Project portfolio selection techniques: a review and a suggested integrated approach

Abstract

<p>Project por tf olio selection is an important issue for many firms. Tools for project portfolio selection and management are a widely recognized need in researc � development, production, and marketing activi ties for manufacturing firms and in other sectors such as engineering, construction, and software development . They are also used in the public sector, in government, health care, and the military. Such a diversity of applications has generated many diff ering metho ds for portfolio selection. The ob jec tive of this paper is to review a sample of these metho ds and to suggest an approach which builds on the strengths of existing methods to devel op an integrated strategy that can be used to support managers in making critical decisions concerning proj ect port fo lio selec tion. The strate gy allows flexibility in the selection of the metho ds to suit the culture and environment of the particular organizati on. It is a three stage approach which includes in the first or Pre-Process stage, before proj ect con siderati ons begin, the choice of models and model structures suitab le to the organizational environment. A second component of the first stage is Pre-Screening to eliminate clearly inf easible pro jects and reduce task complexity. The second or Process stage includes In d ivid ual Project Eval uation calcula tions, Scre ening to eliminate projects which do not meet certain specified criteria, and finally integrated cons iderations of the remaining pro jects in Portf olio Sel ection. The final or P ost -Process stage provides portfolio balancing or ad justment under the direct control of the decision makers, using sensitivity analysis with possible iterati ons back to the portfolio selection process.</p>