An Effective PMO Guarantees Project Success

Every company has strategically important projectsProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. whose implementation has a profound impact on the future success of the company. Often such large-scale projects or programs take many years and are comprised of tens of thousands of man-days and a corresponding budget in the millions. In order to speed up implementation, different topics are worked on in parallel within these programs. These programs are, of course, entrusted to highly experienced project managers, who may rely on a corresponding Program Management Office (PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects.) for support. However, even if this initial situation is comparable for different companies, the degree of project success varies from company to company, and even between separate projects of the same company. What is the reason for this, and what are the characteristics of an effective PMO?

According to our experiences managing and reviewing numerous large-scale projects, my colleagues at Eurogroup Consulting and I have found the following aspects to be particularly relevant to the characterization of sustainable and effective PMO work:

1. The PMO must not only manage the project plan, but must also be able to independently develop it.

This assumes that PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects. employeesEmployeesSynonym for → ResourceResources are all the people, places and things that you need to complete projects. The most important resource? Employees, of course! understand what the projectProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. consists of and not just complete the tasks for the current work packages. Only when there is an understanding of the content will it be possible to coordinate and control all necessary project activities and determine the correct response in the event of a change in information. This is particularly important when programs are characterized by a large number of dependencies that require networking and quality assurance between sub-projects.

2. The PMO must not only document the progress of the project, but must also take into account potential obstacles at an early stage.

PMOsPMOsSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects. rely on many processes for gathering information, e.g., sub-projectProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. status reports and work package coordination between managers and the project team. Special PPMPPMSynonym for → Project Portfolio ManagementProject portfolio management (PPM) is a process that seeks to select, prioritize, monitor and analyze a company’s projects. tools are used to efficiently collect and refine this information. These tools not only make it easier to plan work packages, milestonesMilestoneIn project portfolio management, a milestone marks an important point in a project’s progress that requires monitoring or decision-making. Milestones indicate project phases, marking the completion of objectives or the… and result types, but can also be used to schedule resourcesResourceResources are all the people, places and things that you need to complete projects. The most important resource? Employees, of course! and to identify and simulate possible solutions for resource allocationAllocationAllocating describes the strategic process of identifying the correct resources for projects or individual tasks and assigning them accordingly. conflicts.

3. The PMO must be able to provide a comprehensive overall assessment of the situation, despite the focus on individual work packages.

PPMPPMSynonym for → Project Portfolio ManagementProject portfolio management (PPM) is a process that seeks to select, prioritize, monitor and analyze a company’s projects. tools help to systematically collect relevant data. However, the PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects. must be able to draw the right conclusions from this wealth of information. To be successful, the PMO employeesEmployeesSynonym for → ResourceResources are all the people, places and things that you need to complete projects. The most important resource? Employees, of course! must to be able to filter and aggregate the relevant information so they can give a concise but well-founded assessment of the projectProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. situation to the program manager or to the client at any time.

4. The PMO must not only document problems, but also make decisions to solve them.

ProjectProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. work is not a routine activity. The need to adapt to new findings will almost inevitably occur in any major project. Projects often establish risk and problem management. This then flows into a change procedure to allow the changes in the project plan to be formally confirmed. This process is by no means trivial. An effective PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects., therefore, acts as a seismograph for possible risks and upcoming problems. If this is successful, the discussion to find solutions can start at an early stage and valuable project time can be saved.

5. The PMO must not only document the lack of resources, but also create ambitions to achieve the project objectives with the available resources.

The information requirements of a PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects. often compete with the operational tasksTasksSynonym for → ProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. that the various sub-projects are supposed to accomplish. An effective PMO will therefore keep administrative activities to a minimum and ensure that they are used effectively. This often manifests itself in the handling of status reports. Creating status reports during a project is increasingly becoming a ritual. Submission and discussion of the status reports takes place mechanically and gradually loses the intended effect. A good PMO will therefore continually and critically question the points mentioned in the status reports, and together with the project leaders, decide on the correct action to take.

6. The PMO should not only support the project leaders, but together, they are the basis for the project’s success.

Large projectsProjectA project is a time-limited undertaking with defined objectives and resources that delivers unique results and often includes complex tasks. are complex and are characterized by many parameters. A good PMOPMOSynonym for → Project Management OfficeA Project Management Office (PMO) is a permanent organizational unit responsible for the centralized and coordinated management of all projects. is therefore characterized by the fact that project managementProject ManagementProject management is the planning, steering, and monitoring of projects to achieve specific objectives within a given timeframe and budget. problems and possible solutions are openly discussed. This culture of open discussion must also be reflected in the way the PMO employeesEmployeesSynonym for → ResourceResources are all the people, places and things that you need to complete projects. The most important resource? Employees, of course! perceive themselves, as the “fire department” ready to eliminate smoldering problems and thus support the sub-projects.

When a PMO fulfills these aspects, it becomes the extended arm of project management and can support and complement it with the greatest possible impact. The significantly higher probability of successful project implementation through an effective PMO makes it worth thinking about the adaptations that can be used to increase the impact of your PMO.