Project portfolio management is a very important area of project management. The main objective of portfolio management is to align projects with the strategic objectives of the organization. There are different approaches to project portfolio management, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. In this article, we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of the different approaches to project portfolio management.

1. The different approaches to project portfolio management

Project management is an essential discipline that enables organizations to achieve their goals. Project portfolio management provides greater visibility and control over all project activities. It allows managers to better understand and manage their projects, thus increasing the efficiency and productivity of the organization. There are different approaches to project portfolio management, each with its own advantages and disadvantages.

Top-down approach

The "top-down" approach is to determine the objectives of project portfolio management before defining the objectives of project management within the organization. This helps determine the project management objectives to be achieved.

This approach is useful when the project management objectives must be achieved within a particularly short time frame.

Bottom-up approach

The bottom-up approach allows to define a project portfolio according to the needs of the different stakeholders.

In reality, it's a matter of determining the different resource requirements and allocating them to the different projects. For example, if you have several projects to work on, you can determine what resources you can allocate to each project.

Environmental" approach

The environmental approach to project portfolio management aims to analyze the different environmental aspects of a project. This ensures that you do not face unexpected problems.

To do this, you must analyze the aspects related to safety, health and the environment.

2. Advantages and disadvantages of different approaches

With the multitude of solutions available to achieve your goal, it can be difficult to decide which method is best for your business. Each approach has its own pros and cons, and it's important to consider them to make an informed decision. In this article, we'll look at the pros and cons of the different approaches to help you decide which one is best for your needs.

A widely used process

One of the main reasons why managing your project portfolio is important is that it allows you to manage the different projects.

This allows you to manage the different projects from their conception to their implementation. This allows you to be sure that you don't waste time redoing everything if a project is cancelled.

Which includes a limited number of relays

The advantage of a project portfolio is that it does not take into account a multitude of relays. It allows you to consider a number of them. It allows you to make sure that there are a certain number of relays present on the path. It allows you to make sure that you don't end up with a lot of people getting stuck.

Lower costs

The project portfolio approach allows you to reduce your costs, especially in terms of travel and accommodation. It is therefore an ideal solution if you need to work with several people.

This also allows you to limit the additional costs associated with your project, including the cost of support.

Faster meetings

In every meeting, you must be able to take on multiple roles. This means that you must be able to perform all your tasks. This means that you must be able to perform several tasks at the same time.

It also saves you valuable time. You can move on to the next step more quickly.

3. The different approaches to project portfolio management: the portfolio plan

Project portfolio management is about selecting, prioritizing and managing the projects that will contribute most to the organization's strategy. It is a complex task that requires limited resources and quick decision making to meet changing market needs. There are several approaches to managing a project portfolio. The most common is the portfolio plan, which involves defining and prioritizing initiatives that will contribute to the achievement of strategic objectives.

The portfolio plan

The portfolio plan, or project plan, is a document that defines your action plan. It's your battle plan, so to speak. You must therefore indicate your different objectives, but also your different actions to be taken in order to achieve your objectives.

This document is often used in the context of a service contract. You must then define the type of service you will offer.

The project plan

When writing a project plan, you need to consider the portfolio plan. To do this, you need to consider the different types of projects, but also the different types of work.

You also need to consider the analysis of risks, constraints and priorities. This will allow you to know which projects you can handle, and which ones you cannot.

The portfolio plan

The portfolio plan can then be divided into several parts. This makes it possible to know what actions to take for each part. The idea is to have an overview of all the actions to be taken.

You may also decide to set up success criteria. This allows you to know if you are able to complete the project effectively.

The project plan

Project portfolio plans are important and are defined before the project is designed. It allows you to verify that you are not forgetting any important aspect.

This plan also ensures that you will be able to make sure you don't lose sight of your goals. It helps you avoid getting into a situation where you may have challenges to overcome.

Project portfolio management

When we talk about project portfolio management, we think first of all of the different projects that are underway. This allows you to follow the progress of these projects and to be able to manage the workload.

This is especially useful when you have several projects in progress. You can see which projects can be started, which ones need to be finished and which ones can be stopped.

Project management

In the context of project management, it is important to have a project portfolio plan. This will allow you to know at any time which projects are in progress and which are pending.

In addition, you can also find out if you are able to complete a project or put it on hold.

The project plan

When working on a project, you should always keep in mind what you want to do. If you want to make a product, you need to make sure it's a quality product. If you want to make a service, you need to make sure that you can do it right.

That's why it's important to make a project plan. It allows you to know what you need to do and to do it efficiently.

The project portfolio

The project portfolio allows you to determine which projects you want to have in progress. It will allow you to choose between several projects and better manage your time.

This portfolio also allows you to determine which projects are in progress. This will allow you to better manage your time and ensure that you are working on the right project.

4. Project portfolio management by resources

Resource management is a fundamental part of any project. Resource management is about managing the human and non-human resources that are needed to achieve your project objectives. Good resource management is essential to the success of a project. Resource management allows you to better plan, assign and coordinate your project tasks and activities. A good resource management can also help reduce costs and improve productivity. 

How to manage project requests

To manage project requests, you can use different methods. One of them is to use a dashboard that allows you to view the current and pending projects.

This allows you to know where you stand, but also to know if you have projects that are too many, or on the contrary, if you have projects that are too few.

How to evaluate the resources needed

When evaluating the resources needed for a project, you need to consider several factors. This will ensure that resources are not overestimated, which could jeopardize the successful completion of the project. To evaluate resources, you need to consider several elements. These include the size of the project, the nature of the project, the level of risk and the level of requirement.

5. Project portfolio management by projects

Companies face many challenges when it comes to managing their projects. Their project portfolio usually consists of many projects of various sizes and nature, which makes project management very complex. 

Project portfolio management is a method that can help companies manage their projects more efficiently. This method involves planning, coordinating and monitoring the various projects across the portfolio.

What are project portfolios used for?

The project portfolio allows you to manage the different projects within the same company. This allows you to better manage your projects. For example, there are different functions that can be defined within a project portfolio. This allows you to better manage your project. This can include human resources management, accounting management or quality management.

What are the objectives of project portfolio management?

In order to manage a project portfolio, you need to have clear objectives. These must be able to be modified according to the needs and changes in the field.

You need to be able to put in place a strategy and action plan to enable your project portfolio to deliver good results.

What are the benefits of project portfolio management?

One of the advantages of project portfolio management is that it allows you to better manage projects. It allows you to avoid conflicts between several projects.

It also allows you to ensure that projects are well executed. You can also facilitate decisions, especially for cross-departmental projects.

What are the drawbacks of project portfolio management?

Project portfolio management is a system that has many disadvantages. For example, you have to take into account the fact that several projects are managed by each manager.

This can make it difficult to track each project. It is also important to know that some projects may be abandoned, which can then cause problems for subsequent projects.

What skills are needed to manage a project portfolio?

To manage a project portfolio, you need to have some experience in the field. This will allow you to know the problems you may encounter.

You must also be able to manage projects of different sizes. This means that you must be able to manage projects that require a large team or projects that have only a few employees.

6. Project portfolio management: tools

Project portfolio management is a discipline that consists of managing all the projects and resources you have. With this practice, you can prioritize projects, evaluate their profitability and allocate the resources needed to complete them. Since project portfolio management is a very complex activity, it is important to have the right tools to help you.

All projects need a budget

In order to determine a budget, it is necessary to know the number of hours needed to complete the project. This will allow you, for example, to determine the number of people that will be needed for the project.

This will also allow you to determine the equipment needed for the project. This will ensure that the project is completed in the best conditions.

Set priorities

When choosing priorities, you must first consider the various stakeholders. To do this, you need to think about a few things.

So, you must first determine if you want different priorities for different stakeholders. So, you need to think about the project team, the clients and the outsiders.

Next, you also need to determine if you want different priorities for different stages of the project. For example, you need to think about the development phase, the implementation phase, and the operations phase.

Priorities are an integral part of the project plan

When you define your priorities, you must take into account the priorities of your different partners. Therefore, you must also define the priorities of your different partners.

This will be the case, for example, if you want your different partners to have a shared vision of your project. In this case, you must make sure that your different partners agree on the priorities you have defined.

Develop the budget

When developing a project budget, you should also ensure that you have considered all costs associated with the project. These include the purchase of equipment, supplies, personnel, travel, communication costs, etc. You also need to consider all the costs that are associated with maintaining the equipment and supplies.

Check the budget

One of the purposes of project portfolio management is to allow you to check the project budget. This way, you can verify that the project is not costing you too much. It also allows you to compare the project budget to the original budget. This way, you can make sure that the project is not costing you too much.

Conclusion

The project portfolio management is a complex and difficult task. It is important to understand the different approaches and their advantages and disadvantages in order to choose the method that best suits your organization. In addition, the tools and technologies used to support project portfolio management can also be chosen based on the specific needs of the organization. Therefore, there are several options for maximizing process efficiency and overall performance of your organization.