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Developing Business Value Through the PMO

Marisa Silva, Senior PPM ConsultantWellingtone Project Management

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68%

of organizations

have a PMO

Source: PMI’S 2016 Pulse Of The Profession®: The High Cost Of Low Performance

Has your PMO realised its full potential

in contributing business value to the

organization?

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The paradox of value in PMOs

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PMOs are suffering an identity

crisis

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Capture

value

• How is value

perceived by

our

stakeholders?

Deliver

value

• Which

services

should we

deploy to add

value?

Measure

value

• How can we

know if we are

delivering

value?

Communicate value

Value lifecycle

How can we demonstrate we are adding value?

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Different stakeholders have

different perceptions

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Role Sound familiar?

Team Member“My priorities are changing all the time. I don’t know what to do

next”

Project Manager “I don’t have time for this. I have a project to run”

Resource Manager“I don’t know if we will have enough people available for the next 3

months”

Sponsor“You’re asking me to approve projects with no clear business case

or priority”

Functional

Manager

“I don’t have visibility over what my team is doing in the next

month”

CxO Level“It’s not easy to understand where our annual budget is being

invested on”Results-

centric

Project-

centric

…and different pains

Adapted from Powersteering, 2011

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Start With Why

“What’s in it for me?”

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One does not destroy what

one helps to build

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Consistency

Quality

We are what we repeatedly do.

Excellence then, is not an act,

but an habit.Aristotle

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Transparency and Visibility

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Talent Management

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Predictability

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Agility Agile >

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Organizational learning

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Alignment

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Strategy

Planning

Strategy

Delivery

PMOs are a communicating bridge

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Adding value is a journey

• Project requests

captured

• PM Methodology

•Governance defined

•QA Reviews

• Simple cost tracking and

scheduling

• Few but meaningful

reports

•Capacity management

•Methodology tailoring

• Training and coaching

•Detailed cost tracking

and scheduling

•Health checks

•Additional and more

sophisticated reports

•Capacity forecasting

• Portfolio planning

• Stage Gates

• Benefits realization

management

•Multiple what-if scenarios

• Predictive cost and schedule

management

• Integrated dashboards

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Resistance

Is this how your PMs

are reacting?

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Which would you rather drive

everyday?

Source: Powersteering, 2011

Costly and complex to deploy

Extensive training and

maintenance

Requires an army to support

Overkill for most situations

Cheap and easy to get started

Limited capability

Doesn’t scale

Quickly outgrown

Versatile

Cost effective

Easy to operate and maintain

‘Just right’ for daily users

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The world has become complex

Coffee in 1996 Coffee in 2016

Source: Truth Facts

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Different context requires different

methods

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S

M

L

Complexity

Controls

One size doesn’t fit all

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You can’t manage

what you can’t

measure

Less is more

Work with your stakeholders

Set baselines and targets

Plan-Do-Check-Act

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Key Performance IndicatorsOrganizational Drivers Examples of KPIs

Value to Business

• Planned ROI vs actual ROI

• Planned benefits vs realized benefits

• % of projects with robust business cases

• % of projects aligned with strategic objectives

• % of projects stopped or cancelled

• % of projects to run the business / grow the business / transform the business

• € at risk

Productivity and Efficiency

• # of days from project conception to project start

• % of resource utilization

• % of billable hours

• # of FTEs by project

• # of projects by project manager

Project Delivery

• % of projects on time

• % of projects on budget

• # of high risks active by month

• # of issues escalated by month

• # of change requests by project

PMO Performance

• Satisfaction scoring from key stakeholders

• % of projects following the established PM Methodology

• # of project health checks conducted

• # of workshops facilitated

• # of hours of training provided

• % of certified PMs

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Would you recommend the PMO?

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Pic or didn’t happen

• Report periodically on the progress of KPIs

• Report the effectiveness of the PMO itself

• Establish regular checkpoints with the PMO Sponsor

• Advertising the PMO’s achievements

• Celebrate success!

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Semantics matter

From:

Compliance

Communication

Resources

Control

Failure

To:

Engagement

Conversation

People

Oversight

Learning

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So…what does a high-performing

PMO look like? They work with stakeholders to understand their needs and expectations (what is

value to them)

They deliver services which enable organizations not only to do the things right

but also to do the right things (how value is provided)

They see maturity as a journey, and recognize that each project is different

They measure progress and performance, including their own (how they know

they are getting there)

They communicate, communicate, communicate (how they demonstrate value)

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Lead by example

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Make it

simple

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Make it fun

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Make it sustainable

CostTime

Scope

Planet Profit

Short-term

Long-termPeople

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OUR PROJECTS ARE OUR FUTURE.

LET’S MAKE IT A GOOD ONE.