Which is a role of portfolio management in relation to programme and project management?

Question

Options

• ATo provide mechanisms for management of limited resources
• BTo provide mechanisms for risk management within programmes and projects
• CTo provide mechanisms for delivering individual change initiatives into business as usual
• DTo provide mechanisms for dependency management within projects

• B
  4% (1)
• C
  93% (26)
• D
  4% (1)

Explanation

Portfolio management acts as the bridge between strategic objectives and the individual programmes/projects that deliver change - its defining role is coordinating how those initiatives land in business as usual (BAU), ensuring that changes are absorbed by the organisation in a controlled, prioritised way. Option C captures this correctly.

Why the distractors fail:

• A (resource management) - Resource allocation is a concern of portfolio management, but this is an operational function shared with programme and project management; it's not what distinguishes portfolio management's unique role in relation to programmes and projects.
• B (risk management within programmes/projects) - Risk management at that level is handled within the programme or project itself; portfolio management deals with strategic-level risk across the whole portfolio, not mechanisms inside individual initiatives.
• D (dependency management within projects) - Dependency management inside a project is the project manager's responsibility; portfolio management concerns cross-initiative dependencies at the strategic level, not intra-project ones.

Memory tip: Think of portfolio management as the "landing controller" - it doesn't fly the planes (programmes/projects), but it coordinates where and when each one lands safely into the business. If it lands badly, BAU is disrupted.

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