Uruguayan government agencies use a digital solution to manage their project portfolios

Montevideo, January 12, 2024. 

The Agency for Electronic Government and Information and Knowledge Society (Agesic) works with 200 active projects per month in Uruguay, and to track each one in real time, evaluate, and control its progress, it uses a digital tool called SIGES, a project portfolio management system that allows monitoring the strategic indicators of each initiative.

The digital solution, which Agesic also provides free of charge and without usage restrictions to more than 20 state agencies, is developed by Sofis Solutions. It is based on web architecture and best practices contained in the PMBOK (PMI – Project Management Institute) and allows users from each organization to have updated information on the status of each project.

SIGES enables the management of an organization's project portfolio through knowledge areas and processes such as time, cost, and risk management, among others.

Cecilia Martínez, Services Coordinator at Sofis Solutions, explained that the Project Management Office (PMO) of each organization can configure the different projects, for example, specifying the methodology to be applied to each one. In this way, using system reports, the organization's management and PMO can obtain real-time updated information through notifications and a "traffic light system", which indicates, through colors, the main deviations that may occur during project execution. This information allows organizations to make timely decisions.

SIGES functionalities

The system has functionalities to plan and monitor the different project knowledge areas. It also offers features that simplify tasks, such as registering lessons learned, duplicating projects, and creating schedule templates.

The system contains basic information for each project, such as its objectives, benefits, target audience, the organization’s role, and other participating organizations. It also manages schedules, procurement, risks, project quality, stakeholders, documentation, methodology, and product information.

How is it used in the Uruguayan government?

Daniel Mato, Manager of the Project Management Office at Agesic, shared the agency’s experience with this digital solution, recalling that the origins of SIGES date back more than 15 years when the University of Espírito Santo in Brazil donated a free software system to Agesic to help improve project and portfolio management methodologies in Uruguayan public agencies.

“Fulfilling this mission, the Agency, under the leadership of its Project Management Office, has been investing for over 10 years in development and continuous evolution, hiring Sofis Solutions’ development services, which have achieved a highly effective solution, especially for agencies that, due to budget or requirements, cannot adopt costly licensed project management systems.”

The manager highlighted that the system allows having up-to-date information and provides users with a tool that ensures accessibility and information security.

SIGES is used in several state agencies in Uruguay. In addition, Agesic offers training and advisory services on project management methodologies, as well as on the implementation, management, and evolution of PMOs, which help optimize SIGES usage and ensure sustainable development over time for each agency.

“Currently, the Agency continues to chart a path of improvements and evolutions that will make SIGES an even more effective and widely accepted solution for government agencies, increasing year by year the number of interested adopters.”