Raising the Bar:Increasing your Skills

Moving from Programme to

Portfolio Management Office

Agenda

• Setting the scene– Some important differences between

programmes and portfolios

• Skill types– Technical, Behavioural, Contextual

• Learning styles• So what does this mean for me?• Summary

Some differences between Programmes and Portfolios

Programme Portfolio

Breadth / Depth Detail view on one or more projects

Overview on many programmes and projects

Key Stakeholders

Programme & project managers

Board level and portfolio / programme managers

Lifecycle Coverage

Delivery lifecycle Lifecycle covers idea through to benefits

Focus Technical/delivery focus

Business/Outcome focus

Scope Only covers Delivery Can incorporate Business as Usual and Delivery

Organisational position

Departmental level Board level

Skill Types• Technical

– Microsoft office– Scheduling & tool usage– Risk/issue management– Configuration management– Financial / budget management– Formal project management methodologies

• Behavioural– Influencing– Attention to detail– Presence– Approachable– Stakeholder management

• Contextual– Organisational awareness– Commercial awareness– Strategic outlook

Learning Styles

• Different ways to learn new skills– Training Courses, including e-learning– Coaching– Learning by doing– Reading– Experience

How do I apply this?

• Exercise time

Exercise Part 1

• In groups– 5 key skills for a programme office

person– 5 key skills for a portfolio office person

• Think about what you would want if you could have your perfect person doing this role

My top 5 skillsProgramme Office Portfolio Office

Formal project management methodologies

Dependency management

Project scheduling and tools knowledge

Organisational awareness

Budget / financial management Influencing

Stakeholder Management Stakeholder management

Programme Office Portfolio Office

Formal project management methodologies (T)

Dependency management (T)

Project scheduling and tools knowledge (T)

Organisational awareness (C)

Budget / financial management (T)

Influencing (B)

Stakeholder Management (B) Stakeholder management (B)

Influencing (B) Strategic Outlook (C)

Exercise Part 2

• Reviewing what you have done• For the new portfolio office skills:

– What training would offer?– How would that training be delivered?

Training for portfolio skillsPortfolio Office Training Available

Dependency management (T)

Part of scheduling training, natural learning curve from Project scheduling and tools knowledge that the programme office person had

Organisational awareness (C)

Can be learnt by performing different roles within the organisation or by having a mentor within the organisation as well as a good professional network

Influencing (B) 1 & 2 day training course are available, plus books to read on the subject

Stakeholder management (B)

This is best learnt on the job, or from a mentor, preferably within the organisation. This is a skill that is transferable from a programme office role

In Summary

• Skill order needed

Programme

Technical Skills

Behavioural Skills

Contextual Skills

Portfolio

Contextual Skills

Behavioural Skills

Technical Skills

Questions