PPO provides for prioritisation models which allow projects to be rated in the Projects entity, or as a separate custom entity based on the client requirement and current configuration. Prioritisation models are implemented in PPO using its standard functionality and ability to configure data fields and implement calculated fields. There are three prioritisation techniques that we have found extremely useful when it comes to prioritisation:
For more information on these techniques click here.
How do I go about setting this up?
Forced Ranking Model
The Forced Ranking Model can only be set up as a separate custom entity and not as fields on the project entity as it requires multiple records per project.
- The entity can be simply built with fields added for the project phase and ranking.
- The custom entity allows multiple resources to provide their assessment of the project and thus if a multiple assessor model is to be used, such as in the Forced Ranking Model, a resource list must be incorporated to include the assessor.
- It is also possible to keep the scoring “blind” by only allowing the assessor to see the ranking they have done themselves.
- A calculated field should also be added to capture the date that the ranking was done.
- A template project can be set up to pre-create records for forced ranking when the project is added on PPO. This will require you to log a support call from your PPO Support button under User Options
- Ranking can be done using multiple edit functionality. For more details on multiple edit click here.
- The priority field on the project entity can be replaced with a calculated field. This calculation would need to add up the scores for the project so that it can be ranked against the other projects. This will require you to log a support call from your PPO Support button under User Options. The project with the lowest score will then have the highest priority.
In the Project list page, the projects can be sorted in the priority order. This can also be displayed in a report or dashboard.
Example of the priority displayed in the Portfolio View Dashboard:
For more on the Portfolio View Dashboard click here.
Weighted Scoring Model
The Weighted Scoring Model of prioritisation can be implemented in PPO in two ways: on the Projects entity; or in a separate custom entity.
Projects entity
To implement the Weighted Scoring Model on the Projects entity the following steps can be taken:
- Add each criterion as a field on the project entity and link it to a custom list which shows the applicable rating scale (1 to 5, as described above) or options (e.g. High, Medium or Low).
- Implement a prioritisation score data field (as a calculated field) using the results of the options to drive the score. This will require you to log a support call from your PPO Support button under User Options to request the prioritisation result calculation to be implemented. The result can be calculated based on values and weightings applied to each criterion field value, which should also be supplied in your support call.
The single constraint to this approach is that only one assessment per project can be provided and stored and thus the client’s business process must allow for agreement of the assessment.
Custom entity for Prioritisation
PPO allows for the implementation of up to nine custom entities per instance for requirements which are not catered for in the standard PPO entities (e.g. Comments, Costs, Documents, Health Indicators, Issues, Risks, Scope Changes and Tasks). To implement the prioritisation model as a custom entity, the following steps can be followed:
- A custom entity called “Prioritisation”should be implemented.
- The entity must be configured to show the list of identified criteria as custom list fields and the rating scale (1 to 5, as described above) or options (e.g. High, Medium, Low) as the custom list items available for each field.
- Implement a prioritisation score data field (as a calculated field) using the results of the options to drive the score.
- If only a single assessment per project is allowed, then custom validation must be implemented to ensure that only a single record per project is allowed.
- A calculated priority score field must be implemented on the entity which will include the roll-up and aggregation of the individual project assessments completed. This will require you to log a support call from your PPO Support button under User Options to request the prioritisation result calculation to be implemented. The result can be calculated based on values and weightings applied to each criterion field value, which should also be supplied in your support call. The priority ranking can then be displayed in a report or dashboard where projects can be sorted by score.
The output of this model can be represented in a Prioritisation Dashboard where information can be pulled through from the Project, Prioritisation, Cost and Benefits entities for example, for a holistic view (example below):
Paired Comparison Model
Once the prioritisation scores have been determined in a facilitated debate, the ranks can be added to the Priority field in the Project entity. No configuration is required as this is a standard field in PPO. Follow this article more information.
Additional considerations
It’s important that the calculated fields are correctly specified and tested in Excel before implementation into PPO. As the formula to calculate the scoring is fairly complex, a database function may need to be written. To create this function on your PPO instance, please contact the PPO Support Team by logging a support call from your PPO Support button under User Options.
Some prioritisation models such as the Weighted Scoring Model incorporate weighting per criterion to ensure that additional focus/weighting is given to higher business priorities (i.e. the ability to control costs criteria carries a 50 percent weighting while the increase in brand awareness only carries a 10 percent weighting). These weightings can be specified in the calculated fields and formulas.
Criteria can be further divided into categories. A separate score can then be calculated per category (i.e. Strategic Contribution and Financial Measures) and all the category scores then aggregated to determine the prioritisation. This approach will clearly show which projects have the highest scores, and thus which ones should be the top priorities.