Microsoft tends to dominate the areas it occupies. However being large and loud doesn’t imply it delivers on these large and loud guarantees. That’s definitely the case with Microsoft PPM (challenge portfolio administration) merchandise. They are typically costly and sophisticated.
However let’s give Microsoft challenge portfolio administration merchandise their due. We’ll assessment the perfect Microsoft PPM software program and see what every can do and what it could’t do. First, we’ll clarify what it’s and who ought to use it. Then we’ll assessment the perfect merchandise Microsoft has for managing a number of initiatives to assist customers make an knowledgeable determination.
What Is Microsoft PPM Software program?
A Microsoft PPM device is software program that helps organizations handle and prioritize their initiatives, packages and portfolios. Nonetheless, that doesn’t imply that these instruments are solely challenge portfolio administration options. Whereas MS Mission is the first PPM providing, there’s a broader Microsoft PPM ecosystem that features the next merchandise that assist handle a number of initiatives.
- Microsoft Mission: Plans, schedules and tracks challenge duties, timelines and sources
- Microsoft Mission On-line: Cloud-based model of MS Mission
- Microsoft Viva Insights (for PPM): Knowledge-driven insights into group collaboration and particular person productiveness
- Energy BI (Enterprise Intelligence): Superior reporting and information visualization
- Microsoft Groups: Permits group members to speak, collaborate and share recordsdata, duties and updates
The important thing options of challenge portfolio administration software program embrace challenge planning and scheduling, useful resource administration, reporting and analytics, collaboration and communication and integration with third-party apps. Microsoft doesn’t have a monopoly on these instruments and plenty of challenge portfolio administration software program merchandise give Microsoft a run for much less cash.
ProjectManager is award-winning portfolio administration software program that permits customers to group and manage initiatives, handle sources throughout a portfolio and acquire worthwhile challenge information to make extra insightful selections. The portfolio abstract supplies an summary of progress and a breakdown of all of the initiatives by time, price, workload and extra. Portfolio managers can monitor progress, prices and hours in actual time with the data that our enterprise-grade safety and project-level initiatives are retaining information protected. Plus, schedule sources throughout initiatives, monitoring time and labor prices with safe timesheets. Get began with ProjectManager at the moment free of charge.
Who Ought to Use Microsoft PPM Software program?
Microsoft PPM is greatest fitted to organizations that handle a number of initiatives, packages or portfolios throughout numerous enterprise capabilities. In these conditions, it’s perfect for quite a lot of professionals because it helps align initiatives with enterprise targets, optimize resources and monitor efficiency. Listed below are only a few professionals who’re helped by Microsoft challenge portfolio administration.
Mission Portfolio Managers
Project portfolio managers are accountable for managing a group of initiatives and packages to make sure they align with the group’s strategic plans. They assess and prioritize initiatives based mostly on their strategic worth, out there sources and potential returns.
Mission Administration Places of work
Additionally referred to as a challenge portfolio administration workplace, a project management office (PMO) is a division or group inside or exterior to a company that standardizes and oversees challenge administration processes and methodologies throughout the group. They implement challenge administration requirements, templates and greatest practices, guarantee consistency in challenge execution, monitor efficiency in opposition to key efficiency indicators (KPIs) and guarantee initiatives align with company technique.
Program Managers
Program managers oversee a bunch of associated initiatives, referred to as a program, that contribute to a bigger enterprise goal. They oversee a number of interconnected initiatives, making certain they align with strategic targets and that sources are distributed successfully throughout this system.
7 Prime Microsoft PPM Software program
For these tasked with managing a number of initiatives, which Microsoft PPM software program is the best selection? Let’s have a look at the highest merchandise the corporate presents and what their professionals and cons are to assist customers make an knowledgeable determination.
1. Microsoft Mission Commonplace
Microsoft Project Standard is broadly used for challenge administration. Whereas it’s primarily designed for managing particular person initiatives, it additionally has challenge portfolio administration options, although extra restricted than different Microsoft merchandise on this record. Nonetheless, it has complete challenge planning and scheduling instruments, reminiscent of Gantt charts with activity dependencies and milestones. There are activity and useful resource administration options to allocate sources and monitor progress. Customers can create and handle challenge budgets, monitor prices and analyze monetary efficiency.
That stated, there are restricted portfolio administration capabilities. It lacks the portfolio-level performance wanted to prioritize, monitor and handle a number of initiatives concurrently throughout a company. There’s additionally no online collaboration in addition to no choice for these utilizing Apple merchandise. The useful resource administration for a number of initiatives can be missing as is the superior portfolio reporting and analytics to observe KPIs, threat evaluation and different strategic insights with out buying extra instruments. It doesn’t combine with Microsoft Mission Server or supply superior PPM options like portfolio optimization, challenge governance or automated workflows out there in Mission On-line.
2. Microsoft Mission Skilled
Microsoft Project Professional is a complicated model of Microsoft Mission and presents a variety of options that help extra complicated challenge planning, scheduling and useful resource administration. It nonetheless isn’t a full-fledged Microsoft PPM software program.
That stated, it helps some facets of challenge portfolio administration and is usually utilized by organizations for project-level administration, useful resource allocation and even managing a number of initiatives to some extent. It has complete useful resource administration capabilities, together with monitoring useful resource utilization throughout initiatives and resource-leveling.
This Microsoft challenge portfolio administration software program continues to be primarily used for particular person initiatives. It doesn’t have the superior portfolio analytics, strategic alignment or real-time challenge visibility wanted to handle portfolios. It additionally lacks cloud-based collaboration. Like many Microsoft initiatives, there’s a steep studying curve and its consumer interface might be overwhelming for brand new or occasional customers. There’s reporting, however not superior portfolio-level reporting options. There’s additionally no centralized portfolio dashboard. Add to that the expense and this received’t be a good selection for organizations on a funds or small groups.
Associated: Microsoft Project vs. ProjectManager
3. Microsoft Mission On-line
Microsoft Project Online is cloud-based Microsoft PPM software program with instruments for managing initiatives, portfolios, sources and schedules throughout a company in actual time. It integrates with different MS 365 instruments and supplies enhanced collaboration, reporting and analytics. This can be a true PPM device with centralized portfolio administration, superior useful resource administration and challenge prioritization and alignment capabilities.
It additionally integrates with Power BI (extra on that device in a second) to supply superior reporting and analytics capabilities, reminiscent of customized dashboards and stories to trace portfolio efficiency, useful resource utilization, prices and different KPIs.
This, nonetheless, is a posh device and might want to dedicate a very good period of time to coaching to clear the training hurdle. There’s additionally a worth hurdle to clear. As a result of it is a subscription-based Microsoft PPM, the associated fee might be excessive relying on the variety of customers and the options required. Different points embrace restricted superior customization or custom workflows in comparison with different PPM software program choices. Oddly, it’s not totally built-in with all Microsoft instruments and those it does combine with might be difficult to completely join with. Keep in mind, that is an internet device with restricted offline performance.
Associated: Microsoft Project Online: Pros, Cons and Best Alternatives
4. Microsoft Energy BI
Microsoft Power BI is a enterprise analytics device used for information visualization, reporting and enterprise intelligence. Whereas not particularly designed as a Microsoft PPM software program, it may be used to reinforce PPM by offering superior reporting, information evaluation and visualization capabilities for initiatives and portfolios. Customers can create dynamic dashboards and stories to show key metrics like challenge progress, useful resource utilization, funds well being and dangers.
Perceive that this isn’t a full challenge portfolio administration software program. It’s a device that gives reporting and evaluation. It lacks elementary options reminiscent of project scheduling, activity administration, useful resource allocation, time monitoring and collaboration on duties. Due to this fact, one should pay for this device and PPM software program to get rounded protection. It’s additionally complicated software program and never really useful for non-technical customers because it requires information integration setup.
5. Microsoft Dynamics 365
Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a collection of functions for enterprise useful resource planning (ERP) and buyer relationship administration (CRM), nevertheless it additionally supplies Microsoft PPM capabilities. That is primarily by the challenge operations module. It helps organizations handle their complete project life cycle, from planning and useful resource allocation to execution, budgeting and reporting. Customers can handle a number of initiatives concurrently, monitor sources, forecast challenge efficiency and optimize operations.
Nonetheless, whereas it presents a strong platform for managing initiatives, it might not be as targeted or specialised as standalone Microsoft PPM software program. Like many MS merchandise, it’s additionally sophisticated and has a steep studying curve in addition to a excessive price, particularly for smaller organizations. This device isn’t as specialised as different PPM software, that are tailor-made particularly for challenge and portfolio administration. Additionally, take into account that it requires devoted IT sources, which might result in extra prices and delays in implementation.
6. Microsoft Sharepoint
Microsoft Sharepoint is primarily a collaboration and doc administration platform, however many organizations use it as a device to help Microsoft PPM software program. It presents capabilities like doc sharing, group collaboration, workflow administration and integration with different Microsoft instruments. This makes it an acceptable platform for managing a number of initiatives, significantly in an atmosphere the place doc administration and collaboration are key.
Once more, this isn’t a devoted PPM device, however one which should be used with different instruments. That is going to have an effect on a company’s funds and should be taken into consideration earlier than buy. There are restricted challenge administration options, for instance, no built-in planning instruments, cost management options or instruments to handle sources. It seems like a damaged document, nevertheless it’s vital to notice as with many different Microsoft initiatives, this requires a posh setup and customization, plus a steep studying curve.
7. Microsoft Energy Automate
Microsoft Power Automate is a cloud-based service that permits customers to automate workflows and duties throughout completely different functions and companies. It’s not a devoted Microsoft PPM software program, however it could play a task in supporting PPM processes by automating repetitive duties, streamlining workflows and integrating challenge administration programs with different instruments and functions. This enhances the general effectivity of managing a challenge portfolio, even when it isn’t a full-fledged challenge portfolio administration answer.
This has restricted superior challenge administration options. It will probably’t create and handle timelines, assign duties to sources or monitor project milestones. It’s designed for non-technical customers, constructing complicated workflows should still require some technical experience and time devoted to studying how to take action. There’s additionally restricted reporting and analytics, that are sometimes a part of PPM software program. The software program helps integrations, however there could also be difficulties in connecting sure functions, particularly customized or legacy programs.
How one can Open & Edit Microsoft Mission Information Utilizing ProjectManager
We’ve already proven how ProjectManager is superior to Microsoft PPM, however for a lot of, the choice of abandoning this costly and sophisticated software program isn’t on the desk. It could be built-in inside a big group and customers are caught with it. There’s, nonetheless, an answer. ProjectManager can import and export Microsoft Mission Information (MPP), which permits one to edit, collaborate after which export the file with all modifications intact. Right here’s how.
1. Begin a Free Trial
First, create an account with ProjectManager. It’s free for 30 days and doesn’t require a bank card. Simply observe this hyperlink and get entry to our challenge portfolio administration instruments.
2. Import MPP Information Into ProjectManager on the Gantt Chart View
Go to the Gantt chart view. Click on on the import icon, which appears like a field with a downward arrow piercing it from the highest. It’s on the highest right-hand aspect.
3. Choose the MPP File You Wish to Import
A window will pop up. Seek for the MPP file that you just need to import.
4. Select Your MPP File Import Choices
You’ll be able to import a brand new or present challenge. If an present one is chosen, select it from the dropdown menu. Give it a reputation for a brand new challenge, and will probably be created when the import is full.
5. Import All Knowledge or Simply the Job Checklist
At this level, import solely the duty record or all the info. All the info consists of duties, assignees, dependencies and related deliberate activity information, not precise activity information, attachments or feedback.
6. Shut the Success Immediate
When the success popup seems, it’s finished. Customers now have entry to all of the PPM tools in our software program to collaborate, edit, and even work with group members who use Apple merchandise.
ProjectManager Is a Higher PPM Instrument Than Microsoft Mission Portfolio Administration Software program
When customers get an opportunity to kick the tires in our software program they’ll see that ours is the superior choice to Microsoft PPM software program. We have now a collaborative platform, the place customers can share recordsdata, remark on the activity stage and keep up to date with notifications. There are automated workflows which have activity approval settings for high quality assurance. We’ve already famous how our useful resource administration options for PPM are intensive, however that’s solely the beginning of how ProjectManager helps packages and portfolios ship on strategic targets.
Actual-Time Value, Time and Value Knowledge Mission Portfolio Dashboards
There are a number of choices for monitoring portfolio efficiency. For a high-level overview, toggle to the portfolio administration dashboard with filters for particular insights. It mechanically captures reside information from all initiatives and shows them on easy-to-read graphs and charts that present KPIs reminiscent of time, price, workload and extra. Maintain stakeholders knowledgeable with in-depth PPM instruments to share progress. Customizable portfolio standing stories might be filtered to spotlight standing, buyer, precedence and extra.
Mission, Program and Portfolio Roadmaps
Use PPM roadmaps to gather all of the initiatives in a portfolio or program. They’re displayed on one Gantt chart, which is supplied with useful resource administration, time monitoring and activity administration options. Filter the roadmap by the assignee, challenge supervisor or buyer to make forecasts. View which initiatives are open and who’s assigned duties. Spotlight key metrics for stakeholders to maintain them knowledgeable.
Associated Content material on Microsoft Mission Administration Instruments
There are quite a lot of Microsoft challenge administration instruments and we’ve reviewed them or have spotlights Microsoft Project alternatives that do the identical job, however higher. For many who need to delve into extra articles on Microsoft and portfolio administration, under are a handful of hyperlinks to observe.
ProjectManager is on-line challenge and portfolio administration software program that connects groups whether or not they’re within the workplace, on the job website or out within the subject. They’ll share recordsdata, remark on the activity stage and keep up to date with electronic mail and in-app notifications. Be part of groups at Avis, Nestle and Siemens who use our software program to ship profitable initiatives. Get started with ProjectManager today for free.
