Impact of project portfolio management (PPM) strategic alignment and agility on strategic goals - the "alignment-agility" paradox

Abstract

Organizations are facing an uncertain and dynamic business environment, where conditions and customer requirements are continuously changing. Therefore, organizations are increasingly employing project portfolio management (PPM) as a key strategic implementation capability to compete in this complex environment. Moreover, agile organizations have been found to have a competitive advantage as they rapidly adapt to the unexpected external changes. However, alignment between the organization’s business strategy and functional unit’s strategy are critical to avoid chaos and ensure focus. The simultaneous requirement for organizations to be agile and strategically aligned results in the alignment-agility paradox. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to analyse the alignment-agility paradox within the project portfolio management (PPM) context. This was done through analysing the relationships between agility, PPM strategic alignment, and the ability of the organization to achieve its strategic goals. A quantitative explanatory study, through the deductive approach was undertaken. An online questionnaire was used to collect the data. A sample size of 143 valid respondents was achieved from a total 155 responses that were received. The data was analysed through a hierarchical regression approach. The key findings of the study supported the argument that agility is a critical capability for strategic alignment and for organizations to achieve their strategic goals. However, organizational size, organization type and industry had significant influences in the level of agility and the ability of organizations to achieve their strategic goals. This study contributes to the strategic management and project management body of knowledge.