The world of project and portfolio management or PPM for short has come a long way over the last three decades.
The foundation of PPM can be traced back to construction and engineering industries. Organizations entrusted the task of implementing a robust PPM Methodology to a separate entity called the PMO or Project Management Office. There have been numerous case studies of success stories where PMOs have successfully implemented PPM Methodologies. Additionally, they ensured the sustenance of the PPM discipline, which was instrumental in driving and enhancing PPM maturity.
Now let us review what has changed over the last couple of decades.
The pace of technological developments, changed business scenario, increased competition, and fast-changing consumer preferences have significantly shortened product lifecycles and even business cycles in many cases.
What do the above developments imply?
Customers and other stakeholders need projects to be delivered differently based on the industry, regulatory needs, and other business factors. Organizations, business leaders, and project professionals no longer have the luxury of a single PPM Methodology.
Does it mean that PPM Methodology is dead?
The answer is ‘no.’
Confused?
Let us go further into the situation.
PPM Methodology is not dead! For enterprises, the need of the hour is the capability to deploy PPM Methodologies based on project complexity, value, geographical locations, strategic nature, and other such drivers.
What do organizations need to do to deal with such challenging demands?
The PMOs need to alter their perspective about PPM Methodologies and look to have solutions that are flexible. On the one side of the spectrum, we could have projects with almost stable requirements or are not subject to too many changes. On the other side of the spectrum are projects where needs cannot be decided upfront or where changes are the norm. Then there are projects in the middle of this spectrum. Finally, some projects are executed for the government agencies or regulatory bodies. In this case, organizations have a minimal choice but to ensure that their PPM Methodology is aligned with government guidelines.
How should PMOs approach such a demanding and complex situation to stay relevant?
PMOs need to build expertise and create different PPM Methodologies and Frameworks to address differing needs of the enterprise. Now, what should business leaders do?
Enterprise leaders need to empower PMOs to design and develop Flexible PPM Methodologies.
Here comes the all-important question!
Are there solutions in the PPM software world that support Flexible PPM Methodologies?
A significant majority of the existing PPM software offer standard solutions along with minimal customization and that too at an extra cost. The rationale for this inability lies in a not-so-robust PPM software design strategy.
So, is all lost?
Fortunately, Kytes PSA design strategy is built on the foundation of ‘templatization,’ and that includes multiple templates based on PPM Methodology. Now did that trigger your dopamine?
If yes, I invite you to get on the highway to PPM success with Kytes PSA!
