A Project Manager's Guide to managing a PMO
Introduction
A project management office (PMO) is a great asset to any enterprise. It helps streamline processes and increase accountability across the organisation, providing a clear path for how projects are initiated and completed. But when it comes to building one from scratch, there's so much that goes into it!
In this article, I'll cover everything you need to know about starting up your own PMO and making sure it works as well as possible for your company's needs.
Team structure and responsibility
The following positions are included in a PMO:
Project reporting and tracking
Project reporting and tracking are not one-size-fits-all. It's important to have a system in place for tracking projects that consider what the project manager needs to know, as well as their team members' individual roles.
Project status reports provide a snapshot of where a project stands at any given point in time. It should be tailored to suit your individual style but generally include information on milestone status, budget allocation and remaining funds, team member performance against goals set per role/activity level (e.g., PMO lead or resource), and any other information you would like to track from month to month or quarter to quarter.
Project dashboards provide more detail on specific projects while also giving an overview of their status over time—you may want multiple dashboards if there are several high-level areas within your organisation's portfolio (e.g., PMO management versus product development).
Projects must be tracked carefully so that they can be managed effectively over time; this is another area where careful planning will help ensure success!
As such, I recommend monitoring key metrics regularly throughout each phase: cost reporting during conception; risk management during planning; cost control after deployment; and finally portfolio reporting once live operations begin under new ownership in order to keep tabs on financial stability as well as customer satisfaction levels across all departments involved with launch efforts going forward.
Communication and engagement
The communication and engagement component of your PMO is the most essential to its success. Without it, your team members will not be well informed about the status of their projects or the risks associated with them. This can lead to a host of problems including:
Governance and controls
Governance and controls are two sides of the same coin. Governance is about the processes that are in place to make sure the PMO is operating effectively, while controls are about processes that make sure it operates efficiently.
A project management organisation (PMO) governance model should be established to ensure effective operations and ongoing success. The model should be supported by policies and procedures, as well as metrics for measuring performance against those policies and procedures.
Knowledge management
Knowledge management is a means of managing the flow of knowledge in an organisation. It is an integral part of project management and can be applied to a wide range of situations, from small workgroups to large organisations. Knowledge management involves identifying, capturing, organising, storing, sharing, and using information throughout an organisation.
Knowledge management is often referred to as "information" or "IT" management because it involves managing technology such as laptops or smartphones; however, this is not always the case.
Information can include:
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Tools and processes
The PMO is responsible for the tools and processes that help you manage your projects. It's important to define what these are so that you can have a clear understanding of how your team will work together.
Tools:
The tools used by the PMO are designed to facilitate collaboration between teams, as well as to monitor project progress and identify potential issues that could negatively affect a project’s success. The following tools fall into this category:
Processes:
The processes in place at your organisation may vary depending on its size or industry, but there are some key areas where all organisations should focus when developing their processes:
Project intake process
You should be thinking about how you want to tackle your project before you even start. That way you can be sure that your goals are realistic, and that you have a plan of action for achieving them. Remember: the first step to a successful project is defining its problem.
It's important to set yourself clear and tangible fitness goals, rather than vague ones like "getting in shape" or "eating better." If your goal is specific, then it's easier for both you and others to know what success looks like. For example, if one of your goals is improving your cardiovascular endurance by running or biking farther than ever before in three months' time (and all other things being equal), then there's no question about whether this goal has been achieved—you either did it or didn't do it!
Portfolio management
Portfolio management is the process of ensuring that your programs and projects are aligned with organisational strategy, and meeting objectives. A portfolio manager must have a clear understanding of what each program or project contributes to the overall success of the organisation. They must also know how these programs or projects connect to one another within their portfolios.
The portfolio manager should be responsible for setting a direction for their portfolios by understanding what is currently being done at their organisation, and then defining what they want to accomplish going forward based on those observations. Once you've set this direction, you'll need to communicate it throughout your organisation so that everyone knows where they stand in relation to it--from your executive team down to individual project managers and team members on each program or project.
Resource optimisation and utilisation
A project manager is responsible for managing a team of people, and that means allocating resources to projects. It’s important to understand the difference between resource allocation and utilisation. The former refers to the assignment of a resource (i.e., software engineer) to a project; the latter refers to how effectively that person can spend his or her time on that project. Thus, when you are trying to optimize your PMO’s human capital management strategies, it is crucial that you pay attention both ways:
The best way to build a PMO is to work from the ground up.
The best way to build a PMO is to work from the ground up. Start with a small team and use templates and processes as much as possible. This will allow you to get comfortable with your new role before expanding your responsibilities and resources.
As you become more familiar with what it means to manage a project, take some time to think about what type of projects might be good for your team. You can start by looking at all the projects that are in progress or have recently been completed by other teams at your organisation, but don't limit yourself to these options; instead, look for opportunities where there's some complexity involved in their execution that could make them challenging for other teams (and thus good practice).
Conclusion
A PMO is a complex and involved process, but if you follow the steps outlined above, it can be a rewarding experience. You’ll have a better understanding of how PMOs work, which in turn will help you create one that works for your organisation.
