PMO Success

Guide:
Selling the
PMO to the
Enterprise
A WHITE PAPER

It is not the strongest of the species

that survives, nor the most intelligent
that survives. It is the one that is
most adaptable to change.
- Charles Darwin

In this white paper, discover:

ƒƒ Why project management offices (PMO)
are important
ƒƒ Why you can’t force-fit PMOs and how
to helps teams embrace the initiative
ƒƒ How different PMO types function
based on your organization’s needs
ƒƒ What type to explore depending on
mandate
Why are PMOs important?
Project management offices (PMO) can be a critical and strategic asset to
an organization if they are successful. They offer visibility into and focused
control over the projects and programs within an organization, which improves
alignment between project execution and business objectives.

PMOs provide standardized processes that improve success rates, and have
technologies in place, like project portfolio management (PPM) solutions, to
better utilize resources and manage pipelines. Because most businesses are
project-driven, PMOs are an asset that can help transform chaos into order.

In fact, according to the Project Management Institute (PMI),

ƒƒ 90% of high-performing, large organizations have a PMO

ƒƒ 77% participate in strategic planning

ƒƒ 87% focus on aligning projects with business objectives1

While the benefits are clear, implementing a PMO is no small undertaking.

You must be sure your organization is ready and willing to play the game and
help you win against the competition. Making the change won’t be easy, but a
successful PMO will keep you ahead of the competition.

Why you can’t force-fit a PMO into an organization

Organizations are made up of human beings. Naturally, humans are often
reluctant to change. Change can be uncomfortable and create uncertainty. This
is particularly true when introducing a PMO. PMOs can create structural changes
that result in a transfer of power between people, which can result in resistance
if the objectives of a PMO aren’t fully communicated and thereby understood.

Adjusting how one works is difficult, especially when it can be as significant as

implementing a new team in the organization that’s designed to speed progress
and manage results. If you try to force-fit a PMO into your organization, it may
end up becoming a bottleneck instead of a strategic asset. Consequently, it
ends up being disbanded.

Instead, if you’re considering introducing a PMO within your organization, it’s

critical that your teams understand the roadmap and the overarching objectives.
Your teams have to know how a PMO will help them do their work better and
smarter before automatically signing on for something they may not necessarily
understand or are ready for.

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Embracing the PMO concept
When companies seek to develop a new product or service, they follow a tried-
and-true method that includes:

ƒƒ Identifying the needs of the customers

ƒƒ Analyzing those needs

ƒƒ Developing solutions to meet those needs

Successful PMOs—whether new or existing—continually consider the above

method to ensure processes are aligned and the PMO is meeting the needs of
stakeholders and the company. For new PMOs, the leadership should perform
these activities. They should also introduce the concept itself, becoming the
chief sponsor, and communicate its mission, vision, and objectives.

For an existing PMO, these activities are done by the PMO director. A successful
PMO perpetually identifies the needs of the company, analyzes those needs,
and develops solutions to meet those needs. Typically, this requires direct
involvement and input from executives, managers, and team members alike.
Project management is a team effort.

Once your teams understand that the implementation of a PMO is a part of the
process to develop their success, you won’t have to sell it to them. They will
begin to view the PMO as a strategic asset and a true partner of the business
that is in place to help them, not hurt them.

Introducing the PMO

Start small
There are many different kinds of PMOs. If you’re a first-timer, starting small is
best practice. Rome wasn’t built in a day, as they say. Implement a PMO that
caters to the most receptive group and do what it takes to make that group
successful.

As with any new endeavor, it’s paramount to track your success and failures
diligently. Communicate your successes to your executive sponsor and learn
from your failures. With actual data points about what works and what doesn’t,
it will be easier to talk to other department heads about the benefits of a PMO.
Be open to change, because you will need to rethink the structure of the PMO
as you scale.

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Communicate
It is important to communicate the goals and areas of focus of the PMO to the
rest of the organization. There’s a great many advantages to implementing a
PMO. Setting up opportunities to demonstrate proof points and success stories
is a great way to share information with the rest of the company. Here are some
high-level benefits a PMO offers:

ƒƒ Establishes and standardizes PPM processes: Help organizations

work on the right projects at the right time using the right resources

ƒƒ Provides quality assurance for all projects: Help project managers

monitor and maintain quality and auditing of the performance of projects
against business objectives

ƒƒ Supplements project resources: For specific project activities, engage

with the right people to aid in initial project planning, project monitoring,
performance measurements, and review of project deliverables

ƒƒ Creates opportunity for coaching: With established processes,

mentoring employees becomes simpler and ensures project managers
and team members stay up to date and supported as the PMO flexes
and scales

ƒƒ Centralizes PPM knowledge: A PMO and PPM platform builds a

centralized repository of knowledge and data

Aside from organizing ways to share information outside the PMO, you can also
distribute newsletters outlining PMO successes, set up blogs or discussion
boards, and hold periodic meetings with the rest of the executive team to identify
expansion opportunities.

What kind of PMO?

PMOs come in all shapes and sizes, and live within different areas of the
organization. There is no magic formula for determining what kind of PMO is right
for your business. To the contrary, predetermined ideas for a PMO almost always
result in PMO difficulties. The PMO must be designed to meet the environmental
needs of the business it supports, and it must be prepared to be flexible.

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 A PMO might be an enterprise PMO (EPMO) serving the entire company, or it
could be a departmental or divisional PMO that is limited to a specific business
division. Some common divisions include:

ƒƒ Professional services

ƒƒ Sales

ƒƒ Marketing

ƒƒ Human resources

ƒƒ Engineering

ƒƒ Information technology

In larger organizations, there may be multiple PMOs, such as an EPMO and

multiple departmental PMOs. The below graphic outlines a sample organization
in which multiple PMOs exist. In this scenario, each of the PMOs serve their
own department, but in order to truly serve the business cohesively, each PMO
should be utilizing the same technology. That way, each PMO can effectively
communicate with one another as needed and are better poised to avoid the
redundancies that come when using disconnected systems.

CEO

Strategic
PMO

Information Operational Finance & Sales &

Manufacturing
technology services legal marketing

IT PMO Operations Applications Operations Quality Engineering Sales Marketing

Applications Engineering North Marketing

America International
PMO PMO PMO

Business Strategic Industry General

accounts business business
unit PMO units units

Functional
team PMO

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PMO types and mandates
PMOs take on many roles depending on their mandate.

Advisory or governance PMOs

Advisory or governance PMOs are generally tasked with being centers of project
management knowledge within their organization. The advisory PMOs often
include such functions as:

ƒƒ Developing and maintaining processes

ƒƒ Creating or defining the project management tools used within the

organization

ƒƒ Identifying and maintaining standards and best practices

ƒƒ Gathering and reporting project metrics

ƒƒ Managing the project portfolio

ƒƒ Performing project intake activities

ƒƒ Planning strategic initiatives that align with business goals

Advisory PMOs are often found in mature project-driven organizations where

project management is already entrenched in the business process.

Coaching or consultative PMOs

Consultative PMOs provide a greater level of influence in the organization. They
are often staffed with senior project managers and provide more assistance
to the project management community in the organization. Such a PMO may
expand its functions to include:

ƒƒ Planning project guidance

ƒƒ Managing resource utilization and allocation

ƒƒ Conducting project reviews and audits

ƒƒ Overseeing training and mentoring

ƒƒ Gathering and distributing “lessons learned”

These PMOs are often found in organizations that practice matrix-style

organization. The project managers usually do not report directly to the PMO.

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Managing PMOs
Managing PMOs exhibit an even greater involvement in the projects themselves.
Project managers typically report directly to the PMO, and all projects are
managed the by project managers within that PMO. Some managing PMO
functions may be:

ƒƒ Setting up projects within the PPM tool

ƒƒ Managing project execution

ƒƒ Keeping initiatives on track

ƒƒ Communicating with stakeholders about project status

In summary
There are no hard and fast rules governing the type of PMO implemented within
an organization. In reality, each PMO is unique to the organization it supports.
Successful PMOs will mix and match functions and activities in order to create a
PMO that best meets their needs.

There are a multitude of ways in which a PMO can benefit an organization.

Projects are comprised of multiple moving pieces and parts—including the
people. With the right system, processes, and technology in place, managing
the pipeline becomes simpler and keeps the organization moving in the same
direction. It makes it easier for organizations to ensure project execution is
intrinsically tied to the overarching business goals of the company.

If you’re looking to implement or reconfigure your PMO, start with assessing

what will work for you and then consider a plan that uses iterative stages to
implement. Remember to start small and define what it is the PMO should
accomplish for your organization. Then, consider the kind of processes and
technology that you want to put in place to help you manage the movement of
initiatives. Ultimately, with a defined-but-flexible PMO process, your teams will be
better poised to align execution with the larger business strategy and increase
the success of your project-driven organization.

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 Citations

1. PM Solutions Research. “The State of the Project Management Office (PMO)”. 2014. Retrieved from:
http://www.pmsolutions.com/reports/State_of_the_PMO_2014_Research_Report_FINAL.pdf

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About Changepoint
Changepoint delivers market-leading solutions in Business Execution Management™ (BEM) to
companies around the world. Our solution suite is comprised of Project Portfolio Management
(PPM), Enterprise Portfolio Management (EPM), Professional Services Automation (PSA), and
more. Today, thousands of organizations—large and small—rely on Changepoint to do the right
projects right. With Changepoint, smarter decisions are easier to make and flexibly adapting to
changes is easier to do. The result? A shorter time-to-value, and clearer road to innovation and
customer satisfaction. Visit: www.changepoint.com.

0516 © 2016 Changepoint

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