Build a Strategic Road Map

  Governance   Portfolio Management   ProjectsAtWork  

Without a solid understanding of strategy at all levels of the organization, the portfolio is just a disconnected set of investments — not really a portfolio at all. By implementing and following a strategic road map, companies can link their investments to results and more fairly evaluate project contributions. Here are some guidelines and examples.

This is the sixth in a series of articles describing best practices for implementing and executing portfolio management.

On more than one occasion in this series I have stated that portfolio management is strategy execution. Your strategy is what you spend money and resources on. The Strategic Road Map is the foundation for all portfolio development and evaluation because it identifies investments and outcomes leading to business results. It fills a void in the annual planning documentation and bridges the gap between high-level PowerPoint strategy and lower-level departmental and IT plans.

The gap is a problem for all levels of the organization, because each misinterpretation of the strategy — each decision that is not completely aligned with the strategy — causes you to drift further and farther off course. You begin to lurch from one plan to another because there is no continuity from strategy to execution. Without a solid understanding of strategy at all levels of the organization,…

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