A Scalable Foundation for Innovation: Natera and Prodactive’s PPM Partnership

The Client

Natera

Natera is a global biotechnology company specialising in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) testing and advanced genetic diagnostics. Operating across reproductive health, oncology, and organ transplantation, the organisation develops highly sensitive molecular tests that enable clinicians to make earlier and more informed medical decisions without invasive procedures.

As a research-driven company, Natera manages a large and continually evolving pipeline of research and development initiatives. Despite operating at enterprise scale, the business retains a fast-moving, innovation-led culture. This creates a dynamic project environment, with many concurrent initiatives, cross-functional stakeholders, and frequently evolving priorities — all of which require reliable visibility and coordinated oversight to support effective decision-making.

The Challenge

Due to the volume and complexity of its R&D portfolio, Natera lacked consistent governance around how projects were managed and reported. Individual teams worked effectively within their own areas, but there was no standardised way to monitor progress across the organisation.

Key challenges included:

  • No consistent reporting framework across projects or business units

  • Limited portfolio-level visibility for leadership

  • Frequently shifting project milestones, often resulting in extended timelines

  • Difficulty understanding the scale and impact of milestone changes

  • A need to improve decision-making and planning based on reliable data

Leadership wanted to better understand how projects were actually progressing and how plans were evolving over time, so that meaningful improvements to project delivery processes could be made.

The Solution

Smartsheet designed a Project Portfolio Management (PPM) framework and engaged Prodactive to implement it, leveraging their experience in structured portfolio delivery and their methodology for tracking milestone evolution.

The solution was built as a multi-tier PPM architecture using Smartsheet Control Center, structured around two blueprints. This allowed Natera to view project data at both the business-unit level and across the full enterprise portfolio.

Key elements of the solution included:

  • Standardised project templates and governance structures

  • Turn-key reporting for business units

  • Portfolio-level dashboards and roll-up reporting

  • A specialised method for tracking and analysing milestone changes over time

  • Superuser training to support internal ownership and long-term sustainability

A structured weekly cadence of working sessions maintained delivery momentum, and after a temporary project pause due to commercial considerations, the solution was refined and validated with stakeholders through walkthroughs and hands-on sessions before handover.

The Outcome

Natera has learned a significant amount about its own needs and current process state as a result of working with Prodactive. The extended delivery timeline has had some advantages, as it has led to periods of reflection and exploration with stakeholders, allowing the business’s needs to be refined. With new management also now engaged with the solution, further refinements will doubtless be made. 

I haven’t found too many people in my career who have the detailed level of business understanding as the Prodactive team. It’s not only at a strategic level, whether it’s program governance or financial, but also the tactical stuff – it was really easy for me to discuss or brainstorm ideas with them, as they just ‘got’ what was on my mind. Coupled with their technical knowledge of Smartsheet, they were able to react to changes on the fly and raise potential issues before they arose.

I am very much looking forward to working with them further as we look to take our Smartsheet implementation and connect it across the business more widely. I trust them to give us the advice and insight we need to make the right decisions.

More Case Studies from Prodactive

Case Study

How Acadia Pharmaceuticals Gained Visibility Across 50+ Health Systems

Case Study

From Paperwork to Live Data: Big Red’s Digital Construction Breakthrough

Case Study

Smart Science, Smarter Workflows: RxCelerate’s Operational Upgrade

Case Study

How Acadia Pharmaceuticals Gained Visibility Across 50+ Health Systems

Demo Asset

Multi-Project Reminders

What They Say

I reached out to Prodactive to fix a broken PowerBI dashboard. Nicole Codispoti worked with me to understand the underlying issues and our requirements. She explained what wasn’t working and offered a solution that would create a more user-friendly dashboard in the short term. Nicole is a clear expert on PowerBI and rebuilt our dashboard quickly and efficiently. She made everything she worked on just a little bit better without being asked. That kind of proactivity is difficult to come by and greatly appreciated. Nicole also went out of her way to deliver our product on a tight deadline despite a busy travel schedule. We really appreciate Prodactive’s quick turnaround, and we will be reaching out to them about creating an even better long-term solution.
Elizabeth SkepsSecurity Director, Latin America, Warner Bros. Discovery
Elizabeth Skeps
I really enjoyed working with Prodactive on this solution. Their PPM expertise was evident from the start and they showed great flexibility in adapting their standard solution to support the unique aspects of what we do, without compromising on good project management practice
Shaf ChaturBusiness Process Manager, Elements Green
Shaf Chatur
Thanks to Prodactive and Smartsheet, projects have never been more organised. Our scientists can look at time plans and spot dependencies across departments, enabling them to plan and allocate resources more efficiently.
Gundeep Singh & Inês BarbosaHead of Project Management & Head of Portfolio Management, RxCelerate
Gundeep Singh & Inês Barbosa
Rich Coles supported us not just as an implementation partner but also as a consultant, an advisor in driving us through the capability of the tool offering solutions with best practices.
Anupreet MalhotraIT Program Director, Acuity Analytics
Anupreet Malhotra
Not only do you get a Smartsheet wizard that is able to turn ideas into sound solutions, but you get a strategic partner that challenges you with over 25 years of PPM and Pharma experiences
Abdullah AlmiqsabiSenior Manager, Corporate Planning, Genmab
Abdullah Almiqsabi
Prodactive has been an invaluable partner in our Smartsheet journey. Their expertise and templates helped us rapidly design and deploy a global Program Management Control Center that standardizes our processes, unifies data, and accelerates delivery across Infosys. The automations, dashboards, and portfolio-level visibility enabled through the solution continue to impress both our teams and our clients, reinforcing confidence in our program delivery model. Prodactive’s ongoing support has been instrumental in maximizing the power of Smartsheet across our enterprise.
Charles "Chuck" PrudenteGlobal PMCC Lead, Project Management Center of Excellence, Infosys.
Charles "Chuck" Prudente
I consider myself to be an advanced Smartsheet user but after only two hours with Rich, I already felt I had my money's worth for Prodactive’s 10 hour support package.
David WattsDivisional SHEQ Manager, Epwin Group
David Watts
Phil and the Prodactive team optimised Smartsheet Control Centre for our joinery jobs, enhancing efficiency and visibility. Their dedication and responsiveness ensured a customised solution aligned with our business needs.
Chloe March BrownOperations Manager, Forest Joinery
Chloe March Brown
Working with Rich and Prodactive was a pleasure and I would highly recommend his services to anyone interested in utilising the Smartsheet platform
Greg BaileyManagement Accountant, Logistica
Greg Bailey
Prodactive was very flexible with our requirements and quick to respond with changes and user feedback. Smartsheet is a game changer for efficiency and work transparency.
Angela LekkouSenior Project Manager, Sani/Ikos
Angela Lekkou
Gong cha has Master Franchisees around the world and this has really helped me to streamline my processes, save so much time for everyone involved and provide instant updates 24/7
Ahmet BaristiranFormerly Global Transformation Director, Gong Cha
Ahmet Baristiran
The solution Prodactive has built for us is a total game-changer. We engaged with them for their PPM expertise and their template set has given us a consistent framework with which to manage our projects
Oliver HolmesOperations Director, Bernard Interiors
Oliver Holmes
Prodactive were happy to build the solution piece-by-piece and were able to adapt it on the fly as new ideas surfaced. They were also willing to subject it to the exacting level of scrutiny that our own clients put on us
Paul FitzgeraldManaging Director & Founder, Hawksmoor Construction
Paul Fitzgerald
I highly recommend Prodactive to develop your Smartsheet workspace. Rich is incredibly knowledgeable with Smartsheet, Processes, Systems and Project Management
Steve GriesselGroup Chief Executive Officer, Paramount
Steve Griessel
Smartsheet introduced us to Prodactive when we were looking for support with our implementation of Control Center. As a joinery business, each project we engage in requires the design, manufacture, delivery and installation of many items, and Prodactive were quick to understand that this would require a different approach to conventional project scheduling. They built a solution from the ground up that gives us a clear view of the stage each item is at, as well as a broader view of each project as a whole. We are grateful for the support they provided and are now looking for them to extend this solution to give us even greater visibility and control over the manufacturing process.
Paddy O’LoughlinOperations Director, GEM Joinery
Paddy O’Loughlin
When rapid growth pushed our project systems past their limits, we needed expert help fast. After discovering Rich's videos online, I reached out to Prodactive. Rich and his team quickly understood our challenges and delivered tailored Smartsheet solutions that gave us the robust project management framework we needed to scale. The results were immediate; we delivered our critical project on time, which I'm confident wouldn't have happened without their intervention. We're now working with Prodactive to build out our complete operational playbook in Smartsheet. If you're outgrowing your PM systems and need proven expertise to scale effectively, I highly recommend Rich and the Prodactive team.
Lukeman ColeChief Transformation Officer & Founder, Transformious Inc.
Lukeman Cole
View All Testimonials
Steven Dearing,
Business Systems Manager at Big Red Construction
Prodactive has been an invaluable partner, enabling Infosys to standardize program management, unify data, and accelerate delivery through a powerful Smartsheet-based PMCC
Charles “Chuck” Prudente
Global PMCC Lead, Project Management Center of Excellence, Infosys
Solutions
Capabilities
Use Cases
Showcase
Latest Content
Resources
Latest Resources
Prodactive Ltd
About Prodactive

1st Floor,
85 Great Portland Street
London, W1W 7LT

info@getprodactive.com

Companies House Registered Number 10524210

Information

Initiatives

Socialise

Linkedin Youtube

© 2026 Prodactive Ltd

Thank you for choosing to register for Smarthub’s Early Access Programme: 

Please select your Region (note that you need to be logged into Smartsheet to access the registration form)

Europe
United States
Australia