Portfolio 

Definition

A group of portfolio items that is managed in a coordinated manner in order to achieve a company's objectives at any given period of time.

 

Use

A portfolio reflects the strategic structure of a company. There could either be one portfolio for the overall company, or different portfolios, reflecting independently managed areas. One portfolio is a single entity and not related to other portfolios.

 

Structure

A portfolio consists of a hierarchy of buckets.

 

Integration

A portfolio is an independently managed area within a company’s planning process. There is no interaction with other portfolios.

 

Example

A company might set up one portfolio when it is managed by organizational structures, so everything rolls up into one portfolio.
A company might have several different portfolios when it has several areas which are managed completely independent from each other, e.g. different product lines.