Most project-oriented organizations have already adopted project management tools to help their teams improve the delivery of individual projects. We are now seeing growing numbers of companies move up to the next level and implement Enterprise Project Portfolio Management (EPPM) project management platforms.  

EPPM vs project management: How do these two types of technology compare? What are their respective pros and cons? Most importantly, which one is right for your business? Let’s investigate.

 

Use cases of Project Management tools

Project Management solutions are designed to help Project Managers and project teams carry out a variety of project tasks. They provide such features as Gantt charts, calendars, timesheets, and budget plans to enhance visibility into project activity. The idea is to make project planning, tracking, and delivery easier and faster. Your typical Project Management tool relies heavily on task automation to speed up workflows and free up human workers. 

 

Key capabilities of PM tools include: 

  • Project Planning 

  • Resource Management 

  • Budget Management 

  • Monitoring and Reporting 

  • Project Communication 

  • Team Collaboration 

 

Such basic Project Management software is usually affordable and easy to use. It can go a long way toward optimizing the way your organization runs and delivers individual, discrete projects. It may also have a positive impact on the management of project resources. 

 

But there’s only so much these “simple” tools can do. When your business and your PMO level up, you may want to upgrade your toolset to embrace Enterprise PPM.

Use cases of Enterprise Portfolio Project Management (EPPM) software

Enterprise PPM tools are industry-grade solutions aimed to support the management of a grouping of projects, products, and/or programs in a coordinated and consistent manner. They enable PMO and PPM leaders to pull back from traditional project management to get comprehensive insight and a better knowledge of project schedules, resources, and business goals from a higher level. 

 

Robust Enterprise PPM software will help portfolio managers gain an understanding of the relations, links, and dependencies between multiple initiatives across the organization. Which is crucial to inform prioritization decisions. 

 

While Project Management tools do a great job at managing individual endeavors, Enterprise PPM technology provides a big-picture view that’ll help you figure out where your resources should be invested to maximize value and strategy alignment. 

 

Key functionalities of Enterprise PPM include: 

  • Resource Optimization 

  • Risk Assessment and Mitigation 

  • Financial Oversight 

  • Strategy Alignment 

 

What’s more, proper Enterprise PPM solutions support interfaces with such systems as PLMs and ERPs. 

EPPM vs project management tools: Which way to go?

Project Management tools are a go-to for younger businesses. Their user-friendly features and attractive pricing make them ideal for basic project needs. But, when it comes to managing at scale, you may bump into their limitations: They’re simply not designed to coordinate a large number of concurrent projects. 

 

This is where Enterprise PPM products come in: with their greater functional coverage, enhanced robustness, and ability to connect all the dots across the organization’s project activity, they can meet more sophisticated needs. 

 

Note: “Sophisticated” doesn’t have to mean “headaches”. Some of these enterprise solutions were designed with accessibility in mind!


Many factors come into play when choosing the best piece of software for your PMO, including your company’s size and industry, your PPM goals and setup, and the maturity level of your users. 

In any case, when shopping for business software, the best practice is to check the reviews firsto

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