EPM, Microsoft Project and You

BY:  Collin Quiring

For those that may be getting this blog’s RSS feed but don’t visit our website very often I am sending this out as a quick note.  We have added TWENTY-EIGHT documents to a new White Paper page on our website.  At this time, the majority of them are on Microsoft Project but there are some on Microsoft Portfolio Server as well.  What makes these unique is that some of them are meant to explain in detail the BUSINESS REASON to set something up.  For example, the document on Understanding Project Server Cubes isn’t a technical document, it is an explanation of what the cubes are and what they do.

For those interested, here is a listing of the documents we just added:

Accepting Updates in Project Server 2007
ActiveX Work Around for Project
Activity Creation in Project Server 2007
Administrative Project Check In for Project Server 2007
Checking In a Project with Project Professional 2007
Setting up Document Alerts in Project Server 2007
Enterprise Resources in Project 2007
The Enterprise Global File and the Standard Template in Project
Exam Summaries for Microsoft Project Certification
Linking Projects in Microsoft Project
Schedule Movement – Dates that Represent Actual Information
Resources Assigned to a Task
Installing Outlook Task Synchronization with Microsoft Project Server
Using Outlook with Microsoft Project Server Documents
Project 2007 – Professional and Server – New Additions
Connect Project Professional to Project Server
Proposals and Activities Defined
Proposal Creation in Project Server
The Difference Between Save, Save As and Publish
Task Drivers in Microsoft Project
Templates – Creating and Using
Updating a Task in Project Server 2007
Using Visual Reports in Microsoft Project Professional
Using the Outlook Add-in for Project Server 2007
Project 2010 and Project Server 2010 Highlights
Creating a New Project in Microsoft Portfolio Server 2007 – Part One and Part Two
Understanding Project Server Cubes
Viewing a Project in Microsoft Portfolio Server

Just go to www.PMPSpecialists.com and select the “White Papers” section.

BY: Tanya Foster

Last time we finished up creating our project.  Now let’s look at our Project from our My Scorecard view.  First, we need to expand our Human Resources section so that we can get to our Project.  To expand a section, simply click on the plus sign next to the name.

Once we’ve expanded our section, we see the list of projects to choose from.  Once you find the project that you want to view, click on the name of the project to view it.  In our case, we’re going to click on the Employee Suggestion Database that we created.

Once the project opens, the default view will be the Project Info tab.  You will notice that there are several different tabs at the top of the page.  You can click on each of these tabs and view the information under that tab.  You can also click on the right triangle to scroll to the right for more tabs, or you can click on the diamond in the middle to access a list of tabs that you can click on the name to access.  Another important thing to note is that we are in the view (or read only) mode.  You can tell whether you’re in the view only or edit mode by looking in the left hand corner of the screen (noted with a red circle). 

There is another handy icon that you can use in this view mode.  I’ll give you another screenshot because this icon was hidden in the screenshot above.  It’s the icon located to the right of “Project Associations”.  I have circled it in red.  Clicking on this icon, a window pops up showing you a graphical representation of where this project is in the workflow process.  You’ll notice that “Request Project” is
the only box with bold writing in it.  This notes where we currently are in the process.

Another thing I like about this graphical representation is that you can hover over any of the boxes and a description box will pop up.  So you are never left to guess just exactly what “Request Review” means!  To close the workflow representation, simply click on the icon again and the box will disappear.

You will notice to the left of the “handy icon”, are some other links.  We won’t do screen shots of each option, but I do want to tell you about each one.  You can see that the Change Request option is grayed out.  Our project hasn’t even gotten past the Request stage yet, so even if we made changes it wouldn’t impact anything right now.  If we were farther along, then a change request would have to be submitted.

Change Request: Use this link to request additional resources and/or funds for projects that have already been approved.

Alert Subscription: Use this link to subscribe to automatic e-mail messages.

Workflow:  You can access workflow information from this link.  You do have to have the proper user rights set up by the Portfolio Administrator in order to access this.

Project Associations: Use this link to view/edit the different associations of the project to an organization, portfolio, program or application.

That’s all for this blog on Portfolio Server.  Tune in next time when we talk about Editing a Project in Portfolio Server 2007!

BY:  Collin Quiring

There are many new features, modifications and changes to Microsoft Project in the 2010 version.  This entry is about only one of those modifications – Portfolio Server.

With Project Server 2007, there is a separate tool to purchase called Portfolio Server 2007.  The Portfolio Server is designed to allow an organization to identify, select, manage and deliver portfolios that align with strategic priorities.  PMP Specialists has done installations of both Project and Portfolio Server and customers have received value from Portfolio Server.  However, there is some installation and configuration that must be done to tie Portfolio and Project together in a useable fashion. 

Well, in 2010 there is no more Portfolio Server.  That is because it is now part of Project Server 2010!  This is a great combination!  From the technology standpoint, this makes the installation just that much better – and, of course, makes the integration seamless (since, it isn’t really something else to integrate but is just part of the tool).  By combining the two tools into one there will no longer be the issues related to having to pull the data together between the two programs.  From a reporting standpoint this makes life just that much easier and it means that information flows more easily from the “top” (selection) to “bottom” (Resource hours or task information or other specific details).

From the “business perspective” I really like that Portfolio Server is combined with Project Server.  This means that an Executive will be able to “one stop shop” for information (yes, they could do that before, but the setup was critical for it to flow, and, there were potentially two or more security locations).  They can drill down easily and, they won’t have to know when they are looking at “Portfolio Server” or when they are looking at information from “Project Server” as they do today.  The information will be in one place!  This should also make it easier for the stakeholders to understand the goals of the Executives as the information will be more readily available for them as well.

The term “Portfolio Server” will no doubt fade away and a term like “Portfolio Management” will become more common when talking about this aspect of Project Server.

I have given my opinions above but here are some of the official Microsoft bullet points:

·         Project and Portfolio Management capabilities in a single server

o   This provides a consistent user experience

·         Common data store

·         Centralized administration

·         Portfolio Prioritization and Selection Analytics

·         Project Capture and Initiation

·         Resource Capacity Planning

·         Enhanced Reporting and Business Intelligence

Sources:  http://www.microsoft.com/project/en/us/project-portfolio-server.aspx

http://www.microsoft.com/project/2010/en/us/default.aspx

BY: Tanya Foster

Today we’re going to talk about the Scheduling information for our new project that we created last time.

The Start and End date are required fields. These dates are the expected Start and End dates of the project. To set the Start Date, click on the calendar box next to the Start Date field. This will open up a calendar dialog box. Pick your expected start date from the calendar dialog box. Once you click on the date, the dialog box will disappear. Next, do the same thing for the expected End Date. For our project, I have chosen 8/10/09 as the Start Date and 8/10/10 as the End Date.

These next two fields are not required to be filled in when you first create your project. They can be added or modified at a later date. The Start No Earlier Than field is for you to put in a fixed start date for this project. It’s stating that this project cannot start any earlier than the specified date. The Finish No Later than field is for you to put in a fixed finish date. It’s stating that this project cannot finish any later than the specified date. We are going to say that our project can’t start any earlier than 8/01/09 (because we have some key resources who won’t be finished with their current project until then) and can’t finish any later than 10/01/10 (because our Employee Suggestion program is going live one week later and we have to have everything in place).

 Our next field is the Benefits Start field. This field is the date when the project benefits start to materialize. This is typically the end date of the project, but depending on the project, you may choose to use the start date. We’re going to use our expected End Date as our Benefits Start date.

We’re going to skip over some of the fields that aren’t required fields. If we went through every single field, then I might just be writing myself out of a job!

The Project Requester and the Project Manager positions can be held by the same person or by two different people. The person who enters the project into the Builder module is the one who selects their name for the Project Requester and also selects the name of the Project Manager. The Project Requester will “own” the project proposal until it is approved and then ownership will transfer to the Project Manager.

Now that we’ve entered all of our required fields (and some that aren’t), then we will go ahead and add our project.

If we go back to our Scorecard, we should see our new project listed under the HR area.

We have now successfully created a new project under an existing program. Stay tuned for more blogs on how to use this great tool!

By:  Tanya Foster

Last time, we began the process of creating a new Project in Portfolio Server.  Below is a screen shot of the entire Project Info tab that we will have to fill out.  I wanted you to see the entire screen, but we are going to focus on a few fields.  I know this seems like a lot of information, but in order for Portfolio Server to be able to tell us which projects will be best suited for your company’s business objectives, we need this information for it to make good choices.

Let’s start with the first series of information.  First, you’ll notice that there are some fields that have an asterisk beside them.  These fields are required fields and must contain information before the project can be saved.  Keep in mind that these are Portfolio Server’s default fields.  You may want some specific fields of your own and that’s fine.  You will just need to have your Portfolio Server Administrator add the fields for you.

I have added a name called “Employee Suggestion Database”.  This will be the name of our project.  Next, I clicked on the down arrow next to Project Class.  There are two default project classes, Major Project and Non Major Project.  This is going to be a non major project. We won’t get into the workflow piece now, so we’ll just leave ours N/A

Next we’ll look at the Project ID field.  I have manually typed 0001 into this field, but you can set Portfolio Server up so that it will automatically assign a Project ID to each new project.  You will notice that Portfolio Server automatically puts the date in the Creation Date field.  There are several default project types, Regulatory, Business Growth, Infrastructure, Development, Enhancement, and Internal Efficiencies.  I’m going to choose Enhancement for our current project. 

Now it’s time to select our areas impacted.  Click on the black triangle next to the “No items selected” section of the Areas Impacted.  This will open the drop down menu with the default Areas Impacted list.  You can select multiple areas, but in our case, we’ll only click in the box next to HR.

Our next two fields have to do with funding.  There are two types of default funding choices to choose from, Gated and Full.  Click on the drop down arrow to get your types of funding list.  For our example we’re going to choose Full.

And finally, we are going to select whether or not the funding for our project was planned.  Click on the drop down arrow to get the Funding for Project Planned list.  There are three default options to choose from, Fully Funded, Partially Funded, or No Funding.  Since we’re in the land of make believe here, of course our project is fully funded!

We’ve completed the first part to the information needed for our new project.  Tune in next time to learn about the Schedule information we need to fill out next!

By: Tanya Foster

Last week we talked about settings and having the right person in the role of Portfolio System Administrator.  This week we are going to walk through the steps of creating a new project for an existing program or portfolio.  We’ll start from our familiar My Scorecard page in the Builder module.  At the bottom of the screen, you will notice there are five different tabs, Cross View, Add, View, Edit, and Delete.  We are going to use the Add tab, although I’m sure you’d already figured that out!

Once you click on Add, it will take you to the Add New Entity Wizard.  The Add New Entity Wizard shows an Organization Hierarchy drop down, the Existing Portfolios and Programs drop down, and a Select Entity dropdown. 

In the Organization Hierarchy, you will choose an Organization from the drop down list.  Once you pick your Organization, it will automatically show the portfolios and programs associated with that Organization.  Let’s choose the Human Resources organization.

In the Existing Portfolios and Programs drop down, it will automatically default to the Human Resources portfolio.  Underneath the portfolio, it will list all of the programs associated with the Human Resources portfolio.  I’m going to leave this one at the Portfolio level.

Under the Select Entity drop down, you can choose Program, Application or Project.  Since we’re creating a new project, that’s the entity we’re going to select.

Once you’ve made your final selection, click on Add Entity.

And now you have your new Project and are ready to go… Not so fast there, you’re just getting started! Now we get to the fun part.  But… I don’t want pack this blog posting so full of information that you spend all of your day reading it and don’t get any work done.  So you’re just going to have to wait until next week to get the next installment in this Portfolio Server series.

By: Tanya Foster

In previous posts, we’ve talked a little about the Builder module and the Scorecard view, but now let’s talk about what we do next.  Next we need to create our portfolios.  This is where we define our business ideas into project terms such as cost, schedule, risks, resources, etc.  I know some of you may be saying “Now wait a minute.  My company has some specific information that we have to fill out for every new project or portfolio.”  Not a problem for Portfolio Server!  Your Portfolio Server System Administrator can create/add those new fields into Portfolio Server.  The Portfolio Server Administrator will also need to define the workflow for each of these fields.  The workflow feature in Portfolio Server controls data approval and how complete each field must be before moving on.  Each step in the workflow can have its own set of requirements.  So for example, I fill out the project cost information.  Before this can go to my manager for approval, it needs to be approved by the finance department, so it moves on to the finance department.  Once it has been approved by the finance department, then it goes to my manager for approval.  Now let’s say I’m working on filling out the information for my next project in this portfolio.  The Portfolio Administrator can set it up so that I have to at least fill in these 5 pieces of information (Project cost, schedule, resource, risk and benefits).  If I don’t fill out those 5 pieces of information, then it will not continue on and show that it’s ready for the next person in the workflow. 

All of the Portfolio Server settings have to be set up in order for Portfolio Server to work correctly.  This is one of the most important steps in the entire setup.  It is crucial to have a knowledgeable Portfolio Server System Administrator who can get all of the Portfolio Server framework set up for you before you begin.  This person needs to be able to work with the different departments and decision makers in order to gather all of the information that will be asked for each new project.  So take care in picking the person for this role!

By:  Tanya Foster

The following are some of the questions that arose from a Portfolio Server webinar that Tanya Foster did on Microsoft Portfolio Server.  Included are her answers that were sent to the attendees.

1.       How does Portfolio Server help me in my organization?

·         Portfolio Server can help you in several ways.  Because Portfolio Server allows you to group all of your projects and programs together, you get a quick snapshot of your entire portfolio.  This helps you to ensure that your organization is working on  the projects that will bring the most value and are aligned with corporate criteria

·         It also helps to create a standardized method for collecting data for your projects and programs.

·         And it allows you to measure the performance of each portfolio as it’s progressing along.

2.       What are the modules that were mentioned during the webinar and what do they do?

The three modules are the Builder Module, Optimizer Module, and the Dashboard Module.

·         The Builder Module- This is where you enter the bulk of your information.  This module helps to standardize the data that is collected.  The data that you put into the Builder Module is what the other two modules use to provide you with information, charts and much more.

·         The Optimizer Module – Takes the information that you provided in the Builder Module and uses complex algorithms to come up with the top portfolio’s that would benefit your organization.

·         The Dashboard Module – Provides you with a visual way to see how your projects and programs are doing by creating charts and graphs, or a simple dashboard view with traffic light indicators.

3.       Who in my company would be most likely to use this?

It’s great for Project and Program managers as well as top level management.  Anyone on the PMO staff would find this to be a great tool to help effectively compile and manage the organizations entire portfolio. 

4.       If I have Project Server and I get Portfolio Server, do I need different licenses?

·         Portfolio Server is licensed separately from Project Server, so you will have to have a separate license.  You will need one license for each server that Portfolio Server is installed on and then you will need a CAL (Client Access License) for each computer that will be accessing Portfolio Server.

5.       My company has several Project Servers all serving different departments.  Can we link all of these servers to Portfolio Server so we can see the big picture?

·         You can link multiple Project Servers to one Portfolio Server.

6.       What information in Project 2007 is transferred to Portfolio Server?

The following information can be exchanged back and forth between both Project and Portfolio Server.

·         Custom fields

·         Schedule information such as budget, actual and forecast

·         Resource availability, resource budget, resource actual and forecast

7.       You can store documents in Project Server on the Windows Sharepoint Workspace.  Does Portfolio Server have something similar?

·         Portfolio Server uses Windows Sharepoint Services just like Project Server.

8.       Can you export information from Portfolio Server to Excel?

·         Yes.  Portfolio Server is tightly integrated with most Microsoft Office 2007 applications.

9.       My company doesn’t use Microsoft Project 2007, we’re still on 2003.  Can we use Portfolio Server with Microsoft Project 2003?

·         No. Portfolio Server 2007 is only compatible with Microsoft Project Server 2007.

10.   Where can I get help on installing or training for Portfolio Server 2007?

·         PMP Specialists can help you

·         http://www.pmpspecialists.com/contact_us.html

By: Tanya Foster

Welcome to another installment in our Portfolio Server Series.  I thought about starting at the very beginning with these Portfolio Server blogs, which would be all of the settings, but then I decided, well… there may be a lot of people out there who just want to know how this thing works.  So… we’re going to start there instead.  We’ll get to the settings, but that will be later in the series. 

Let’s start with the default main page.  Once you log in, Portfolio Server opens up to the Builder module.  Portfolio Server has three modules, the Builder module, the Optimizer module, and the Dashboard module.  You will spend most of your time in the Builder module.  That’s where you will input most of the data.  You will also notice that we have another default in this screenshot.  It’s the My Scorecard view.  This is the main view for the Builder module.  The My Scorecard view is set up by the Portfolio Server Administrator so you have someplace to start from when you first log in.  Now the nice thing about the My Scorecard view is that the rows and columns are completely customizable for each individual user.  You can store several Scorecard views if you want to.  To create your own Scorecard view, simply go to Preferences and choose the appropriate link. 

On the left hand side of the screen, you see a “Name” column with names listed underneath it.  This is the Portfolio Server hierarchy.  This helps to organize the information and also helps to roll up cost and resource data.  There are five types of entities: organizations, programs, projects, applications and custom portfolios.  Project information can be rolled up to the program or to the application level.  Programs and applications can be rolled up to the custom portfolio or organization level.  The Administrator can configure multiple levels of organizations, but keep in mind the more organizations there are, the more complex the configuration will be.  You can click on the plus sign (+) and it will expand the list to show the different levels of the hierarchy. 

The top top level of the hierarchy is the Organization level.  You’ll know it’s the Organization level by this icon:

Here are the other four levels denoted by their respective icons:

Each level can be sorted in ascending or descending order.  To change the sorting order, just click the correct up or down button located in the Name column.  You’ll also notice another icon on this page.  This icon shows whether something is checked in or out.  If the little padlock is open, then the project is checked in, if the little padlock is closed, the project is checked out. The last topic for this blog will be the “tabs” at the top of the screen.  This tab structure shows you roll up information on your Project or Program.  The tabs shown here are default to Portfolio Server.  Your Administrator can customize this based on the needs of your organization. 

Please stay tuned for more upcoming blogs on Microsoft Project Portfolio Server 2007!

By: Collin Quiring

I’m a detail oriented person and that is part of why I enjoy being a Project Manager – I get to dive into all the gory details and nuances.  But, like many people, I am busy and anything that isn’t a Project that I am involved with, I just want the high-level overview.  I read the headlines on the news websites and if a story interests me, I will drill down on it but may still only read the first few paragraphs.  Today, I was scanning a case study by Apple about Twitter and I read a sentence that jumped out at me:  “Twitter’s meteoric rise to ubiquity is proof positive that the world, in all its complexity, is eager to embrace simplicity.”

While this was about Twitter specifically, it struck me that this really is the point of Project and Portfolio Management.  One of my goals as a Project Manager is to summarize information for users of all levels – I like to use dashboards.  At one glance, an Executive can see a summary of a Project or Portfolio of Projects based upon criteria that is important to them.  Or, a Team Member can see information that is important to them.  And, since it is a dashboard view, they don’t have to get too involved or wade through too much information.  This is simple complexity – a Project can be a very complex set of interdependent tasks, processes, work flows, organizations, people and a myriad of other variables that create a complex labyrinth.  We simplify all those variables with a few colored symbols on a dashboard.

In recent months I have seen articles about the rise of Twitter.  And, I have seen articles by Project Managers talking about how they can use Twitter to send information to interested parties.  I am not there yet – but I see that this is one more way to produce simplicity from the complex.  So far, I let Microsoft Project automatically email my users and Executives that I have created a new dashboard, or that an existing dashboard is updated.  Maybe one day I will provide something more simple – sending a Tweet with a tiny url pointing to the dashboard.  But, then my users will want something even more simple – a dashboard summary in their Tweet; perhaps where a character represents what I now put into the dashboard.

At some point, we are trying to oversimplify the complex though.  What do you think?

Apple Case Study referenced: http://www.apple.com/business/profiles/twitter/