Regardless of the industry your PMO operates in — IT, construction, business services, finance and banking, or manufacturing — success depends on delivering projects on time and on budget, as well as demonstrating the ROI of your PMO to the organization. Unfortunately, roughly 70% of projects PMOs start actually fail. Part of the reason for such a large percentage is inadequate project portfolio management(PPM) software.
Traditional PPM tools service the planning and investment decision phases of portfolio management but fail to deliver information on real-time progress and task completion. Without visibility into progress, projects inevitably misalign, usually between planning and execution. The right collaborative work management (CWM) software closes the gap between planning and execution and ensures project results always ladder up to key business initiatives.
Download the free “The Definitive Buyer’s Guide to Flexible Project Portfolio Management Software” eBook to find professional services automation software comparison, and see why CWM software is the better solution when it comes to addressing the needs of the PMO.
The guide covers:
- Assessing your use cases
- Identify what features align with your needs
- Your definitive CWM checklist
“The Definitive Buyer’s Guide to Flexible Project Portfolio Management Software” is for PMO teams of any industry and size. Whether you’re looking to show ROI for your PMO, or refocus your efforts to align with strategic business goals, this guide can assist you in assessing how a CWM solution can provide most of the capabilities available in today’s PPM solutions, along with the added functionality of being your organization’s exclusive system of record to track and report all work progress.
Examining your use cases
Your PMO’s project portfolio management needs differ by industry, company size, project complexity, and more. Evaluate your needs carefully so you can pick a solution that helps your PMO do its best possible work. Here are a few use cases to consider:
- You don’t use a project portfolio management tool: PMOs need a solution that combines project and portfolio management with execution. Legacy tools like spreadsheets lack scalability, so PMOs end up relying on frequent meetings to receive updates from team members and update spreadsheets accordingly. Manual methods of project tracking lead to inefficiencies that can cripple even the most talented teams.
- You’re using a legacy PPM tool: A good PPM tool connects strategy, planning, and agile execution, and matches the fast pace of change companies experience today. Traditional PPM tools can only perform high-level investment planning and portfolio management functions, and lack core capabilities like collaboration, configurable workflows, templates, and automation. Without the visibility a CWM platform provides, PMOs can’t be expected to govern projects effectively.
- Your projects are on time and budget but your organization isn’t hitting strategic goals: When a project's results don't achieve desired business goals, it usually means the PMO didn’t have full visibility into the project’s strategic impact from the start. Without visibility, PMO leaders can't evaluate potential projects and select the right investment mix to move the dial on strategic business goals.
- Plus, four more use cases …
How CWM solutions meet the needs of all PMO teams
In addition to the seven most common use cases, the buyer’s guide for PMOs explains the need for the following features:
- Configurable reports allow you to roll up task, project, and program progress, as well as additional data specific to your business. These reports give you an accurate picture of your portfolio’s health so you can pivot and make changes when necessary.
- Access limitations give you full control of how you organize initiatives and who can access them. Limit access to only the team members who need to work on the project without sacrificing visibility into the progress on all activities.
- Dynamic request forms let you coordinate project intake and selection into your team’s everyday workflow. These dynamic forms have AI features like multi-step, condition-based logic based on responses that trigger automatic project rollout.
- Plus, four more features ...
Download the buyer’s guide to project portfolio management software here
Today’s PMOs need tools that help them optimize strategic planning, enable collaborative execution, and unlock efficient communication. This definitive buyer’s guide dives into the unique business landscape PMOs are facing today, and how a more robust CWM solution can be the link that helps teams collaborate more effectively, communicate value, and outperform the competition.
Download “The Definitive Buyer’s Guide to Flexible Project Portfolio Management Software” today.
