Bundle all those projects, initiatives & programs together that is your Strategic Portfolio! But how do you know if your Strategic Portfolio needs your attention?

1 Business Needs & Priorities have changed with implications for all projects & initiatives.

2 With so much money tied up in projects & initiatives it is an obvious place to look for savings or efficiencies.

3 You fear there are too many projects competing for scarce resources You want to consolidate the portfolio.

4 You want greater focus with a disciplined prioritization of those projects & initiatives that matter most to success.

5 The progress or momentum of key projects is slower than expected You want to accelerate or intensify progress towards results.

6 The strategic portfolio is a ‘black box’ with limited visibility or control of its size, costs, performance, risk, etc.

7 You are worried about hidden risks or surprises within the portfolio. 8 Linkages & synergies between ‘stand-alone’ projects are not being leveraged.

9 There is a patchy track record of successfully delivering projects & initiatives.

10 You are concerned about a gap between strategy & execution. Confidence in execution lags behind the ambition of your strategy.

11 How decisions are made about projects needs attention. There may not be enough rigor, or too much politics & bureaucracy.

That’s 11 Reasons to Pitstop your Strategic Portfolio. Which ones of these matter most to you?

Your Strategic Portfolio is that bundle of projects, initiatives & programs that are clearly linked to success.  That is the success of your organization and its strategy, as well as the advancement of your leadership position. The Strategic Portfolio is therefore only a small part, albeit the most important part, of your overall project portfolio.

Leaders may care little about the majority of projects. They can only be expected to care about those projects, programs and initiatives that are clearly linked success.  That is, those projects and initiatives that are directly linked to the performance of the business, the success of the strategy and the realization of the vision. It is this subset of important projects and initiatives is worthy of the title ‘strategic portfolio’.

Given the millions tied up in projects the ‘Strategic Portfolio’ deserves to be managed with the care and attention that an investment broker would give to an investment portfolio.

Managing projects – obviously that is essential, but it is not enough! Moreover, it is not necessary the job of a senior leader. Leaders are constantly thinking of their strategic portfolios – they have a ‘portfolio mindset’.

A portfolio mindset is very different from project mindset. It is as different as strategy and project management, or as different as being a project manager and being a business leader. Here are the reasons why your strategic portfolio should be front of mind:

If you want to go from thinking like a director to thinking like VP, President or CEO then start thinking strategically about your portfolio. Failing to manage a strategic portfolio means failing to manage money, strategy, risk and success.

As the labels ‘money’, risk’ and so on suggest managing the portfolio is fundamentally important.