Project Portfolio Management: A View From The Management Trenches

2.1. 10 YEARS AGO . . .

"Hey, John, catch!" yelled Bill Smith as he threw a bullet pass to his roommate John Durham.

The football flew in a beautiful spiral through the crisp fall air. It was one of those perfect New England days tourists hope to see when coming through the area on fall foliage expeditions. But John and Bill were not looking at the weather, or at the splashes of color all around them. They were engaged in "The Game." Bill and John's fraternity, Alpha Chi Mu Epsilon (ACME, nicknamed "Tune-Townies"), were going head to head with their archrivals Chi Omicron Tau Epsilon (XOTE, nicknamed "Coyotes"). The Coyotees had 28 points to 24 for the Tune-Townies with ten seconds left in the game.

John had three steps on the defender as he turned to look over his left shoulder. The ball zipped over the defender and John put both hands up to cradle the ball. Whack! The ball bounced off John's hands, up and forward. John dove and snagged the football inches from the ground. "Umph!" John cried as he hit the turf hard, but he held onto the ball. He couldn't believe it—he was in the end zone! Touchdown! The gun sounded the end of the game and the "Epsilon Alphabet Bowl" was over for another year.

By the time John leaped to his feet, Bill and the rest of the "Tune-Townies" had engulfed him in raucous laughter and manly hugs. They had finally won after three long years of defeat. The trophy—if you could call the welded car parts and who knows what else a trophy—was theirs to display ...