Leveraging Enterprise PMO: Unlocking Strategic Value Through Portfolio Excellence

Project portfolio management (PPM), also known as portfolio management, serves as the bridge between an organization’s strategic objectives and the effective selection and implementation of projects designed to achieve those objectives.

Portfolio management involves a series of interrelated organizational processes. Through these processes, an organization evaluates, selects, prioritizes, and allocates its limited resources to projects that best accomplish its goals. It aligns projects with strategic objectives, optimizes resource utilization, improves risk management, and coordinates communication across the organization. The result is better-informed decisions on how and where to best deploy resources.

A strong portfolio management capability is a competitive advantage, empowering executives to link projects in a way that creates value for the overall organization.

According to Gartner, companies with mature PPM practices are twice as likely to achieve their business outcomes.

However, many companies struggle with effective portfolio management. Deficiencies in PPM lead to poor resource allocation, project misalignment and considerable waste.

Without PPM, project managers lack an understanding of how their projects fit into the broader strategic picture. They also lack standards for project evaluation and determining priorities, which often results in committing resources needed on higher-priority projects.

Adopting PPM requires leadership to align the entire organization with strategic priorities.

Projects represent investments in the organization’s future. A project portfolio is therefore an investment portfolio and taking a portfolio view is the key to maximizing return on investment (ROI).

Portfolio management lies at the heart of a high-value Strategic or Enterprise PMO.

An EPMO’s activities are linked to driving a more efficient and results-oriented project portfolio throughout the organization. It assists in selecting the right mix of projects, maintaining an executive cockpit for critical information, and supporting the Governance Board or Investment Committee in establishing work order and guiding a balanced portfolio.

While the EPMO does not set project priorities, it helps senior management define and exercise the prioritization process, ensuring that Investment Committee decisions are communicated and implemented organization-wide.

The EPMO continually analyzes the performance of the project portfolio to drive improved ROI.

An EPMO enables organizations to master portfolio management — the secret to turning projects into strategic gold.

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