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MANAGING AN ORGANISATION’S PROJECT PORTFOLIO

REQUIRES A STRATEGIC MINDSET THAT IS NOT


TYPICALLY A PART OF THE SKILL SET OR FOCUS OF A
PROJECT MANAGER
Table of Contents

1 Introduction.............................................................................................................................2

2 Analysis...................................................................................................................................3

3 Conclusion...............................................................................................................................5

4 References...............................................................................................................................7

5 Appendices..............................................................................................................................7

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1 Introduction

This report will cover the need for having a strategic view of an organization's project
portfolio management often left to the project manager to handle. It emanates as an essential
area from many perspectives, with glorious and dynamic change, and increasing complexity
hitting organizational projects.

Under such a scenario of running many projects together in a dynamic business environment,
the organization comes across some projects which are disparate in terms of objectives and
constraints. As such, the only answer is the strategic option of project portfolio management
to keep this closer to organisational objectives and thereby a rational usage of resources. But
traditionally, project managers are more operationally connected to project-related work and
involved daily management of individual projects.

My position attitude towards the issue is that a project manager usually does not possess a
strategic mindset by nature as a characteristic; however, he will have to become so. This is
because the role of a project manager is changing and currently has more frequent
inclinations towards undertaking strategic responsibilities. This is, however, starting to
change. Increasingly, in recent years, there has been a growing realization that project
management is not simply about individual projects being delivered on time and budget, but
rather about collective contribution to that broader organizational delivery that all such
projects should be serving.

The purpose of the report is to define and elaborate on this further by having drawn from
chosen pertinent academic literature and concepts learned in the course to support my
position. The role of project managers significantly changes, therefore the importance of
adopting a strategic approach towards project managers, strategic thinking, and strategic
skills of project managers. To be conscious of the changing position of project managers and
the importance of a strategic approach to project portfolio management. This report aims to
provide a broad view of the topic and interlocking part of ongoing discourse in the field of
project management of this millennium. This would be one humble attempt toward a
dedicated effort to understand in-depth and contribute to the ongoing discourse on the subject
of project management.

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2 Analysis

Figure 1: “Strategic Project Leadership (SPL)”

(Source: Senabre et al. 2019)

One piece of academic work further elaborated the concept of a 'strategic mindset' in Projects.
Senabre et al. (2019), propose a Strategic Project Leadership (SPL) paradigm which covers
the strategic, business-related aspects of projects guaranteed to ensure the 'triple constraint'
delivering on time, within budget and to an acceptable quality will alone not ensure that
business objectives will be achieved. The proposition is premised on the belief that meeting
time, budget, and performance goals cannot, on their own, assure business success. The latter
said that each successive project needs, depending on success, and leadership vision, not only
strategic but also considering the impact of certain innovations related to innovation.

Academic literature explicitly places a defined role of the project manager concerning
strategic project portfolio management. A study by Hadjinicolaou et al. (2021), observed that
Project Portfolio Management (PPM) is quickly stepping ahead and replacing other protocols
that have been in place for managing a complex project environment. They concur that
(PPM) needs to be refined and aligned with the aims, strategies, business, and culture of the
company. Chen, and Teo, (2024), also note that, for example, PPM provides organizations
with a way of choosing the right project that helps to achieve the targeted strategic objectives
set and, accordingly, improves the rate of project success.

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Figure 2: “Project Portfolio Management (PPM)”

(Source: Chen, and Teo, 2024)

Ewart, and Ames, (2020), on the other hand, described how the borrowing of concepts and
models from project portfolio management (PPM) corresponds to defining how any one firm
can innovate and absorb innovative developments. In considering that, with good use in this
case, PPM models in support of strategic innovation have the potential to add value and make
a business attain sustainability, particularly for small-and-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Co-designed strategic planning with agile project management. This presents one of how
general coordination, alignment, consistency, and a common vision among actors of settings
in academia are been achieved (Pirro, 2019). This buttresses the notion that in academia, a
strategic mindset motivates project management.

An article in Senabre Hidalgo et al. (2019) explores how in academic research, many times
the approach that is utilized is titled "waterfall," that is, a more traditional, less flexible way
toward project management. This proves that even if there are a few situations that justify not
applying and not being beneficial for Agile Project Management governance no strategic
mindset is a strategic mind frame applied.

Despite increasing recognition of the strategic role played by project managers, there still
exists a group of researchers, who argue that the role of project managers is no longer
anchored through their traditional role., The PRINCE2 method, which when designed in the

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UK, was designed wholly by the UK government for the sole reason of increasing the success
in public sector projects, only offers practice processes for the project manager's functional
aspects. This suggests that while the strategic mentality is most useful, there remain many of
the traditional operational capabilities most project managers hold which remain very useful.
Again the article by Sinnaiah et al. (2023), has remained focused on how a project
management approach, e.g. the utilization of the PRINCE2 method, remains valuable in
developing ways to combat the challenges that a multi-year research project presents. The
approach appeals to the operation of project management and the stereotype with which
strategic thinking must be present.

Recently the strategic mindset development in project managers has been underlined in
various studies that underline quite perceptive insight. The authors have put forward a
conceptual model integrating the factors for organizational performance, strategic thinking
and the decision-making process (Martinsuo, and Geraldi, 2020). They further argue there are
some ways through which strategic thinking enabling factors of a systems perspective,
focused intent, intelligent opportunism, thinking in time and hypothesis-driven analysis can
be inculcated in the project managers.

Respectively yet practically, amidst a wave of the changing environment, the traditional role
of project managers has shown that it is still practical. It's project management, that is, the
very process they manage, which keeps changing under the circumstances that require some
strategic mindset development. This change is in alignment with organizational projects that
are becoming complex and ensures the projects are in line with the organisation. In a way of
importance toward the development of strategic thinking in project managers it can be
facilitated by strategic thinking enabling factors.

3 Conclusion

This report has presented supportive reasons why the strategic mind is needed to manage an
organisation's project portfolio and is often a missed piece leading to a project manager gap.
It would be several skills that are developed by project management in a growingly rapidly
changing field and a growingly complex of an organisation's projects, as the world changes
with even super speed.

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The report has indicated a wide range of academic literature to drive this position. It also
indicated other works that underline the need for a strategic approach towards project
portfolio management and the evolution of a main project manager.

In a concession to these counter-arguments, the report did mention skills the PRINCE2
project management method and 'waterfall' project management bring. Seemingly do reflect
how indeed such traditional operational skills of project managers do retain some value after
all in such contexts. However, identified that, if agile methods are increasingly popular,
traditional kinds of skills in project management would be still appropriate, such as those
associated with PRINCE2 training and the waterfall approach. It might still apply to some
specific areas, where structured planning and literal sequential processes are most suitable. It
provides great structure and clear points of progress in the management of a complex project
and hence helps add predictability when there is high uncertainty in a project or only
ambiguous solutions exist. Versatility in approaches to project management is therefore
accorded importance.

Recommendation

The report recommendations based on those insights recommend that project managers
should seek to develop a strategic mindset in addition to their operational skills. This can be
made possible through the following strategic thinking enabling factors. Other than
developing a strategic mindset there are other recommendations that project managers should
also heed.

Continuous Learning: The project manager in question should keep learning the latest trends
that come from the practice of project management, maybe attending workshops or even
webinars.

Networking: Networking is with other project managers in different organizations, through


nailing an exchange of ideas and different views. This can be through memberships to
professional bodies and online groups.

Mentorship: Many of the experienced project managers have included the strategic mindset
into their role in one way or another.

Self-reflection: Regular self-reflection helps in identifying areas for improvement in project


managers and devising methods of enhancing a strategic mindset.

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In essence, the following report gives an understanding of the subject matter. This will, in
effect, leave a very clear impression on the reader who has a strategic mindset on the subject
of managing an organization's project portfolio, and the changing role of a project
management professional in such domains.

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4 References

Chen, P. and Teo, Q.K., 2024. A Strategic Mindset for Learning and Life. In Applying the
Science of Learning to Education: An Insight into the Mechanisms that Shape Learning (pp.
99-112). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.

Ewart, J. and Ames, K., 2020. Managing your academic research project. Springer.

Hadjinicolaou, N., Kader, M. and Abdallah, I., 2021. Strategic innovation, foresight and the
deployment of project portfolio management under mid-range planning conditions in
medium-sized firms. Sustainability, 14(1), p.80.

Martinsuo, M. and Geraldi, J., 2020. Management of project portfolios: Relationships of


project portfolios with their contexts. International Journal of Project Management, 38(7),
pp.441-453.

Pirro, L., 2019. How agile project management can work for your research. idea, 7, p.27.

Senabre Hidalgo, E. and Fuster Morell, M., 2019. Co-designed strategic planning and agile
project management in academia: Case study of an action research group. Palgrave
Communications, 5(1), pp.1-13.

Senabre Hidalgo, E. and Fuster Morell, M., 2019. Co-designed strategic planning and agile
project management in academia: Case study of an action research group. Palgrave
Communications, 5(1), pp.1-13.

Sinnaiah, T., Adam, S. and Mahadi, B., 2023. A strategic management process: the role of
decision-making style and organisational performance. Journal of Work-Applied
Management, 15(1), pp.37-50.

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5 Appendices

Author(s) Summary

The paper presented how co-designed


strategic planning and agile project
Senabre Hidalgo et al. (2019) management can be done and appraised
with the study of an action research
group.

They examined the strategic role of


innovations and use of organizational
foresight, and how project portfolio
Hadjinicolaou et al. (2019)
management is implemented in medium-
sized firms under middle-range planning
conditions.

They discussed about a strategic mind's


Chen, and Teo, (2024) importance toward learning and life and
how to apply it in educational contexts.

They provided practical insights into the


Ewart, and Ames, (2020) processes that inform large and complex
academic research projects.

She gave a high-level approach that


Pirro, (2019) might advance output, motivation in
research, and its quality.

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Conceptual Framework of Integration of
Senabre Hidalgo, and Fuster Morell, Strategic Thinking Factors,
(2019) Organizational Performance, and the
Decision-Making Process.

Author(s) Summary

The study put weight on strategic thinking


enabling factors, organizational
Sinnaiah et al. (2023)
performance, and the moderating effect of a
decision-making style.

They looked at the relationship of a bundle


of project portfolios with their context on
the basis of four theoretical alternatives
Martinsuo, and Geraldi, (2020)
which include; institutional theory,
stakeholder theory, resource dependence
theory, and sensemaking theory.

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