Munich, January 10, 2023
Investment serves the rapid and comprehensive expansion of the international market position in the project management environment
After 25 successful years in the project management market, TPG The Project Group, a leading provider of products and consulting in project, portfolio and resource management, has paved the way for an enhanced and ambitious growth strategy with the majority investment of funds managed by Alpina Management GmbH. TPG’s entire international management team has likewise invested significantly and will continue to drive future growth.
Together with Alpina, TPG’s management thus intends to take the company to the next level and expand both its international service offering and its own software solutions and products. In this regard, the availability of its own software products in the cloud has the highest priority. At the same time, TPG will maintain its closeness to existing customers and expand its range of consulting and support services in accordance with the requirements as well as adapt to the changing needs in the future. TPG’s goal remains to increase its customers’ maturity level in the PPM and PMO area and support them in becoming top performers.
“With Alpina, we were able to attract a partner with many years of experience in the growth of software and service companies. They will enable us to provide ways and means to take the next steps more quickly,” says Stavros Georgantzis, founder and managing partner of The Project Group. “Together, we will further strengthen and enhance TPG’s international market position for the benefit of our customers and our own team – both in software and services.”
Florian Strehle, a Partner at Alpina, adds: “We are very happy to welcome TPG as the latest portfolio company of Alpina. The Company stands out due to its highly skilled employees, the modern software solutions, the blue-chip customer base, its international footprint and the in-depth knowhow in the PPM space. For us it is the perfect platform in a very interesting market segment.”
About Alpina Partners:
Alpina Partners is an independent European technology investment firm. Alpina invests in leading companies with strong USPs in the areas of B2B software, technology-enabled business services and industrial technologies. Alpina is a long-term investor focusing on companies with sustainable value enhancement potential. https://www.alpinapartners.com/
Munich, October 19, 2022
German electrolysis company is able to use PPM solution based on Microsoft Project Online after just a few weeks
Due to its dynamic growth in the hydrogen technology area, Sunfire GmbH decided to implement a professional project management environment and powerful software for project, portfolio and resource management (PPM). In this project, the company relied on the experience of TPG The Project Group, the full-service provider of project management consulting and solutions in Munich. Thanks to the packaged TPG QuickStart approach, the solution based on Microsoft Project Online went live after just a few weeks.
In addition, Sunfire now has an advanced resource management tool for the engineering department with TPG TeamManager. Power BI analyzes processes and provides processed data and key performance indicators as a basis for sound business decisions. The solution’s scalability allows easy adaptation to further growth in the future.
Stefan Linke, Head of Project Management at Sunfire GmbH, explains: “In the past, we didn't take absences and especially operations into account in the engineering department. We needed a system that would answer three questions: How many staff will we need in the future? Which tasks do we have to outsource? With the resources available, what are we currently unable to handle?” “The TPG solution has made our resource situation more transparent enabling us to recognize employee overload and underload at an early stage and to react to it,” says Linke.
The complete case study for this project is available at https://www.theprojectgroup.com/en/case-study/project-online-sunfire
About Sunfire
The German company Sunfire GmbH is a global leader for industrial electrolyzers. It develops and produces highly efficient industrial electrolyzers generating renewable hydrogen and syngas. In this way, Sunfire enables the sustainable transformation of energy-intensive sectors such as the chemical, fuel and steel industries. The company relies on innovative high-temperature SOEC electrolyzers and a high-pressure alkaline technology that has been tried and tested over decades. https://www.sunfire.de/en/
Munich, September 6th, 2022
Fourth recertification of TPG’s integration product for all key project management use cases
TPG PSLink© 2022, the integration product of Munich-based TPG The Project Group, has been awarded the label "SAP Certified Application" for the fourth time. The current integration certification was the first issued for the SAP S/4HANA (version 2021) data technology, the successor to SAP R/3. Twenty-two extensive use cases with over 50 BAPI functions were specified, which cover the five SAP modules PS, CO, CATS, HR, and PM. This type of certification goes significantly deeper than the standard and covers precisely those scenarios employed by companies using common project management tools such as Microsoft Project, Planisware, Jira, DevOps, Primavera, etc. and wanting to share data among these tools or with their SAP system. The certification is valid until August 29, 2025. For more information, please see: www.theprojectgroup.com/pslink
TPG PSLink© 2022 is a middleware product that enables multi-directional data exchange between different systems in the project management environment. Common use cases are the integration of well-known project management software such as Microsoft Project Server, Project Online, Jira, and DevOps with each other and with other systems such as SAP, SharePoint (including its Online version), and Dynamics AX. With the latest tests, TPG PSLink© has now been certified for the fourth time for SAP connectivity following the 2013, 2016, and 2019 certifications. The integration certification issued in 2022 was the first for SAP S/4HANA (version 2021) data technology, the successor to SAP R/3.
Twenty-two extensive use cases covering over 50 business functions (known as BAPIs) were specified, involving the five SAP modules PS, CO, CATS, HR, and PM. The use cases involved: employee master data, CO master data, WBS structures, networks, maintenance orders, CO internal orders, primary cost planning, activity input, revenue planning, CATS time confirmation, allocation and export of CO activity allocation, and cost documents.
"The implementations of our solutions for project, resource, and portfolio management are usually very extensive and are oriented to our customers’ required processes. The ability to integrate data from new and legacy systems is a key factor. These require links to various SAP modules. The message we’re sending to our customers is that the entire range of relevant SAP integration points has been re-certified," says Stavros Georgantzis, managing partner of TPG The Project Group.
The integration of project management, ERP, and other systems is an essential factor contributing to the efficient use and acceptance of a project management solution. It ensures that those involved – including project managers, team leaders, and accountants – can work with the tool best suited to their job function and can always access up-to-date, relevant data from other systems. TPG PSLink© ensures multi-directional data exchange between two or more systems and the consistency of the synchronized data. Further information about TPG PSLink© 2022 is available at www.theprojectgroup.com/pslink
Munich, August 31st, 2022
TPG The Project Group, a full-service provider of project management solutions, will be present as a gold sponsor at the global PM software provider’s Planisware XChange 2022 EMEA event being held in Paris from Sept. 21-22, 2022. As a Planisware implementation partner, TPG will be on-site presenting use case solutions for enterprise-wide integrated project, portfolio, and resource management at large and medium-sized companies based on Planisware Enterprise and Planisware Orchestra.
For more information on the Planisware XChange 2022 EMEA event, see: https://de.planisware.com/xchange-22-emea
About Planisware
Planisware is a global provider of project management software. The two platforms, Planisware Enterprise and Planisware Orchestra, were developed specifically to support product development, engineering, and IT business processes. For over 26 years, the company has been helping its clients deliver strategic and innovative excellence, make sound business decisions, and increase the value of their portfolio. Today, more than 1000 companies worldwide rely on Planisware products to manage their projects, resources, and portfolios. Planisware Enterprise and Planisware Orchestra are two leading PPM software solutions in Gartner's Magic Quadrant.
Munich, May 16th, 2022
Advanced solutions for successful project, portfolio and resource management in the aerospace and defense industry
TPG The Project Group, full-service provider of project management solutions, will be present at the International Aerospace Exhibition in Berlin from June 22-25, 2022 with its own booth in hall ILA3, booth 511. The Microsoft Gold Certified Partner and Planisware implementation partner will showcase solutions for use cases in enterprise-wide integrated project, portfolio and resource management at large and medium-sized companies from the aerospace and defense industry at its booth.
Contact persons from the decision-making level as well as project management office or team management already have the possibility to arrange a consulting appointment. To do so, please send an e-mail to info@theprojectgroup.com with the desired date and time.
Munich, February 3rd, 2022
Munich, February 3, 2022 – TPG The Project Group, full-service provider of project management solutions standardized the enterprise-wide environment for project and portfolio management (PPM) for a global aerospace corporation with an extensive and complex migration of tools to a centralized solution. The new solution is based on Planisware Enterprise Version 6. The extensive and partly security-related datasets were migrated in a way that safeguarded their quality while carefully cleaning and streamlining them at the same time.
In 2018, the international company made the strategic decision to standardize project management across the company. After an internal comparison, the customer decided on an on-premises solution based on Planisware Enterprise V6. Before this, diverse systems had been in use. This required the migration of large, complex, and sometimes highly sensitive data.
The data derived from around 500 projects, some of which are very large, was carefully prepared for the new system and migrated gradually in several batches. Despite the restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 safeguards, the entire migration was completed in just six months. Even with the complete change in systems, the company can continue to rely on TPG’s expertise in both the old and the new PPM systems for further support.
Munich, December 16, 2021
HENSOLDT, a global player in the defense industry, succeeded in separating its environment for project and portfolio management (PPM) based on Microsoft Project Server technology in the context of a carve-out from the former parent company, a large aerospace corporation. In this undertaking, HENSOLDT received support from TPG The Project Group from Munich. The goal was that HENSOLDT would have all data from ongoing projects available in its own system from day one of operations.
TPG The Project Group, full service provider for project management solutions approached the challenge as follows: prior to the carve-out of HENSOLDT, TPG set up a second, parallel installation of the parent company’s PPM system. The complete project data material was mirrored in this. Following this, the two databases were cleaned up carefully and prepared for the two henceforth separate companies. At a later stage, the physical migration of the data from the datacenter of the aerospace company to HENSOLDT’s own servers took place. After that, additional functionalities were added to the project management system.
Thus, on the day the company was founded, HENSOLDT had a fully functional PPM environment at its disposal. This made it possible to resume work on all projects without interruptions. Having been a longstanding partner of the aerospace company in the sensor technology division, TPG had extensive experience with the requirements of the carved-out company.
Munich, Germany, June 11th, 2021
As of now, TPG The Project Group, full service provider of project management consulting and solutions, offers a free MTA tool for all versions of Microsoft Project for download. This free add-in by the Microsoft Gold Certified Partner works on all desktop versions of Microsoft Project from Version 2007 all the way through to Microsoft Project Online Desktop Client. In projects of all sizes, the Milestone Trend Analysis (MTA) is a straightforward method for monitoring project progress by documenting and graphically evaluating shifts in milestone dates. Thus, the MTA supports reporting with a clear overview of the developments of projects over time. It enables the timely recognition of scheduling bottlenecks and also heightens the project participants’ awareness of deadlines. It gives the project manager in charge the good feeling of having a constant eye on the milestones and being able to take countermeasures if it is necessary. The tool is available for free download at www.theprojectgroup.com/free-mta.
TPG MTA Client is an add-in product for Microsoft Project. The product is installed directly on the project manager’s client computer after which it can be started via a button in Microsoft Project. The special advantage of this tool is the data storage within the Microsoft Project project file. Unlike with other MTA products on the market, no separate file is created for the MTA data. The information is simply packaged in the project file. Hence, other users of Microsoft Project can also use it directly. The graphical output of the TPG MTA Client is configurable, and the user interface can switch between German and English. Further possibilities include the identification of invalid milestones and the additional presentation of deadlines for each milestone. The TPG MTA Client is compatible with all currently established Microsoft Project Desktop Clients upwards of Version 2007.
A Milestone Trend Analysis is an easy-to-read combination of history and projection for selected project milestones. It has been designed for the graphical presentation of time-related discrepancies. The MTA can only provide meaningful information if the data is always up to date. This is only the case if the dates of the milestones have been updated correctly before the regular snapshots. Thus, the MTA can also contribute to an improvement in the project participants’ awareness of deadlines, as the latter are encouraged to always update their projects before the snapshots.
Munich, Germany, May 20th 2021
Free excerpts available for download, option for purchase in web shop
TPG The Project Group, full-service provider for consulting and solutions in project management has presented the “PMO Survey 2020”, a comprehensive survey on the state of the Project Management Office (PMO) in the DACH region (Germany, Austria and Switzerland). The survey helps readers assess their own position and next ventures in comparison with other companies. In addition, opportunities and priorities for establishing or improving your company’s own PMO will be discernible. What makes this survey special is the participation of companies both with and without PMO.
From the answers of the companies with PMO, we have defined performance levels for low, high and top performers. The evaluations are differentiated according to these levels. From this, analyses derive explanations for the differences in their effectiveness in implementing projects. This makes it evident what high and top-performing PMOs do better than low-performing ones. Many charts and practical tips help readers improve their own PMO.
The wishes of the participants without PMO and the responses from companies with PMO vary immensely in parts. These are analyzed extensively. On this basis, the study arrives at realistic focus areas, which are underpinned by expert tips helping newcomers get their PMO off to a good start.
Johann Strasser, managing partner at TPG The Project Group, observes, “For many years now, we have provided consulting on establishing and optimizing PMOs. With this survey, we want to substantiate our practical experience. Moreover, we want to provide orientation for organizations from all industries with the robust study data.”
Munich, Germany, Februar 11th, 2021
TPG The Project Group, a full-service provider of project management consulting, solutions, and training, has achieved the status of Authorized Training Partner (ATP®), making it one of the few companies in the German-speaking region to be granted this status. This award from the Project Management Institute (PMI®) in the United States is a unique seal of quality is bestowed on seminar providers offering preparatory courses for the challenging Project Management Professional (PMP®) examination. Providers with the ATP status, such as TPG, offer PMP seminar participants decisive advantages over providers lacking this qualification. In the seminar, the participants study using the official PMI documents which include over 200 original test questions ‒ giving them a distinct advantage. The ATP status also assures seminar participants that they are being taught by a PMI-certified and accredited trainer.
The PMP preparation course at TPG The Project Group is also characterized by very small groups. It takes place either online or in hybrid form and is limited to 3 - 9 participants. Oliver F. Lehmann, long-time PMP instructor at TPG and now also ATP trainer points out these additional advantages of the PMP seminar:
"My seminar is held in German using English-language training materials. Anyone aspiring to PMP certification therefore has the best possible preparation for the English-language exam questions. If any participants need extra help in preparing for the test, I provide them with comprehensive support until they have successfully passed the test."
The ATP is the follow-up program to the former R.E.P. (Registered Education Provider) status that TPG has held since 2010.
More information on the PMP prep seminar – also available as an online company seminar: https://www.theprojectgroup.com/en/pmp-training-test-prep-seminar
Munich, Germany, May 19th, 2020
Efficiently managed migration projects due to solid knowledge of Microsoft and Planisware Enterprise
TPG The Project Group, a full-service provider of project management consulting services and solutions, is now an implementation partner of Planisware Deutschland GmbH. Completely web-based and modular, the Planisware Enterprise software supports a wide range of project types and project requirements: IT project portfolio management, new product development, technical development, engineering, maintenance, and production. With this new partnership, TPG The Project Group expands its portfolio of technical platforms for solutions in portfolio management, multi-project management, and resource management.
“This partnership gives us far-reaching new opportunities to expand our services through consulting and implementation of solutions based on the powerful Planisware Enterprise software. Our many years of experience and expertise in Microsoft environments helps us ensure the smooth operation of heterogeneous IT landscapes and further develop these in a coordinated manner,” says Stavros Georgantzis, Founder, Managing Director and Co-Owner of TPG The Project Group.
Georgantzis adds: “Our solid knowledge of Microsoft and Planisware Enterprise allows us to efficiently manage migration projects. The integration software TPG PSLink supports integrations in SAP, Microsoft environments, Atlassian Jira as well as other systems.”
“We are delighted to have gained TPG as an expert partner with its many years of PPM expertise and a large portfolio of clients,” says Gilles Chêne, Managing Director of Planisware Deutschland GmbH. “We speak the same language and are represented worldwide in the same industries.”
Munich, Germany, October 2nd, 2019
„Agile and Hybrid Portfolio Management“ – on the event in Philadelphia and on a free TPG Webinar
During the PMI® Global Conference from October 05th – 07th, 2019 in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, USA) there will be celebrations on the occasion of the 50th birthday of the Project Management Institute. To pay tribute to this significant milestone a decent delegation of PMP’s around the world will contribute to make this major event for the PPM community a big success. One of them is the CEO of TPG France SAS, Olivier Schmitt. Olivier is a respected expert in Project Portfolio Management methodology. Besides this he is also a mastermind for PPM solutions and Microsoft technology. Together with Ricardo Naciff, who is the PMI Chapter Lead of Lyon (France), Olivier will deliver a session on “Agile and Hybrid Portfolio Management” on the PMI event in Philadelphia.
Also Oliver will host a free webinar on the same topic, dated November 19th, 2019. Please register here for the webinar.
The content: Existing Strategic Portfolio frameworks rely on the capacity to predict expected value (the promise) versus costs and resources needed (the constrains) to deliver the projects (Waterfall) or epics (Agile) supporting the organizational strategy. But predicting value on iterative, non-predictable items such as epics and backlogs is antagonistic per definition, as Agile is a discovery model. So, how can the value of a constrained portfolio be maximized when value predictability is not steady? Moreover in today’s organizations, Agile and Cascade projects co-exist, mixing predictable and non-predictable models. Added the fact that the Top Management thinks traditionally and needs predictability, it is a real nut to crack. Concentrating on this flaw in the current existing Portfolio frameworks, Olivier and Ricardo are proposing a metric based approach named the “Product Based Value”, that aims at solving all problems identified above.
If you are interested in this topic we would gladly welcome you at the conference. Alternatively we invite you to attend our free Webinar (in French language with English slides) on November 19th, 2019. Registrees will receive the recording and slides automatically after the webinar.
Munich, Germany, August 12th, 2019
TPG Ireland offers project management products and solutions based on Microsoft technologies in Ireland
TPG Information Systems Limited (TPG Ireland), the new subsidiary located in Cork, provides TPG® products and services to the Irish market. The TPG subsidiary will serve Irish and global customers across all sectors, providing competent consulting and professional solutions for project management. Peter O’Neill will manage TPG Ireland after heading TPG UK for over ten years. He believes the time is ripe for TPG to pursue new opportunities and address the growth potential that Ireland offers.
Asked about his decision to establish TPG Ireland, Peter states: “TPG UK has been successfully managing projects in Ireland for a number of years and has recently experienced significant growth in both new projects and new opportunities, particularly in the government sector. We will continue to support our existing Irish customers and work closely with Microsoft to meet the growing demand for Microsoft PPM solutions in Ireland.”
TPG Information Systems Ltd.
North Point House (Business Park)
Old Mallow Road, Cork, T23 AT2P
Ireland
Tel: +353 (89) 401 8336
E-Mail: ireland@theprojectgroup.com
Munich, Germany, May 15th, 2019
TPG France offers products and solutions for project management based on Microsoft technology in France
As of now, the new subsidiary The Project Group France SAS (TPG France) in Lyon makes TPG® products and services available to the French market. The TPG subsidiary will provide medium-sized and large companies as well as globally active customers with competent consulting and professional solutions for project management. Olivier Schmitt and Martin Hespe assume the management of TPG France.
Olivier has been an expert on project management solutions with Microsoft technologies for around 20 years. He has held managerial positions with several Microsoft partners. At TPG France, he will hold the role of Président. Martin Hespe has been working at TPG for many years. In addition to his role as Head of Key Account Management in Germany, he will hold the role of Directeur Général at TPG France.
Asked about his decision to join TPG, Olivier Schmitt states: “There is a high demand for professional project management solutions in the French market. TPG has a unique portfolio of products and solutions that is ideally suited to meet the demand but is little known in France.” In addition to the consulting and solution business for the French market, the new subsidiary will place particular emphasis on looking after multinational customers. “Together with TPG Germany and other TPG subsidiaries, we aim to offer better assistance to our international customers in France and to enable global initiatives,” says Olivier Schmitt.
To contact the new company by email, please use the address France@TheProjectGroup.com .
Contact:
Olivier Schmitt
The Project Group France SAS
Regus - Lyon, Part Dieu Plaza
93 Rue de la Villette
69003 Lyon, France
oliviers@theprojectgroup.com,
Mobile: +33 (06) 32 87 29 22
About TPG The Project Group
TPG® The Project Group is an international full service provider of consulting, training and solutions for enterprise-wide project management. The company focuses on Microsoft technologies and their integration with SAP and other enterprise systems e.g. Jira, DevOps und SharePoint. A Microsoft Gold Certified Partner, TPG provides international companies with expert advice, flexible implementation, intelligent PM solutions, and a higher PM maturity level that makes a real contribution to business performance. The company complements its offerings with seminars on Microsoft Project and project management methodologies. With several subsidiaries in Europe, the USA and the MEA region as well as a global network of authorized partners, TPG provides its services to large and medium-sized companies in all industries that work with project management.
