Best Practices for Creating Project Portfolio Dashboards: Templates and Examples

How many capital projects are in your project portfolio? 10? 100? 1000?

No matter the size, managing multiple projects together is key to success in any capital improvement program. A project portfolio dashboard is crucial for program managers, executives, and stakeholders delivering capital projects.

This article will show you the best ways to make and use project portfolio dashboards. We’ve included templates and examples as well.

Understanding Project Portfolio Dashboards

A project portfolio dashboard is a single report of all projects in the portfolio. A visual representation of all projects, key metrics, and performance indicators helps manage portfolio risk and deconflict interdependencies.

Common components of a project portfolio dashboard include timelines, budget trackers, status markers, risk overviews, resource utilization metrics, and performance indices.

Selecting the Right Dashboard Tool

A project portfolio dashboard is not something that can be achieved easily, so we recommend using a software tool. Choosing the right dashboard tool will depend on your circumstances:

1. Volume of Projects: Assess how many projects you need to manage and how much data each generates. Tools that handle large data sets efficiently are essential for comprehensive portfolio management.
2. Data Entry: Evaluate how user-friendly the tool is for data entry. Look for features like automated data imports, integration with existing project management systems, and simple user interfaces that facilitate quick updates.
3. Ease of Use: The tool should be simple and easy to use so all team members can use it well without much training.
4. Readability: A good dashboard tool presents data clearly and concisely. Look for customizable visualization options, such as charts, graphs, and color-coded indicators, that make interpreting data at a glance easy.
5. Customizability: Customizing the dashboard to match your project's needs and how your organization works is important. This includes customizing metrics, adding project-specific details, and adjusting layouts to highlight the most critical information.
6. Integration Capabilities: Ensure the tool can seamlessly integrate with other project management and data systems you use. Integration capabilities can save time and reduce errors by automating data updates.
7. Scalability: Choose a tool that can grow with your organization. As your project portfolio expands, the tool should manage more data and complexity without slowing down.
8. Support and Training: Consider the customer support and training resources available. Reliable support and comprehensive training can help you maximize the tool’s potential and address any issues promptly.

Popular dashboard software like Smartsheet or Mastt has many features that can be customized to fit your needs. They are great for making project portfolio dashboards.

Creating a Project Portfolio Dashboard

Follow these steps to create an effective project portfolio dashboard:

1. Identify the Purpose: Clearly define what you want to achieve with the dashboard. Is it to track project progress, manage budgets, assess risks, or all of these? Knowing the purpose helps design a dashboard that meets your needs.

2. Define Your Objectives: Determine the key questions your dashboard needs to answer. Identify the critical metrics and KPIs to provide insights into project status, RAG status, budget performance, risk levels, and resource utilization.

3. Choose a Template: Explore available project portfolio dashboard templates from your chosen dashboard tool. Templates provide a starting point and can save time. Examples include the Project Portfolio Summary Template, Project Portfolio Scorecard Template, and Project Portfolio Dashboard Template.

4. Customize the Dashboard: Tailor the template to include specific project details and metrics relevant to your projects. Add elements such as:

• Timelines: To track project schedules and milestones.
• Budget Trackers: To monitor budget allocations and expenditures.
• Status Markers: Color-coded indicators to show project health (e.g., on track, at risk, behind schedule).
• Risk Overviews: To identify and manage potential project risks.
• Resource Utilization Metrics: To ensure optimal use of resources across projects.

5. Integrate Data Sources: Ensure your dashboard pulls real-time data from various project management tools and systems. This integration enables automatic updates, providing an up-to-date view of project performance without manual data entry.

6. Review and Adjust: Regularly review the dashboard for accuracy and relevance. Ask for opinions from people involved to find ways to do better. Adjust the dashboard layout, metrics, and data sources as needed to ensure it continues to meet your project management needs.

Effective Project Portfolio Dashboard Examples

1. Project Portfolio Management Dashboard: Features include start and end dates, budget allocation, Schedule Performance Index (SPI), Earned Value (EV), and progress percentage.

2. Cost and Performance Project Portfolio Dashboard: Displays current project status, overall allocated budget, available budget, and a list of pending tasks.

3. Project Portfolio Health Status Dashboard: Showcases key performance indicators, task status (not started, in progress, completed), and risk levels.

Best Practices for Managing Multiple Projects

Here are a few of the best practices on how to manage multiple projects effectively using a portfolio dashboard:

1. Reporting System: Set up a system for generating reports regularly. This includes defining data collection methods, scheduling reporting intervals, and assigning team responsibilities. Proper setup saves time and ensures consistency.
2. Standardize: If you need to report on multiple projects individually, adopt the same dashboard template for each project to make life easy when managing multiple projects.
3. RAG Status: To make things simple and easy, implement a Red, Green, and Amber system for key areas of interest for stakeholders. e.g., Time, Cost, Risk.
4. Maintain Consistent Reporting: Regular updates and honest reporting are crucial for maintaining dashboard accuracy.
5. Practice Proactive Risk Management: Use the dashboard to identify and mitigate risks early in the project lifecycle.
6. Enhance Stakeholder Communication: Leverage dashboards to improve communication and transparency with stakeholders.
7. Utilize Technology: Use a reporting tool like Mastt to keep data consistent and avoid repeating work. Don't move data between systems that don't work well together, which can cause mistakes and complicate things. An all-in-one method makes construction reporting easier.
8. Incorporate Visuals: Use charts, graphs, and images to present data visually, making complex information accessible and highlighting key points effectively.
9. Prioritize Key Information: Highlight critical decision-making information upfront in your reports, separating essential insights from detailed records.
10. Optimize Data Management: Centralize and integrate data sources for accurate and timely reports. Automate data collection where possible to enhance accuracy.

Benefits of Using Project Portfolio Dashboards

Implementing a project portfolio dashboard offers several advantages:

1. Aggregation: Data from many projects is aggregated automatically.
2. Timeliness: You no longer have to wait until the portfolio view is prepared manually with crazy spreadsheets.
3. Scale: With standardized dashboards and reporting, you can easily accept and integrate new projects into the portfolio. Standard dashboards can be applied across all projects, giving consistency in reporting.
4. Improved Decision-Making: Dashboards facilitate data-driven decisions and strategic planning by providing a comprehensive view of project health.
5. Enhanced Collaboration: They promote teamwork and align project goals across multiple teams and departments.
6. Efficient Resource Allocation: Real-time insights help optimize resource utilization and prevent bottlenecks.

Conclusion

Project portfolio dashboards are essential for managing multiple projects effectively in the construction and capital project management industry.

By following the tips in this article and using the right templates and examples, project managers can better track project health, handle risks, and finish projects successfully.

Remember, a good project portfolio dashboard should give clear and useful information to help make smart decisions and keep projects on track.

Use the templates, adjust the dashboards to match your needs, and connect them with your project management tools for updates. This will improve communication, make reporting easier, and help your project succeed.

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