Program manager: managing your project portfolios

Companies juggle urgent and strategic project portfolios. How do you keep an overview when each project has its own missions and needs? To get the job done, the program manager needs the right management tools. ERP systems are designed to give visibility and structure to operations.

Program manager: a key, strategic role

A program manager should not be confused with a project manager. Whereas the latter looks after a specific project, the program manager oversees an entire portfolio, with one mission: to align projects with the overall strategy.

In practice, the program manager becomes the guarantor of consistency between the organization’s objectives and operational execution, to improve productivity and ensure better quality management. A study carried out by Capterra shows that 96% of French companies that have adopted artificial intelligence in project management report significant benefits in terms of efficiency.

Thus, 65% of respondents point to improved strategic decision-making thanks to AI’s analytical capabilities, while 55% mention optimized planning.

Project portfolio management (PPM) is a structured approach to selecting, prioritizing and overseeing all projects and programs within an organization. Thanks to this centralized approach, the company has a solid frame of reference to guide its decisions and maintain overall consistency.

The concrete missions of the program manager

The program manager’s day-to-day work is based on several essential missions:

• Plan and structure portfolios: define priorities and organize projects in line with strategy.

• Managing resources: human, financial, material. Constant arbitration.

• Anticipate and manage risks: identify threats before they become crises.

• Ensure communication and liaison between stakeholders: operations manager, project managers, customers, teams.

• Measure and adjust performance: key indicators, feedback, reporting.

In other words, he’s a tightrope walker who walks a tightrope between the strategic vision and the operational… with a spreadsheet under his arm and endless meetings.

Daily challenges: complexity, prioritization, reporting

The role is crucial, but far from simple. The program manager must manage :

• Intersecting projects, sometimes with contradictory objectives.
• Constant pressure on deadlines and budgets.
• Demanding stakeholders who want results fast.

A McKinsey study shows that 45% of major IT projects exceed their initial budget, and many fail to fully achieve their objectives. In many cases, the problem is not a lack of skills, but the absence of suitable tools.

The benefits of ERP and PPM for program management

This is where ERP and project portfolio management (PPM) software come in. They don’t replace human expertise, but they multiply it.

ERPs like Furious centralize data, simplify financial management, track budgets in real time, automate reporting and offer a consolidated view of resources. PPMs, on the other hand, offer a more specialized approach. They feature advanced functionalities for prioritizing projects, simulating different scenarios and measuring the contribution of each initiative to the overall strategy.

In other words,ERP ensures integrated governance at the heart of the company, while PPM provides the manager with a control tower dedicated exclusively to the project portfolio. Management tools have several advantages. Once implemented, they help reduce costs. In 91% of cases, they have a positive impact on ROI.

We’ve been using Furious for just over two years now. […] Since we installed Furious, we’ve doubled our sales in two years. […] This enables us to manage our business and get people working together, so that they can see what’s going on and we can really make things run more smoothly.

Amaury Bataille – Monet

How do you choose the right program management tool?

Not all solutions are created equal, and the wrong choice can quickly turn a software package into a gas factory. Here are a few key criteria:

• Adaptability: the tool must reflect your specific needs, not the other way around.
• Integration: an ERP needs to interact with your internal systems (finance, HR, CRM), while a PPM needs to interface with your project tools.
• Ease of use: a tool that is too complex will discourage your teams.
• Scalability: whether it’s an ERP or a PPM, the solution needs to support the growth and evolution of your projects.

Let’s take an example: a digital services agency managing 15 customer projects simultaneously. Without ERP, it depends on fragmented Excel files, and management has only partial visibility.

Having a tool that covers the entire value chain, from quotation to production and delivery, enables us to be much more consistent and to better control our processes.

Jérôme Balmain – High society

Among the many portfolio management solutions on the market, some planning software stands out for its functionality and adaptability to business realities. Here are a few that are often cited as benchmarks, and that you should know about if you’re thinking of buying one.

• monday.com: highly flexible, visual interface, customizable dashboards, tracking of budgets, resources, deadlines, etc.
• Triskell Software: a robust solution for SMEs and major accounts, combining strategic management, scenario simulation, prioritization and real-time project tracking using different methodologies.
• Sciforma: seniority, credibility, large worldwide user base, suitable for large project portfolios, strong analysis, reporting and advanced planning capabilities.

From business to solution: an inseparable duo

The program manager, ERP and PPM form a complementary trio.

• Without a competent manager, the tools remain empty shells.
• Without appropriate management tools, managers end up fiddling with disparate files, at the risk of wasting time and making the wrong decisions.

An ERP will never replace human discernment, and a PPM won’t make the right decisions on its own. Together, they give the manager the ability to transform multiple projects into tangible results. A bit like a pilot who has both a complete cockpit and a precision GPS: one without the other is of little use.

Towards more efficient, agile governance

Today’s program manager is one of the most strategic players in the company. Their role: to transform a multitude of projects into a coherent, high-performance whole. But to succeed, they need robust tools capable of centralizing information, optimizing planning and providing real-time visibility.

Furious ERP provides integrated governance for project portfolio management. The steering tool enables the program manager to control and supervise with lucidity, anticipate risks and involve all stakeholders.

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