A PMO can be an internal group or an external one hired to manage products. PMOs differ from other aspects of a project management team. PMOs have a broad scope and are staffed by people from many disciplines and are responsible for the project management standards rather than an individual project. The office typically includes a mix of professionals from IT, planning, finance and risk management who collaborate to ensure that all projects meet the defined organisational outcomes.
Not every organisation will need a PMO, but each one will need a project manager. The project manager is the individual responsible for overall control and success of projects. Portfolio Managers oversee all projects and programmes in an organisation but focus on the overarching goals and how projects and programmes align with those goals.
A PMO will keep documentation on projects and offer direction and key metrics in the execution of the projects under its governance. Very often, a PMO will also be responsible for budgeting and funding of projects under its jurisdiction.
Using a PMO in an organisation can be beneficial to project management strategies and the company. Overall, a PMO can provide high level oversight and planning to a company. Project management is overseen, and there are standard procedures for the organisation.
These are three other ways that PMOs can be useful and provide real value to a company:
With a PMO, everyone working on projects at the company will have clear standardised methods and procedures. A PMO defines and maintains the project management standards for the organisation, making it simpler for project managers and other project management team members to know the approved procedures. A PMO standardises these elements and simplifies the process.
When a PMO standardises procedures, there is a fantastic opportunity for organisational alignment. The PMO department or group can ensure that the standards and procedures for project management are aligned with the overall purpose of the company, its trajectory and other product goals. Organisational alignment also helps ensure that projects are adding real value. A PMO is also in a unique position to flag any similarities between projects to avoid too much overlap or loss of resources. Instead, every project can be aligned with the others and the goal of the company.
One responsibility of a PMO is to identify and train project managers. Having a PMO take on this responsibility helps an organisation have better trained and more highly qualified project managers. Instead of leaving training up to someone with little experience managing projects, it is something a department created solely for project management can ensure happens and that the training is high quality. So, companies with PMOs (or who hire PMOs) can have better project managers.
Not every company will have a PMO, and not every PMO will look the same. There is no standard for PMO development. Still, there are some common forms that a PMO will take within an organisation's project management strategy. These are two of the most common forms that illustrate the separate roles a PMO can play within a company.
One common type of PMO is the supportive or advisory PMO. A supportive PMO will collect all projects in an organisation, supply best practices for projects and provide templates and training, but it is done in a more consultative manner. This type of PMO might be external; it might also be a part of a department-specific, regional or divisional PMO.
A directive PMO has a high level of managerial control and the power to enforce organisational standards and practices. Essentially, a directive PMO is the central authority within the organisation on project management. While an advisory PMO might only provide advice on best practices for a particular project, a directive PMO would have the authority to enforce the use of the best practices for that project.
PMOs perform some important roles for project management. When an organisation utilises a PMO, they typically take advantage of three main types of roles and responsibilities: guidance, documentation and reporting.
PMOs can provide guidance for project management strategies and tools. In particular, PMOs provide guidance on methodologies and best practices with those. These are some of the most common and useful methodologies and frameworks for project management that PMOs can help with:
- Agile
Agile is an iterative approach to planning and guiding project processes that breaks them down into smaller cycles called sprints. It is flexible and powerful.
- Waterfall
With Waterfall, every task flows from one into the next, like a waterfall. The timing requires careful planning, but the flow can move projects along effectively.
- Scrum
Scrum is similar to Agile, but its deliverables are due every 30 days. It is a great method for teams that struggle with productivity.
- Six Sigma
Six Sigma is a methodology used to improve processes by getting rid of what are considered defects. The goal is to reduce errors of any kind for maximum accuracy and great products.
One important role of a PMO is documentation. PMOs provide guidance and best practices for project management, and best practices are derived from past projects. When PMOs keep documentation on projects, the PMO can make better decisions and predictions on what would work well and be best for a particular project. Documentation helps inform practice.
PMO reports are a valuable tool for project management success. Reporting keeps projects on track and stakeholders updated on progress. When a PMO manages reporting, they can keep track of the project's progress, inform all stakeholders and report to upper management on the project. That reduces the reporting burden for project members while keeping the project on track from start to finish.
PMOs can provide many benefits to the company and perform so many important roles and responsibilities, but there can still be challenges with PMOs. These challenges can be difficult to navigate, but they are all able to be overcome for companies that wish to benefit from utilising a PMO for project management success. These are four of the most common challenges of PMOs and how to overcome them.
A PMO is only useful if it is communicating with the team members working on the project. A lack of communication between a PMO and the team members means that the team is not benefiting from the knowledge and standards the PMO can provide. To overcome this challenge, it is important to provide several avenues of communication and regular check-ins between the PMO and the team members.
For some companies, it works best to have the project manager be the go-between, and that can be effective so long as there is regular communication.
Staffing PMOs is especially important to the success of a PMO. A challenge arises when the PMO teams lack the skill sets necessary to provide real value to the project management team. The solution to overcoming this challenge is to carefully select teams that have the skill sets needed to perform the roles and responsibilities of a PMO. Many companies hire a wide variety of individuals.
Some PMOs do not have visibility into how projects are going and what the teams are currently doing. That lack of visibility limits the potential and the value PMOs can add. When PMOs do not have visibility, they cannot guide teams on the best project management practices for that project. To overcome this challenge, it is important to provide PMOs with visibility on what the teams are doing. This can also help improve communication.
Conflicts can derail any type of project. Failing to resolve team conflicts can lead to many problems with PMOs. The key is to provide avenues to resolve conflicts before they can escalate. Mitigating problems early on can keep the teams more productive and reduce the risk of stalling a project.
The right PMO software will also align with business goals. Unfortunately, not every business is utilising the right software. Many organisations use project portfolio management (PPM) as their PMO software. But the truth is, it is not delivering on its promises. It is difficult to develop and maintain alignment between strategies, investments and outcomes despite leveraging PPM.
That is why ServiceNow created Strategic Portfolio Management. It allows organisations to prioritise and fund what matters most, build a roadmap to guide investments, communicate plans and track progress. SPM empowers teams to plan and execute work in any method while consolidating and centralising business demand. It is the PMO software that can help organisations overcome challenges and reap the benefits of a strong PMO.
Learn more about Strategic Portfolio Management to begin revolutionising your PMOs today.
