Most organisations run more projects than their teams can finish, and every sponsor believes theirs is the priority. This framework sets the criteria, weights and steps for comparing all proposed and running projects on the same basis. It runs in five sections: criteria, weighting, the scoring sheet, the process and governance, so leaders can decide what to start, continue, pause or stop.

The sample is for the fictional Bramblewood Works, with 38 projects scored on five weighted criteria, a portfolio budget of £8.4M, demand at 124% of capacity and £0.9M released by stopping or pausing work. Replace the criteria, projects, scores and budget with your own, agree the weights before any scoring begins, and list the trade-offs that leaders must decide.