Strategic Project & Portfolio Management
(2 Days)

Course Description:
Project portfolio management in a mature organization is one of the newest topics being advanced in project management today. How can an organization effectively choose from an ever growing list of “must-do” projects, some of them urgent, some compliance-related, others strategic? This course begins with a discussion of business case analysis techniques that can be used to communicate a project‘s costs, benefits and strategic value to the organization. Class participants will review the overall estimating process, the role of assumptions, types of tangible costs, and methods for incorporating intangible benefits into a financial analysis. Key financial analysis techniques such as ROI, Breakeven Analysis, Net Present Value, Internal Rate of Return, etc. will be reviewed.

The remainder of the course will be devoted to the principles covered in The Standard for Portfolio Management, Second Edition, published by the Project Management Institute (PMI) in 2008. Topics covered will include the role of the portfolio manager, the relationship between project, program and portfolio management, and roles and responsibilities of portfolio stakeholders. The links between portfolio management and functional and operations management will also be discussed. Key metrics and reporting for project portfolios will be covered. Finally, the portfolio management process cycle and portfolio management knowledge areas presented in PMI’s 2008 standard will be reviewed.

Intended Audience:
Project Management Professionals (PMPs), project, program and portfolio managers, IT and finance managers responsible for establishing project priorities or monitoring portfolio performance. Business analysts, financial planning and analysis (FP&A) managers, or project managers who need to sharpen their skills in developing business cases.

Prerequisites:
Participants should have completed Project Management Overview or a similar introductory course.

Course Content:
Business Case Analysis

• Typical analysis problems
• The estimating process
• The role of intangible benefits

Key Formulas

• ROI
• Break-even analysis
• Future value, present value, and net present value
• Internal rate of return
• Putting the financial analysis together

Portfolio Management Overview, Framework & Processes

• Terms and definitions
• Portfolio, Program and Project Management
• Organizational governance and strategy
• Role of the portfolio manager
• Portfolio management reporting and metrics

Portfolio Management Overview & Organization

• Strategy and investment alignment
• Portfolio component management life cycle
• Portfolio management process cycle
• Portfolio stakeholder roles and responsibilities
• Organizational influences

The Standard for Portfolio Management

• Portfolio management process group interactions
• Aligning Process Group
• Monitoring and Controlling Process Group

The Portfolio Management Knowledge Areas

• Portfolio Governance
• Portfolio Risk Management

PMBOK Guide:
Knowledge Areas

• Integration, Scope, Time, Cost, Communication, Risk

Process Groups

• Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitoring & Controlling, Closing