in terms of metrics, indicators, and outcomes that are relevant to your PPM goals. You also need to compare the ROI of different PPM software options and select the one that offers the best value for money.
Once you have chosen the PPM software that suits your needs and budget, you need to implement it effectively to maximize its benefits and minimize its costs. This involves planning and executing the software deployment, configuration, testing, and adoption phases carefully and collaboratively. You need to involve and communicate with all the key stakeholders, such as project managers, team members, sponsors, customers, and vendors. You also need to provide adequate training and support to ensure that everyone can use the software properly and efficiently.
Based on my personal experience, I would strongly recommend that you define your specific needs and objectives before choosing a PPM software. Once you choose a tool, it is hard to return to it. Make sure that the features they offer are the ones you need.
It has to be able to add value through the involvement with project stakeholders in terms of being an effective communication tool in progress updates, risk management, prioritization of issues and resources.
Embarking on the implementation of a PPM tool is a perfect example of business change, a transformation that will impact people and process as well as technology. You will need to ensure that business as usual is not disrupted during this transformation, and that requires a managed approach just like the one you would recommend to Finance, HR, Sales & Marketing or any other operational function within your company.
Once you implement the PPM tool, it needs to be validated against the legacy method. Often, it will throw some surprises and one needs to educate leaders about the significant differences. Many will doubt about correctness of the PPM tool and hence manual calculations need to be ready to prove its effectiveness. One needs to be careful about this difference at the time of implementation.
Your organization has its unique approach and strategy. PPM software should be adaptable, allowing you to reflect your specific methodologies and frameworks rather than imposing rigid external methods. Flexibility in customization ensures that the tool aligns seamlessly with your organization's processes, making it more effective in driving project success.
Finally, you need to monitor and optimize the PPM software performance regularly to ensure that it meets your expectations and delivers the desired results. This involves collecting and analyzing data on the software usage, functionality, reliability, and satisfaction. You need to identify and address any issues, gaps, or errors that may affect the software performance or user experience. You also need to review and update the software features and functions as your PPM needs and goals evolve over time.
Several leaders may doubt about mirror being shown by the PPM tool and will deny the reports. So, one has to be careful while implementing the PPM tool and ensure it aligns with what they have communicated early. The data has to ultimately come from leaders and hence, buy-in is required from them early on.
A well-implemented PPM tool provides insight into project performance, allowing organizations to measure their success and return of investment. When objectives are clear, it is easier to define success criteria and track progress towards achieving them.
Stakeholder communication and Buy -in is important parameter to discuss for implementing a PPM tool. Clear alignment with organizational objectives facilitates communication with stakeholders. When the objectives are understood and shared , it will be helpful to gain buy-in and support from stakeholders , including executives, team members and sponsors. Another issue to be considered is how to adapt the PPM tool into the environment. The well defined processes are need be developed, and the stakeholders who will use directly this PPM tool should be trained and PMO should prepare a survey to track the using performance of PPM tool. According to the survey results , the necessary improvement should be apply for increasing the usage trends.
Wanted also to share another thought that I have not seen explored in the article yet. As many organizations are migrating or have already migrated to modern delivery and agile ways of delivering their products, the key question would be how to best reflect the new product mind set and value streams in the PPM tool that is selected. As management consultant, had a chance to work for many different companies and see some of them have already transitioned to use tools like Jira Align that provides them the enterprise and portfolio view needed by the senior leadership aggregating easily the results from the various programs to align with business needs and organizational objectives and goals.
To balance project portfolio management software costs and benefits: 1. Clearly define your needs and challenges. 2. Conduct a cost-benefit analysis. 3. Evaluate the software's features and flexibility. 4. Consider implementation and maintenance costs. 5. Estimate potential benefits, both quantitative and qualitative. 6. Explore alternative solutions if cost is a concern. 7. Involve stakeholders in the decision-making process. 8. Prioritize and phase implementation if necessary. 9. Monitor and evaluate the software's impact. 10. Make adjustments as needed to maximize value. Striking the right balance between PPM software costs and benefits requires a thorough evaluation of your organization's needs.
A PPM tool is only as useful as the information available from it. Data must still be gathered – using inputs from the very same people the PMO is currently relying upon. It still needs to be validated so it can be presented in a way which focuses the attention of the senior managers and business leaders when and where it is needed most. Having a PPM tool just shifts the challenge – it doesn’t remove it. It will likely create a whole set of new ones too. If anything, implementing a PPM tool will magnify the existing challenges within the organisation. Ensure those challenges are properly investigated and that any improvements identified will be enabled and enhanced by any PPM tool - don't assume that implementing a tool will solve them.