How to increase your resource management maturity to support data-driven decisions

Making the switch: A Step-by-Step Checklist for a successful PPM tool transition

.downloadblog{ width: 180px; height: 42px; border-radius: 35px; background: #008bff; color: #fff; font-family: var(--font-montserrat); text-align: center; font-size: 20px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 700; line-height: normal; border: none; } Checklist for a successful PPM tool transition For pharma and life sciences organizations, project portfolio management is a core enabler of strategic alignment and operational visibility. When existing tools fall short of supporting complexity or evolving needs, the need to evaluate and transition to a new PPM solution becomes clear.However, a PPM tool switch is rarely just about technology. In almost all situations, it is an outcome of a need to change processes, data, and/or how teams collaborate.Let’s first look at the various aspects which need to be evaluated before you go hunting for PPM tools.Key aspects to consider before the transitionBefore choosing a tool and starting the transition, it is essential to do an analysis of your current state and future vision. The processes involved in a PPM tool typically impacts finance, resourcing, governance, executive reporting, and of course the functions and project team involved in delivery. Without a structured approach, organizations risk incomplete adoption, process disconnects, and underutilized investments.Download the checklistExcel PDFDefine your ecosystem (tools + processes)Clarify which tools and processes currently support portfolio and project management. Map ownership across teams, identify overlaps or manual workarounds, and assess how the current tool supports strategic alignment as well. Take note of any gaps and define future criteria based on business value, risk, and other relevant parameters. A transition to a new tool is also an opportunity to optimize processes and address inefficiencies. Document existing challenges and unmet needs to ensure they are accounted for during the transition or planned as part of future enhancements.Set a clear improvement benchmark Frame what “better” looks like, for instance improved visibility, simplified reporting, more accurate forecasting, or more user engagement and adoption. Quantify the benefits if possible. Ensure alignment on the scope, taking into account areas such as resource management, project management and execution, integration and data migration, governance and security, and user adoption.Identify decision criteria Align tool selection to suit your business priorities. Cost, user experience, integration, and scalability are common factors, but priorities vary by organization's size and maturity. Identify and assign priorities according to your business needs; the most critical needs should be given more priority than the rest.Design for scale Plan your implementation in phases to minimize disruption and allow for iterative feedback. Engage a third-party PPM expert to support the selection, conduct the tool transition or even just upgrade testing to minimize risk and support any change to existing processes.Consider your reporting strategy upfront, whether you will utilize a PPM tool’s reporting solutions, a data warehouse with a visualization solution on top of it, or a hybrid. Questions to ask include whether your leadership team will utilize the same tool as your operational teams, if you will need trend analysis, and how you expect AI to play a role. Include a mapping of the databases which need integration to support the data that will drive your stakeholders’ decisions., Ensure adaptability Select a solution that can grow with you. Consider long-term integrations and assign internal ownership to maintain flexibility. Prepare a future roadmap of your portfolio growth and evaluate the tool against them.Plan for change management early on Stakeholder alignment is the number 1 key to success – have a sponsor and ensure their engagement throughout, including a communication plan to all stakeholders. Involve users early. Understand their challenges and create room for feedback. Appoint a business system owner to support and evolve the solution beyond go live. Ready to take the next stepSwitching your PPM tool is a strategic decision. This checklist can help you structure the conversation, build alignment, and plan with confidence.Download the checklist now

PPM tools and Power BI: Smarter time reporting for precise decisions

PPM tools and Power BI: Smarter time reporting for precise decisionsTime tracking in pharma PPM: A backgroundTime carding captures data that has several strategic and operational benefits. Data lying in the tool is of limited use, but if it can be extracted and visualized it provides crucial insights into resource allocation, capacity planning, compliance and audit readiness, project cost control are a few to name.In pharma PPM, time carding is typically done through structured systems integrated with project and resource management tools. Their goal is to capture time spent across drug development stages, from discovery to post-marketing. No matter how insightful the data is, it’s true value comes out when analyzed and visualized.In this blog we will elaborate how integrations and data visualizations can become a game changer in extracting insights from your time carding data.Time reporting in complex project portfoliosMany large pharma teams with multi-year R&D investments deployed project portfolio management tools that had out-of-the-box time tracking features enabling activity-based time entry directly tied to project phases and operational workflows.Some had built-in approval flows, role-based tracking mechanisms, and integration with cost control and forecasting modules. Other project portfolio management tools have configurable timesheets with mobile access, enabling users to log time across multiple projects and tasks seamlessly. But now time tracking is moving from an afterthought to a core function with better tool customization and data integration.Integrating your PPM tool with Power BI- unlocks a whole new level of functional ease and data visibility. And project teams are using it as a strategic lever to gather insight and vision. Here’s more.How can time tracking data be more visible with smarter reporting tools like Power BI?Power BI integration with PPM tools enables dynamic project time tracking, with data represented in interactive, real-time dataflows. These visuals help managers identify over and underutilized resources, improve forecasting accuracy, and quickly detect delays or scope mismatches.Image: Time carding reportingAutomated reporting saving time and presenting real-time reportsIf your time carding is exported to SharePoint and subsequently to Power BI it can directly connect and auto-refresh that data. This dynamic data integration helps feed data representation, thereby empowering decision-makers to take informed data–driven steps.With tools like Azure Data Factory, Power Query, or custom scripts, users extract and load data from PPM tools into Power BI. This automated data integration saves time in manually collating data and building dashboards. It also removed the dependencies of running reports at the stipulated time frame to access real-time data.Custom dashboards pull in real-time data, visualize effort distribution across portfolios, and even highlight resource bottlenecks. With proper Power BI expertise, organizations can build interactive and visually appealing dashboards suited for decision-making at all levels.Such precise, actionable dashboards that are not disconnected from real resource utilization help PMOs to draw meaningful insights about capacity, effort distribution, or project health.Other possibilities Integrating Power BI with PPM tools like Planisware PPM or Planview brings seamless data flow helping project managers gain real-time visibility into resource utilization, task progress, and effort distribution across activities, programs, and portfolios. Tools like Planisware’s BI Box enable time and resource data to be exported to external databases, which Power BI then visualizes through interactive charts, tables, and summaries.With Planisware PPM, organizations can align time tracking with cost centers and funding sources, making it possible to calculate cost-per-project or even cost-per-submission. When this is visualized through Power BI dashboards, leadership gains clear visibility into burn rates, delays, and productivity trends—leading to smarter investment and resourcing decisions.This integration also enhances project reporting by enabling predictive analytics and trend analysis, allowing leaders to forecast delays, identify resource bottlenecks, and optimize allocation decisions.Power BI’s filtering and drill-down capabilities allow teams to view effort and time spent in a business unit, vertical, or project, supporting strategic decision-making. Click to read "Use case for Planisware PPM and Power BI integration" Benefits of this integrated approachCentralized and auditable time tracking A unified system captures precise time entries across projects, ensuring compliance and traceability for regulatory audits.Granular visibility into resource effort Teams and managers gain detailed insights into individual and team-level contributions, improving transparency and performance tracking.Streamlined tracking for all resource types Both full-time and contract resources can log time efficiently, enabling consistent reporting across diverse workforce models.Proactive forecasting and planning Accurate time data supports better resource forecasting, helping managers plan proactively and adjust workloads in real time.Actionable reporting for leadership Integrated Power BI dashboards deliver intuitive, high-level reports, empowering leadership with clear, data-driven insights for decision-making.With all this, the pharma PPM teams stay up to date with data, remain compliant, manage costs better, optimize resources, and deliver faster, smarter decisions across the product lifecycle.Smarter time reporting: The Road AheadAs life sciences portfolios evolve, comprehensive project time visibility brings precision, perspective, and speed. Integrated PPM tools and project reporting tools like Power BI generate data for real-time, actionable insights. This helps in bringing efficiency into time reporting, reducing waste, and delays.At i2e, we specialize in tailoring scalable and smart project time reporting solutions integrated with Power BI for your nuanced pharma project needs. Help us build that custom time tracking solution for you – one that fits with your workflow and scales with your vision. Talk to our experts today. .casestudy-block{ height: 50px; } .casestudy-block h1{ margin-top: -15px; !important } .casestudy-block a{ text-decoration: none; !important } .casestudy-block span{ color: #fff; !important }

Project Structures: Overview and establishing with Planview, Planisware, and Project Online

Project Structures: Overview and establishing with Planview, Planisware, and Project OnlineFrom a pharmaceutical R&D context, project structures can be seen as a reliable process to organize, track, and deliver the tasks while keeping the stakeholders informed. If you don’t have a well-planned project structure: Portfolio decisions usually suffer from low visibilityTeams start losing alignmentMissing critical deadlines become normal With a strong project structure, key decision-makers can: Have a clear view throughout the entire pipeline,Easily prioritize high-value portfolio assets Manage risks more efficiently Project portfolio management tools like Planisware, MS Project Online, and Planview help establish organized structures that accelerate pharma projects, ensure compliance and success. That said, let’s dive into what project structures mean in pharmaceutical context, and how these tools help establish them seamlessly. Types of project structures in pharmaceutical R&DSelecting the right structure is your first step to ensure on-time project delivery with the right resources, without bleeding budgets. Here are three types of project structures to consider: 1. Functional structure As the name suggests, functional structure involves grouping all teams as per specialized functions – be it clinical, manufacturing, regulatory etc. In this model, the departmental head usually manages the team members, while coordinating the projects within functional silos.Functional structures are best for:Small-scale pharma companiesLimited cross-functional project needsWhat to look out for?On the flipside, these models are also known to create communication gaps and slow down decision-making in accelerated R&D settings. 2. Projectized structure In this model, the project manager has 100% authority over the research team and key resources, unlike the former. The PMOs assign their teams to specific projects, often outside their everyday functional roles.Projectized structures are best for:Large-scale pharmaceutical project management needstime-sensitive, high-priority, high flexibility research initiatives What to look out for?Unfortunately, this model can also cause resource duplication and higher costs, particularly when multiple projects are running at the same time. 3. Matrix structure (Best suited for Pharma)Last, but most importantly, the matrix structure brings the best of both functional and projectized structures under one umbrella. Here, teams report to both functional and project managers. This way, resources can be shared across different projects without compromising on functional supervision.Matrix structures are best for:Mid-to-large organizations juggling between numerous programsHigh operational continuity & innovation-led settingsWhat to look out for?Despite being the most common project structure in pharma R&D, it calls for strong communication and higher role clarity, to avoid conflicts or confusion. How to establish Pharma-specific structures using Planisware, Project Online and Planview?Designing and implementing project structures that suit the complex requirements of pharmaceutical R&D become easier with PPM tools. Users can configure project hierarchies, governance models, allocate resources efficiently and support decision-making at every phase. Here are your options and steps to do it:Tool #1: PlanviewFirst on our list, Planview is a major contender in terms of portfolio management and resource optimization. With a little upfront tailoring, its project templates can align well with pharma workflows.How to set up a project structure in Planview?Configure project types: label templates (for example, “Phase I asset”, “Platform”)Define swimlanes as per function (clinical, regulatory, manufacturing)Set up a clear stage-gate workflow in roadmap view with well-defined gatesAttach gate checklists and deliverables to each stageEnable demand/capacity views for cross-functional resource alignment Tool #2: PlaniswareThe Planisware project management tool is purpose-built for life sciences projects, and mirrors pharma R&D workflows like none other in this list. For example, it embeds stage gate logic at every level. The platform natively supports clinical/CMC deliverables, molecule hierarchies, as well as regulatory milestones. Here, teams can easily set up projects that map exactly to asset phases, while having total control over gates and finances.How to set up a project structure in Planisware?Create a project template with WBS (discovery, preclinical, phase 1/2/3)Embed gates after every single phase, linking back to the decision criteria and business case scorecardsAdd key deliverables (for example: IND, CMC dossiers, clinical trial authorizations)Link back the financial/resource modules to WBS for seamless budget/version trackingRoll up to portfolio to maintain proper visibility across molecules and indications Tool #3: Project OnlineLastly, Project Online is a great choice for schedule-level planning; it’s not entirely built around pharmaceutical project management structures in focus. Here, teams need to build everything from ground up. The good part, however? Integrating with Power BI, Teams, and Power Automate.How to set up a project structure in Project Online?Start by designing your custom project template Define tasks for regulatory deliverables and project milestonesTrigger notifications at gate milestones by integrating Power Automate Integrate Power BI to access customized dashboards aligned to R&D phases’ progressManage resources via PWA to assign functional roles How to choose the right tool for your project structure needs?More than chasing latest features, choose project portfolio management tools that fit your team’s needs the best. This means judging the tool by how well it aligns with your project structure, people, and strategic goals. Choose Planisware if you would:Manage a mid-to-large pharma/biotech firm with a complex R&D asset portfolioRequire built-in stage-gate models, modifiable for drug development lifecyclesNeed strong portfolio governance & what-if scenario planning at scaleUse Project Online if you would:Require a quick, at-budget tool for basic-level project scheduling/ trackingFocus on daily task management, instead of strong portfolio governanceNeed hassle-free, end-to-end automation integration (Teams, Power BI, Outlook) Go for Planview if you would:Be transitioning from project-level to portfolio-level strategy while scaling upWant to have strong resource demand vs. capacity modelling Need visualized roadmaps, high financial visibility, cross-functional planning etc. Key takeaways at a glanceProject structure informs smart portfolio decisions, points out risks early and surfaces resource conflicts Matrix project structure is the best-suited for pharma/biotech teams, as it comes with a mix of agility, governance, and resource efficiencyMore features don’t ensure success; choose your tool that best fits your team’s maturity level, complexity of portfolio assets, and other key indicators.Planisware project management tool is best for enterprise players with deep pipelines; Project Online suits mid-sized teams focused on scheduling; Planview is the go-to option for strategy-driven PMOsNeed help getting started? Let’s talk about how we can help. i2e Consulting brings 15+ years of PPM expertise. We’ve partnered with leading pharma organizations to establish fit-for-purpose project structures that drive clarity, speed, and smarter portfolio decisions. Connect with us – let’s build a project structure that accelerates your portfolio growth.