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Using Biotech Project Management Software to Drive Value

Published By Brandon Harville

Today we’re going to look at how a global biotech company used biotech project management software to drive greater business value. The company is known around the world for its groundbreaking molecular diagnostic testing capabilities. They provide hospitals and doctor’s offices with fast and accurate tests for COVID-19, tuberculosis, and other types of illnesses.

“We use Planview’s solutions to ensure projects in distress are getting the help they need.”

Senior Director of IT Governance, Global Biotech Company

We’ll look at the steps the company took to optimize their IT Portfolio Management framework to increase visibility within the organization.

After reading this, you’ll learn how you can benefit by following a similar process, regardless of your industry.

Let’s start by looking at the challenges this organization was facing.

They Needed to Expand Visibility from Intake to Execution

This leading biotech company needed an IT Portfolio Management framework that guaranteed value delivery and helped top leadership make better-informed decisions.

They were looking to adopt a global portfolio management framework that would:

  • Increase transparency.
  • Drive innovation and meet customer expectations.
  • Deliver value to the organization.

Now here’s where things got challenging. The company had a distribution presence in 180 countries. Their framework had to support that, in addition to helping them overcome demand challenges brought on by the global pandemic.

Here’s how they did it – and how you can, too.

Step 1: They Developed an Effective Portfolio Management Framework

The company first developed an effective portfolio management framework before they invested in biotech project management software.

Their Senior Director of IT Governance had experience building PMO organizations from the ground up. He understood how the PMO is the organization’s value center and how good systems and processes guaranteed the success of projects and programs­­.

Developing a framework required the company to look at four fundamental questions.

  1. Is our organization spending time and resources on the right work?
  2. Is there a more efficient way to get our work done?
  3. Are we prioritizing our work and completing it on time?
  4. Can we measure the value of our work?

These were important questions savvy PMO leadership should ask, regardless of their industry and department.

Answering these questions helped the organization develop a portfolio management framework that:

  • Fostered continued growth in an ever-changing professional landscape.
  • Standardized systems, processes, and services based on principles of innovation and transparency.
  • Made it possible to measure value delivered to the company and its customers.
  • Provided an executive-led IT Steering Committee with accurate, up-to-date data when planning and prioritizing projects.

Now that the organization had identified its goals, the next step was to put the strategy into motion with the help of biotech project management software. This involved creating data-driven processes that were connected to the four questions above.

“We want to make sure that we’re delivering on our commitments,” said the company’s Senior Director of IT Governance. “And we use Planview’s solutions to ensure projects in distress are getting the help they need.”

Step 2: They Adopted a Data-Driven Approach for Approving and Prioritizing Projects

Data needed to be accessible and in an easy-to-read format. That way, the IT Steering Committee could use the information to make better-informed decisions that increased business value.

The organization needed an effective platform to optimize their IT Portfolio Management­­­­. That’s where Planview PPM Pro was able to help. Its reporting and dashboard feature gave executives consistent, reliable data that removed gaps that could negatively impact decision making.

“We have secured cross-functional alignment with consistent, reliable, and accurate status reporting so that there is no room for ambiguity.”

Senior Director of IT Governance, Global Biotech Company

Adopting Planview PPM Pro meant that PMO leadership could quickly consolidate and present key data to stakeholders (like the IT Steering Committee mentioned above). This gave executive leadership a complete picture to inform their decision-making process.

What’s more, Planview PPM Pro made it easier for the organization to keep track of their IT Portfolio Projects. Using native features like Gantt Charts, Project Prioritization Alignment, and Project Intake Management streamlined how the biotech organization managed their IT Portfolio.

This streamlined their monthly project intake meetings, project reviews, and weekly status reporting by ensuring data was always accurate and easy to access.

Step 3: They Kept Projects Aligned with Resources and Capacity

Planview PPM Pro didn’t just make it easier for the organization to plan and prioritize their project portfolio. It also helped their projects run smoothly from start to finish.

They used Planview PPM Pro features like Project Time Tracking and Resource Management Tools to:

  • Improve accuracy when managing resources and capacity.
  • Keep projects on time and within budget.
  • Better understand how their workforce spends time completing tasks.

This gave the company greater visibility, which is important for determining whether ongoing work stays aligned with executive goals.

“The combination of these views will tell a story in terms of how we need to think about organization design, and how we need to plan for our projects and prioritize our projects going forward.”

Senior Director of IT Governance, Global Biotech Company

Want to learn how they did it? Watch our on-demand Modern PPM webinar on the best practices of capacity planning, portfolio planning, and project portfolio governance.

Now there’s one question left to answer. How did Planview PPM Pro perform? Let’s find out.

Greater Visibility Resulted in Better Outcomes

After choosing Planview PPM Pro for their biotech project management software, the company was able to plan and track projects more effectively. Having access to consistent reporting meant that leadership could make better-informed decisions when planning, prioritizing, and reprioritizing initiatives.

Not only did the organization increase their project delivery efficiency after switching to Planview PPM Pro, company morale also went up. Consistent and reliable reporting improved resource and capacity planning, which created a better work-life balance for everyone involved.

Planview PPM Pro has helped companies across industries…

  • Expand visibility into their project portfolios.
  • Collect and distribute data more efficiently.
  • Improve resource productivity.

Register for an on-demand demo of Planview PPM Pro and see why this organization and many others trust Planview for improving business process outcomes and driving innovation.

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Written by Brandon Harville

Brandon is a content strategist at Planview. Before coming aboard, he spent 5 years writing about Agile project management. He truly believes that core values like empathy, communication, and learning from mistakes make Agile more than just a business philosophy--they make Agile principles a life skill.