PMO Presentation

1. Implementing A
Project Management Office (PMO)
Prepared by: James Waln, PMP
October 2007
1

2. Overview
The What and Why of PMO’s
Starting a PMO
Types of PMO’s
PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Executive Buy-In
PMO Best Practices
Sources and Suggested Reading
Reference Material
2

3. The What and Why of PMO’s
3

4. What Is a PMO Exactly?
4

5. The Project Management Office (PMO)
• A PMO is a centralized organization dedicated to
improving the practice and results of project management.
5

6. PMO Responsibilities
6

7. What Benefits Does a PMO Offer?
PMO’s are/can…
Making available qualified
project managers
Provide support personnel
to assist project managers
Allow project managers to
pool their skills and
knowledge
Help project managers to
develop professionally
Recommended for
organizations with many
project managers
Provide consulting-type
services and products to its
constituency
If a PMO is not used…
With several projects under
way, project managers are
probably not learning from
one another
PM’s are probably not
sharing best practices
PM’s are not challenged to
continuously improve their
skills
Project managers can be
overtly influenced by line
managers
Project managers scattered
across an organization with
no common bond are
significantly handicapped
The most important service of a PMO is to provide qualified
project managers to an organization…
7

8. Starting a PMO
8

9. Starting a PMO
FACTS
 Executives must deliver in two key areas — ongoing
operational results and improvement efforts.
 Functional managers are continuously evaluated by senior
management, peers, and subordinates for their ability to
make things happen quickly.
 Many projects involve multiple departments and functional
areas.
 Each organizational unit has its own language, its own
standards, its own project management techniques or lack
thereof.
 No wonder so many central project management
coordination units have sprung up in the last few years.
 Today, there is estimated to be over 50,000 such
organizations in the U.S. alone.
9

10. Starting a PMO
PMO Requirements:
 PMO value must be measurable to become
sustainable.
 If you cannot measure, you cannot control
and if you cannot control, you cannot manage.
 The PMO must be aligned with the interests
and goals of the organization to sustain itself.
10
• A PMO has responsibility for educating
the organization it serves about its benefits
it brings to projects
• A PMO must create and track metrics to
show the results of its contributions
• A PMO should survey its customers
routinely to verify it is adding value
• The PMO should focus on portfolio
management of:
Project investments
Resources
Assets
Strategic objectives

11. Types of PMO’s
11

12. Current PMO and Advanced Models
Traditional PMO Next Generation PMO
Focus mostly on tactical issues Focus on strategic and cultural issues
Science of project management Art and craft of project management
Views organization as a "complex
machine"
Views organization as a "complex ecology"
Emphasis on monitoring and
control
Emphasis on collaboration
Provides tools similar to a precise
"map" to follow
Provides tools similar to a "compass" that
show the direction
Internal process focused
Focus on end products, customers and
outcomes
Process driven Business driven
Standard (heavy) methods and
practices
Adaptable and flexible (agile) methods and
practices
Based on rules; follow rules
Based on guiding principles; follow rules
and improvise if needed
Defined, repeatable, managed and
optimized practices
Adaptive and innovative practices
Focus on efficiency Focus on effectiveness and innovation
Process leadership Thought leadership
Heavy management and
governance
Balanced management, governance and
leadership
Table courtesy of J. Duggal, Projectize Group, http://www.projectize.com.

12

13. What Does a PMO Look Like?
 Typical starting point for a
PMO can be three project
managers, a team leader, and
five team members (also called
PMO support personnel).
 PMO Project Starter Services…
• Provide well-trained and competent project managers to run
key projects.
• Provide project management consulting.
• Review contract proposals from vendors.
• Sponsor project management education.
• Develop, document, and maintain project management best
practices.
• Conduct project culture training.
• Perform project reviews.
• Perform post-project reviews.
• Ensure that new projects apply lessons learned.
Reporting View of a Small Project Management
Office
13

14. PMO Models
Early on in PMO history, the Gartner Group identified three
PMO models as flourishing:
• "Project Repository Model”
• "Project Coach Model"
• "Enterprise PMO Model"
There is a fourth model, called the "Deliver
Value Now Model," that should not be
ignored.
14

15. PROJECT REPOSITORY MODEL
PROJECT REPOSITORY MODEL BENEFITS
 PMO serves as a source of
information on project methodology
and standards.
 Assumes the enterprise has
embraced a cohesive set of tools for
project design, management, and
reporting.
 Occurs most often in organizations
that empower distributed, business-
centric project ownership or with weak
central-governance.
 Data gap identification
 Incremental risk management control
as projects initiate and mature in the
development cycle
 Bottleneck identification for all projects
 "Raising the bar" for delivery
"goodness"
15

16. PROJECT COACHING MODEL
PROJECT COACHING MODEL BENEFITS
 Assumes a willingness to share some
project management practices across
functions and uses the PMO to
coordinate the communication.
 Best practices are documented and
shared and project performance is
monitored actively.
 Results are used to raise enterprise
performance and train inefficient or
new project managers.
 Acts as trainer
 Consultant or mentor
 Source of information on project
processes
 Often helps in project setup and post-
project reviews
16

17. ENTERPRISE PMO MODEL
ENTERPRISE PMO MODEL BENEFITS
 The most permanent, consolidated,
organizational model and concentrates
project management within the PMO.
 The mission of the EPMO implies
direct management or oversight of
projects.
 All project managers are staffed
within the shared service and
consigned to projects as needed.
 The EPMO acts as a contracted
project manager, assessing scope,
allocating resources and verifying time,
budget, risk, and impact assumptions.
 Many firms have since learned that a
consultative approach aimed at
increasing project throughput and
reducing project durations requires
teamwork between the EPMO and the
project teams.
 The idea of a PMO owning the project
managers has some significant potential
negative effects.
 The project management expertise and
standards may not filter through to
functional areas.
 When significant portions of the
projects are part of one functional area,
that functional area may not feel as
committed.
17

18. "DELIVER VALUE NOW" MODEL
"DELIVER VALUE NOW" MODEL BENEFITS
 Puts organization goals first.
 Improvements in PM methodology are
viewed as a means to an end, and not
the end in itself.
 A holistic approach, embracing
methods, skills and strategy that views
project management as one piece of a
bigger puzzle.
 Enables consistent motivation for the
entire organization to seek out
accelerated project deliveries.
 A stronger, more balanced project
portfolio and better project
performance.
 A strong, well-balanced project
portfolio that identifies up-to-date project
workload, sponsorship, tactical progress,
health status and current data gaps.
 A monthly "plan and forecast" that
identifies portfolio opportunities and
threats, top issues and risks, projects
over/under budget summary.
 A project prioritization model for all
portfolio projects based on ability to form
a Governance Board to direct model
creation.
 Governance Board setup and/or
modification enables the force-ranking of
the portfolio of projects.
 Project management training, coaching,
and mentoring based on need.
18

19. DETERMINING THE PMO MODEL FOR
YOUR ORGANIZATION
Questions you should ask…
1. Who will initially be the main customers of the PMO?
2. What is the maturity level of the project management
community?
3. How well does the Executive Team work together for the good
of the enterprise?
4. Where is the greatest pain?
5. Will the PMO be able to deal with the intensity of missed
delivery expectations from the executives and all of its
implications?
6. Will the PMO be able to rescue troubled projects critical to the
business? What if it cannot?
7. Will the PMO be funded sufficiently and supported by the
executives to meet the value opportunities and threats?
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20. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
20

21. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
PMO EXECUTIVE
21
PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOL MENTOR
PROJECT PORTFOLIO MANAGER
HELP DESK SPECIALISTS
RESOURCE PORTFOLIO MANAGER
DATA
ADMINISTRATOR
PROJECT MANAGEMENT MENTOR

22. PMO Services Overview
As a PMO begins to define its objectives, it needs to
consider what services it will provide to meet those
objectives.
It must also assess when in its implementation schedule
it will provide these services.
The services that are required dictate the various roles
and responsibilities.
Each service provided will require some level of staff
support.
22

23. PMO Services
PMO Services
Portfolio
Management
Consulting &
PMO Services Training Admin./H.R. Archives
Project portfolio
information
Project rescues Methodology Project
accounting
Information
repository
Asset, strategic
objectives and
resource
portfolios
Project
acceleration,
assessments,
threats and
opportunities,
auditing, risk
management
Tools Operations
planning and
forecasting
Data integrity and
security
Executive
reporting and
governance
Project
management
processes, tools,
methodologies
Project
management
basics
Data collection
and report
distribution
Project document
library/knowledge
management
Prioritization
techniques
Mentoring Certification Asset tracking Lessons learned
Staggering of
projects
Help Desk Teamwork Materials and
supplies
Closed contracts
Strategic
resource
management
Web
portal/information
management
Advanced
project
management
Contract and
change
management

Analysis Resource
recruiting
Scheduling
software
Metrics,
bonuses, career
path, rewards
and recognition

Customer
interface
Customer interface Customer
interface
Customer
interface
Customer
interface

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24. Executive Buy-In
24

25. Executive Buy-in of The PMO
A PMO must deliver on its promise through four major processes:
 Choosing the right project mix — a new way of strategic planning
 Linking the executive team's strategies to current and planned projects
 Managing the project portfolio correctly
 Measuring the PMO to tangibly improve project performance relative to
the executives' strategic goals
Executives will embrace a PMO that dramatically increases the
probability of meeting their goals.
A PMO must be able to help executives with execution of strategy, as
determined by the project mix and flow, or the PMO will not achieve
sufficient level of value to sustain itself. 25

26. Executives Embrace a PMO If…
CHARACTERISTICS OF A PMO THAT EXECUTIVES WILL
EMBRACE:
Executives will perceive value if the PMO helps the
executives meet the goals on which they are measured
It must drive more projects through completion, without
correspondingly increasing resources
Projects must be completed in drastically shorter times
The impact of the PMO is clearly felt on both the top and
bottom lines of the organization (even in not-for-profit
organizations)
Executives and managers throughout the organization feel
that they are getting benefit out of the PMO
26

27. PMO Best Practices
27

28. Elements of An Effective PMO
 The Right People
 The Right Tools
 The Right Data
 AVOIDS: The Wrong Result
28

29. THE "WRONG" RESULT — WHY PMO
IMPLEMENTATIONS FAIL…
The PMO did not define its value proposition.
The PMO is not perceived as impacting project delivery abilities.
The PMO is seen as a threat — most often too authoritative.
 The PMO does not have buy-in from the senior management.
The PMO is too low in the management reporting.
 Project Management Overhead — the bad PMO acronym.
 The PMO is micromanaging — trying to control every project directly.
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30. Some Final Thoughts on starting a PMO…
In today's economy, more value is needed now.
Establishing a PMO that brings recognized value in
the first six months of its existence is critical.
Recommend you go beyond the original models.
As you plan the PMO implementation, seriously
consider establishing visible value to senior
management from the get-go.
Go after the low-hanging fruit that helps everyone win
and the PMO will be on its way.
Avoid being perceived as sitting in the "Ivory Tower
of Project Management Excellence".
Build a PMO that will "Deliver Value Now."
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31. Sources & Recommended
Reading
31

32. Sources and Recommended Reading
Advanced Project Portfolio Management and the PMO: Multiplying ROI
at Warp Speed by Gerald I. Kendall and Steven C. Rollins, J. Ross
Publishing © 2003
The Enter Prize Organization: Organizing Software Projects for
Accountability and Success by Neal Whitten, Project Management
Institute © 2000
Improving Your Project Management Skills by Larry Richman,
AMACOM © 2006
Building Project Management Centers of Excellence by Dennis Bolles,
AMACOM © 2002
Introduction To Project Management by Kathy Schwalbe, Thomson
Course Technology © 2006
“In Common” by Bud Baker, Ph.D., PM Network magazine, September
2007
“Definition Impossible” by Bud Baker, Ph.D., PM Network magazine,
June 2007
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33. Reference Material
33

34. Next Steps Overview
I. Executive Summary/Proposal Letter with these sections:
 Business Case
 Scope
 Approach
 Risk
 Cost and Benefits
 Timeline
II.To successfully gain executive buy-in spend an hour with each
functional executive to assess the current environment
III.Executive Presentation (3 hour time slot)
 The problems in managing projects
 The cost of the problems
 The connections between the root problem and the executive problems
 Simulate one of the problems to show the executives the impact
 The PMO Solution
 Discussion
 Conclusion
 This proposal becomes the formal written document for chartering
the implementation of the PMO as a project.
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35. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
 Leads the
development
of the PMO
value
proposition
 Leads the
PMO
strategically
 Key to
gaining
organization-
wide support.
 PMO charter
development and
implementation
 Ensuring all PMO
activities are driving
bottom line value
 Buy-in and
involvement of
executives
 PMO staffing
 Approval of monthly
forecast and work
plan report
 PMO staff retention
 Approval authority
on project mgmt.
contracts
 Measured by
how much
documented
value is
brought to the
organization
 Executive
oriented
 Project
management
professional
 Has the ability
to work well with
all levels of the
organization
 Cross-
functional
experience with
project portfolio
management
 Consulting
background
 This is the
first person
hired into the
PMO.
PMO EXECUTIVE
35

36. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Leads and
maintains the
development
of the project,
resource,
asset and
strategic
objective
portfolios
 Reports to
the PMO
executive
 Financial
and what-if
analysis.
 Analyzes the project
portfolio and makes
recommendations to
decision makers
 Balances the portfolio
 Evaluates and helps
to implement
processes to improve
project flow
 Publishes the
monthly forecast and
work plan report
 Manages the
development and
definition of the
prioritization model
 Can be backup to the
PMO executive
 Same
measurement
as PMO
executive
 improvement
in ROI in
project
portfolio.
 Ability to report
bad news
 Ability to work
well with all
levels of the
business
 Portfolio
management
experience for
project portfolios
> $25 million.
 Part of
the first
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 PMO
Executive
PROJECT PORTFOLIO MANAGER
36

37. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Supports
project
rescues
 Works in
the field
assisting
project teams
 Trains
project
managers
 Conducts
project
assessments
 Reports to
the PMO
executive.
 Provides coaching
and mentoring services
to the project
management
community on top
portfolio-related
components
 Works with project
sponsors and project
managers to identify
project delivery
opportunities and
threats.
 Same
measurement
as PMO
executive
 Monetarily
identified in
overcoming
project team
threats and
opportunities
 Ability to work
well with all
levels of
business
 Consultative in
nature and
duties
 Certified
Project
Management
Professional
(PMP)
 Complete
grasp of PMI
PMBOK®
fundamentals
 Ability to work
in high stress
situations
 Part of
the first
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 PMO
Executive
 Project
Portfolio
Manager
PROJECT MANAGEMENT MENTOR
37

38. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Provides
technical
leadership,
coaching and
mentoring on
all PMO tool
utilization
 Reports to
the Project
Management
Mentors
 Ensures the integrity
of all data captured
through the supported
PMO tools
 Responsible for the
competence of all
project managers,
resource managers
and team members in
PMO tools and
applications
 Helps with project
rescues in rescheduling
work loads in the
scheduling tool.
 Same
measurement
as PMO
executive
 Data
integrity and
completeness
 Expert in
scheduling tools
 Quick learner
on software
packages
 Ability to work
well with all
levels of the
business
 Complete
grasp of PMI
PMBOK®
fundamentals
 Ability to work
in high stress
situations
 Part of
the first
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 Project
Management
Trainer
 Project
Management
Mentor
PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOL MENTOR
38

39. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Customer
service
 Supports
the project
management
community
service
requests for
assistance
 Answers and
tracks field requests
for assistance from
project management
community
 Same
measurement as
PMO executive
 Responsiveness
to customer help
desk calls.
 Ability to work
well with all
levels of the
business
 A complete
grasp of PMI
PMBOK®
fundamentals
 Trained in all
PMO standard
tools and
methodologies
 Excellent
communication
skills
 Ability to
translate
technical jargon
into simple
concepts
 Part of
the first
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 No later
than early
in second
six
months of
PMO
implemen
tation
schedule
 Project
Management
tool Mentor
 Trainer
 Project
Management
Mentor
HELP DESK SPECIALISTS
39

40. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Oversees
resource
portfolio,
including
strategic
resources
 Works with
Project
Portfolio
Manager to
help balance
the portfolios
 Seeks to
implement
resource
portability
 Full and correct
utilization of the
organization's
strategic resources
 Tracks resource
utilization trends in
alignment with
portfolio objectives
 Assists project
management
community in
locating just-in-time
resources.
 Same
measurement as
PMO executive
 Utilization and
throughput per
week of the
organization's
strategic
resources
 Primary PMO
executive
measurement: to
reduce delays
caused by
unavailable non-
strategic
resources.
 Ability to work
in high stress
situations with
project team
partners
 Strong
negotiation
skills.
 Part of
the
second
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 Project
Portfolio
Manager
RESOURCE PORTFOLIO MANAGER
40

41. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Works with
project teams
in the
application of
the project
management
methodology
 Assesses team's
methodology usage
for method
compliance and
associative risk
management for all
key projects
 Works with Project
Management Mentor
to identify and
overcome obstacles
and resistance
 Same
measurement as
PMO executive
 Percentage of
project
management
community
claiming that
methodology is
worthwhile
 Strong
background in
PMI/PMBOK®
concepts and
their application
 Ability to
teach concepts
to work teams
 Certified as a
Project
Management
Professional
(PMP®)
 Able to work
with business
sponsors and
their project
teams in project
startups.
 Part of
the
second
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 Brought
in early if
the work
environm
ent has
very low
project
managem
ent
maturity
 Project
Management
Mentor
 Trainer
 Resource
Portfolio
Manager
METHODOLOGY SPECIALIST
41

42. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Works with
project
teams,
functional
units and
other
organizations
to provide
and arrange
project
management
training
 Teach project
management basic
and advanced
concepts
 Same
measurement as
PMO executive
 Agreed upon
financial impact of
the training,
signed off by
sponsors or
functional
executives.
 Professional
training
experience
 Part of
the second
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 Brought
in earlier if
the work
environme
nt has low
project
managem
ent
maturity
 Methodology
Specialist
 Project
Management
Mentor
PROJECT MANAGEMENT TRAINER
42

43. PMO Roles and Responsibilities
Role Responsibilities Value
Required
Skills When
PMO Career
Path
 Constructs
the monthly
forecast and
work plan
report
 Document
librarian
 Supports all
PMO role
players
 Provides
primary
support for
the portfolio
manager
 Ad hoc reporting;
PMO data repository
processing and
integrity
 Review of portfolio
project status
reports and
schedules for data
completion
 Same
measurement as
PMO executive
 Customer
satisfaction with
information (not
data) provided.
 Ability to
work in high
stress
situations with
project team
partners
 Should
be part of
the first
group of
people
hired into
the PMO
 Help Desk
Specialist
 Methodology
Specialist
DATA ADMINISTRATOR
43