Co-evolution efficacy of project portfolio based on strategic orientation

School of Economics and Management, Chang’an University, Middle-section of Nan’er Huan Road, Xi’an, ShaanXi, China

^* Corresponding author: LB.Bai@chd.edu.cn

Received: 7 March 2017
Accepted: 30 October 2017

Abstract

Multi-project management has been a trend of many large organizations’ operations and a preferred organizational strategy in complex and dynamic environments. For an organization to achieve its strategy, it must integrate various projects into a project portfolio and implement coordinated management to make sure that these projects co-evolve in the direction of the overall strategy. As some elements in project portfolio (PP) cannot be quantified or determined accurately, a PP could be characterized as an uncertain and fuzzy problem where it is difficult to measure the co-evolution efficacy. To solve this difficulty, in this paper, we first propose a conceptual framework of Project Portfolio based on Strategic Orientation (PPSO) with quantitative indices and process of the co-evolution. A mathematical model based on Fuzzy Data Envelopment Analysis(FDEA) is built to measure the co-evolution efficacy of the PPSO, and provides a basis for optimal PPSO selection. The model is verified by a computational experiment based on actual data provided by a Chinese firm of HPM, a reputable Chinese project management consulting firm, which has also been officially certified by the International Project Management Association (IPMA). The results suggest that co-evolution efficacy is reasonably effective for selecting the optimal PPSO. To our knowledge, this study is the first time to apply the notion of co-evolution efficacy and fuzzy Data Envelopment Analysis to the PP domain, which enriches the theories of project management and strategic management. Also, this study makes an important contribution to integrating a group of projects into a PP under the strategic direction and helping an organization optimize its strategic management.