The Project Portfolio Life Span
Perhaps the strongest way to delineate the differences between project management
(PM) and project portfolio management (PPM) is to look at the true life span of projects
within the PPM environment. We usually consider the life span of a project to be from
authorization to delivery. In some models, we start earlier - with a proposal.
With PPM, this life span is expanded, on both ends. According to Max Wideman, the
Project Portfolio Life Span (PPLS) consists of the following phased components:
- Identification of needs and opportunities
- Selection of best combinations of projects (the portfolios)
- Planning and execution of the projects (project management)
- Product launch (acceptance and use of deliverables)
- Realization of benefits
Looking at this model, you can see that the purview of the project office is concentrated
on item 3. The expansion of the life span and scope to include all five items requires
the involvement and leadership of the executive side of the organization and the development
of a portfolio governance culture, processes and tools.
First three steps of the PPLS (courtesy of Max Wideman)
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The
Role of the Governance Council
