Project portfolio management: A dynamic capability and strategic asset

Killen, CP; Drouin, N

Project portfolio management: A dynamic capability and strategic asset

Killen, CP

Drouin, N

Permalink

Publication Type:: Chapter
Citation:: Cambridge Handbook of Organizational Project Management, 2017, pp. 55 - 70
Issue Date:: 2017-01-01

Closed Access

	Filename	Description	Size
	cha.pdf	Published version	2.14 MB	Adobe PDF	View/Open

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Closed Access

This item is closed access and not available.

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Killen, CP https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2370-7856	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Drouin, N	en_US
dc.date.issued	2017-01-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Cambridge Handbook of Organizational Project Management, 2017, pp. 55 - 70	en_US
dc.identifier.isbn	9781107157729	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/127323
dc.description.abstract	© Cambridge University Press 2017. Introduction The previous chapters of this book have initiated the discussion on strategy and organizational project management (OPM), outlining the strategic perspectives and foundations underlying organizations and OPM and introducing the resource-based view (RBV) of strategy and competitive advantage. In this chapter, we introduce the concept of dynamic capabilities (DC) and explore how the DC perspective extends the RBV perspective on strategy and competitive advantage; in particular, its relevance to OPM. We outline the scholarly debates on the definitions of DCs, methods to study and measure DCs, and highlight the research that relates DCs to project and portfolio management in the context of OPM. OPM is defined as “the integration of all project management-related activities throughout the organizational hierarchy or network … It is implemented by managers involved in project activities through organizational and managerial means, and governed by the agency responsible for governing the organization” (Drouin et al., 2016, pp. 3–4). OPM takes a holistic perspective on an organization's projects and its project-related network of strategic and collaborative initiatives that are governed and supported at the organizational level. In the OPM context, we highlight the role of project portfolio management (PPM) and its contribution to the development of sustainable competitive advantage by acting as a DC. We show how the OPM perspective helps to explain the mechanisms through which a DC such as PPM can influence the evolution of a wide range of project management (PM) activities and enable response to change. We propose that the resulting competitive advantage can be sustainable provided that the PPM capability is truly a DC and that the OPM approaches enable reconfiguration and change in resourcing and activities. All in all, PPM provides competitive advantage by acting as a DC by dynamically adjusting the organization's portfolio of projects and reconfiguring resources to respond to changes in the environment (Killen et al., 2007). As a strategic asset for OPM, PPM acts as a DC by ensuring the strategic alignment of the project portfolio and the efficient use of PM resources, as well by overseeing the changes required to sustain competitive advantage. Much attention has been paid to competitive positioning as a source of competitive advantage (Porter, 2011), where differences in competitive success are explained by differing strategic choices.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Cambridge Handbook of Organizational Project Management	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1017/9781316662243.008	en_US
dc.title	Project portfolio management: A dynamic capability and strategic asset	en_US
dc.type	Chapter
utslib.for	1503 Business and Management	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/e-Press
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Design, Architecture and Building/School of Built Environment
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CCDP - Contemporary Design Practice
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US

Abstract:

© Cambridge University Press 2017. Introduction The previous chapters of this book have initiated the discussion on strategy and organizational project management (OPM), outlining the strategic perspectives and foundations underlying organizations and OPM and introducing the resource-based view (RBV) of strategy and competitive advantage. In this chapter, we introduce the concept of dynamic capabilities (DC) and explore how the DC perspective extends the RBV perspective on strategy and competitive advantage; in particular, its relevance to OPM. We outline the scholarly debates on the definitions of DCs, methods to study and measure DCs, and highlight the research that relates DCs to project and portfolio management in the context of OPM. OPM is defined as “the integration of all project management-related activities throughout the organizational hierarchy or network … It is implemented by managers involved in project activities through organizational and managerial means, and governed by the agency responsible for governing the organization” (Drouin et al., 2016, pp. 3–4). OPM takes a holistic perspective on an organization's projects and its project-related network of strategic and collaborative initiatives that are governed and supported at the organizational level. In the OPM context, we highlight the role of project portfolio management (PPM) and its contribution to the development of sustainable competitive advantage by acting as a DC. We show how the OPM perspective helps to explain the mechanisms through which a DC such as PPM can influence the evolution of a wide range of project management (PM) activities and enable response to change. We propose that the resulting competitive advantage can be sustainable provided that the PPM capability is truly a DC and that the OPM approaches enable reconfiguration and change in resourcing and activities. All in all, PPM provides competitive advantage by acting as a DC by dynamically adjusting the organization's portfolio of projects and reconfiguring resources to respond to changes in the environment (Killen et al., 2007). As a strategic asset for OPM, PPM acts as a DC by ensuring the strategic alignment of the project portfolio and the efficient use of PM resources, as well by overseeing the changes required to sustain competitive advantage. Much attention has been paid to competitive positioning as a source of competitive advantage (Porter, 2011), where differences in competitive success are explained by differing strategic choices.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/127323