Formalize Project Portfolio Management for Small Enterprise
Make big gains in small steps.
- Many small IT departments are overwhelmed by low-value, reactionary work. They can have trouble discerning, and focusing on, initiatives that will help contribute to the growth of the business.
- These small IT shops tend to believe that they lack the time, tools, and skillset to engage in traditional project portfolio management (PPM) – a discipline that can help bring a strategic and unifying vision to project activity.
- Small or large, it’s important that IT does the right thing for the business. If small IT leaders are to contribute to business growth, they need to increase the manageability and value of IT projects by implementing lightweight PPM processes that are suitable for teams in fast-paced, rapidly changing, interruption-driven environments.
Our Advice
Critical Insight
- Almost all PPM commercial tools and formal frameworks are aimed at mid- to large-sized enterprises. IT shops with ten or less staff are grossly underserved when it comes to PPM advice.
- Successful PPM doesn’t require additional time or administrative overhead. A right-sized approach to PPM improves project results and business satisfaction without imposing additional load on small IT teams.
- The most ideal time to start building PPM capabilities is while the organization is still small. If you start small, you can better refine and evolve your capabilities to coincide with business growth. The longer you wait to hone these capabilities, the harder it will be to establish PPM discipline as the business expands.
Impact and Result
- Bring visibility to the work-in-progress by developing right-sized tools and reporting processes.
- Manage resource capacity to ensure that IT isn’t promising more than it can deliver.
- Develop strong project initiation and closure practices to help drive the throughput of the highest value projects through the portfolio.
About Info-Tech
Info-Tech Research Group is the world’s fastest-growing information technology research and advisory company, proudly serving over 30,000 IT professionals.
We produce unbiased and highly relevant research to help CIOs and IT leaders make strategic, timely, and well-informed decisions. We partner closely with IT teams to provide everything they need, from actionable tools to analyst guidance, ensuring they deliver measurable results for their organizations.
What Is a Blueprint?
A blueprint is designed to be a roadmap, containing a methodology and the tools and templates you need to solve your IT problems.
Each blueprint can be accompanied by a Guided Implementation that provides you access to our world-class analysts to help you get through the project.
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Guided Implementation 1: Develop the plan
- Call 1: Scope PPM project.
- Call 2: Establish reporting processes and a reporting cadence.
- Call 3: Determine project capacity and match the right resources to the right projects.
- Call 4: Create an intake and prioritization framework.
Guided Implementation 2: Implement the plan
- Call 1: Discuss tool options based on your budget and capability level.
- Call 2: Pilot Info-Tech’s PPM Workbook with your project data.
- Call 3: Devise a change management strategy to help implement your new processes throughout the organization.
Contributors
- Martin Baclig, Project and Change Officer, Alberta Innovates Technology Futures
- John Hansknecht, Director of Technology, University of Detroit Jesuit High School and Academy
- Ben Leighton, Academic IT Lead, Durham University
- Nancy Roberge, Technical Advisor, Government of Canada
- Jochen Sievert, IT Manager, Zeon Chemicals
- Tom Thomalla Jr., Senior IT Manager, Ever-Green Energy