Capture project group data

Project portfolio management in Alfabet focuses on projects focused on IT transformation. Alfabet's integrates project management with the IT architecture to ensure that you understand the dependencies between your assets.

In Alfabet, IT projects are bundled in project groups that allow you to evaluate and analyze projects in the context of various project portfolios. A project group may have multiple subordinate project groups. Each project can be assigned to multiple project groups that are relevant to the goals for the portfolio assessment process.

Add project groups to the repository

Go to Investment Portfolio > Project Groups:

• Add a project group at the top-level of the hierarchy. Click the root node of the explorer and click the New button. The edit panel opens on the right where you can define basic data. The Name attribute is mandatory.
• Create a new project group as a child (subordinate) of this project group. Click the parent project group in the explorer, go to Overview > Subordinate Project Groups view. Click New > Create New Project Group.
• Make an existing project group a child (subordinate) of this project group. Click the parent project group in the explorer, go to Overview > Subordinate Project Groups view. Click New > Move Existing Project Group Here. A selector opens where you can chose a project group and move it to this project group. The project group you chose is now a child of the project group you are working with.
• Edit a project group. Edit the project group directly in the data table. Or select the checkbox   for the project group you want to edit and click the Edit   button to open the edit panel.
• Navigate to the project group's content area.Click the Navigate   button next to a project to open its content area. Specify the project group's attributes as well as the relationships that the project group has to other assets in the repository.

Specify the project group's basic data

Once a project group is in the repository, you can define more details about the project groups in the Project Groups data workbench . Or you can select an individual project group and navigate to its content area and specify and analyze the project in detail. All mandatory fields must be defined to create the project group and save it.

data workbench

A data workbench is a data table that allows you to capture, edit, and understand large amounts of data.

content area

A content area is a view with a collection of tabbed pages. Each page may have multiple content items such as cards and views. Every asset has a content area where the asset's attributes can be defined as well as other relevant views to capture information.

• Name: (Mandatory) Enter a name for the project group. You can add an abbreviation (3-4 letters) of the name in the Short Name field to use in diagrams and other visualizations
• Type: Select the type of projects that will be assigned to the project group. Possible values are:
  • Project: Project group with many similar projects that make up a single focused effort.
  • Program: Project group with different projects that together constitute a complete package of work.
• Description: If necessary, enter a meaningful description that will clarify the purpose of the project group.

Assign projects to project groups for analysis

Project groups logically structure and bundle the projects and allow you to assess the project portfolio. You can assign projects to multiple project groups in order to analyze your projects from various perspectives.

Click the navigate  button of the project group to open the content area. Go to Overview > Asset Grouping. In the Projects field, enter the name of the project you want to assign to the project group. Or click in the field to open the selector and select each project that you want to assign to the project group. Click outside of the selector to close it and update the Asset Grouping field.

Design or review a project group's application landscape diagram

1. In the data table, click the navigate  button of the project group you want to define. Go to its content area > Diagrams > Application Landscape Diagram. The diagram displays either a default view or a landscape diagram that has been designed by an authorized user. The landscape diagram may include application groups, applications, local components, and information flows.
2. You can edit the basic attributes of any asset displayed in the diagram that you have access permissions for.
   • Click the asset to open the inspection pane, where you can edit the displayed attributes.
   • Double-click the asset to navigate to the content area, where you can edit the assets attributes and relationships.
3. The Open Diagram button is visible for users who have been granted to the Diagram Designer access via an administrative user . To design or edit the application landscape diagram , click the   edit button > Open Diagram.

Which business questions focus on project groups?

The following business questions are relevant for the analysis of project groups:

• What are our most important projects?
• Where are our project dependencies?
• What is the status of our project portfolio?