Portfolio-level collaboration

- At the portfolio level, PMs and BAs are working to define projects related to strategic goals of the organization and align the projects together as a group of related projects. Project and program managers are looking at the budget and schedule linkages, as well as overall strategic alignment of the project goals. BAs are looking at strategic alignment, business architecture and the big picture of who is impacted and the value the groups need to get from these projects. Our team members, Pat the PM, and Bailey the BA, may be assigned to work on the portfolio level with other PMs and BAs. Or as part of the intake process to start up a large set of projects. Some key tactical things that Pat and Bailey collaborate on are first, defining the problem or opportunity statement. They create a shared understanding together with the leaders on the problem or opportunity, which helps with strategic alignment as they look at the portfolio of work. Next, they work together to define the value proposition for the impacted stakeholder groups and not forgetting about the customer. They think through each group and ask, research and discover how the project benefits the group. And next, they determine measurable goals and objectives to help chart the course and keep scope tied and aligned to measurable outcomes. It's not good enough to say we want to improve the customer experience. We need to define more measurable outcomes, like what part of the customer experience or what measurement of the customer experience are we targeting to improve and why? Also, they work together to define what capabilities are missing to meet these goals. This may include new innovations, new processes, new systems and new behaviors. Another thing Pat and Bailey look at is the feasibility of the approach. Feasibility can be technical, cost related, scheduled related and also about the business design and people factors. Truly challenging assumptions on what is and is not feasible really matters. In regards to cost feasibility, organizations define this in various ways. Some organizations ask themselves how much will it cost? And how much will I get in return? And some ask what am I willing to spend to get this done? There are various methods, calculations and terms for this. Things like return on investment, net present value, business case, cost of delay and weighted shortest job first. At a minimum, I like to look at how the project would increase revenue, reduce risk or reduce cost. And then how much is the likely cost and likely benefit? A table like this can be a simple way to view this. Here we can see the range of cost, minimum, likely and maximum and the same range for benefit. Now, how much detail is behind this is up to you, the project manager and sponsors. Prioritizing the items in a portfolio is the last piece of the equation. Pat and Bailey work together to help business leaders make prioritization decisions by helping leaders participate in the various activities we've discussed. The idea is to make decision making easier and with higher-quality decisions. It's about making priorities and decisions flexible by defining independent and valuable pieces that are not dependent on other projects and this gives leaders the flexibility to adapt as needed. Pat and Bailey are part of an organization where Bailey has an active role in this process. Since the intake process requires a lot of analysis to make the right decisions, Bailey's role is critical. Bailey helps ensure the organization is working on the right stuff at the right time. Working together on this with a blend of skills PMs and BAs bring to the table can benefit portfolio planning in big ways. It can bring a powerful decision-making process to strategic alignment that can make all the difference.