IT Portfolio Management Step-by-Step: Unlocking the Business Value of Technology

2.12. IT PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE SELECTION

There are excellent IT portfolio management software products. In Chapter 6, we provide a template for readers to consider as they prepare a request for proposal (RFP) or request for information (RFI) from leading IT portfolio management solution providers. During the planning phase, attention must be given to solution providers. IT and business alike have a tendency to jump toward adoption of a solution, hoping it will provide silver bullet functionality. It will not! Many IT portfolio management efforts have been hugely successful with simple office automation tools (e.g., Microsoft Excel). As the process and size of the IT portfolio grow and different views of the portfolio are required to support different stakeholders, simple office automation tools falter.

Software selection is dependent on functional requirements (i.e., what is required to support the objectives and corresponding tasks and deliverables of the process), the resources available including funding and people/skills, and the magnitude of the IT portfolio. In general, the three categories of IT portfolio management solutions are:

1. General IT portfolio management solutions

2. Project/discovery portfolio management solutions

3. Asset portfolio management solutions

The initial focus of IT portfolio management is usually centered on projects. Asset and discovery portfolio management are not typically a primary considerations. Project portfolio management, general IT portfolio ...