In this episode, we will look at the different ways in which PMOs or project management offices can deliver value to their respective organizations. In this context, we will look at the various sources of potential value that PMOs can tap into to not only justify their existence but also to be a strategic part of their organizations.

The Value of the PMO

Most research organizations like Gartner, Forrester, and others have been saying for a while now that organizations are increasingly looking at their PMOs as the primary vehicle to help them execute their strategies through execution of projects and programs.

But, here is the issue. Despite the enormous promise that PMOs hold for organizations’ success, many PMOs struggle to justify their value. The fact is that a PMO has an associated overhead. And this overhead is due to the staffing of the PMO, the investment in the formulation and institution of its processes, implementation of various types of PMO tools, etc. So, unless this overhead is justified in terms of a PMO’s contribution to the delivery of successful business outcomes and benefits, the overhead always sticks out like a sore thumb to senior management.

So, in this episode we will highlight four sources of value that PMOs can tap into to improve their visibility and perception in the organization.

But first let’s revisit the definition of a PMO or a Project or Program Management Office. A PMO exists to enable the successful delivery of projects and programs. These projects and programs ideally should be derived from an organization’s overall strategy and therefore should be aligned to the organization’s strategy and goals. So, if the PMO can deliver those strategic projects and programs successfully then a PMO can be considered to provide business value to the overall enterprise.

This needs repetition as we will further expound on this concept later. So, again, if the PMO can deliver an organization’s strategic projects and programs successfully then a PMO can be considered to be living up to its promise of delivering business value to the organization.

Based on this concept and foundation, we can say that for a PMO to deliver business value, it must build four specific capabilities. They are



* Ability to execute projects and programs successfully

* Delivery of tangible business outcomes and benefits

* Ability to work on strategic projects and programs

* Ability to handle an organization’s demand and investment functions.



In the remaining podcast episode, we will explore these four sources of value in further detail.

Ability to Execute

In the context of what we are discussing now, the ability of a PMO to execute refers to starting, executing, monitoring, delivering, and closing of projects and programs. This ability, therefore, touches most of the areas that are covered by the traditional project management methodologies. A PMO’s ability to execute therefore is its use of appropriate PM methodologies and processes to deliver the projects and programs within scope, budget, and schedule. We know that the Project Management communities globally have always struggled to deliver projects within those boundaries. So, in the case of Project Management Institute’s (or PMI’s) PMBOK methodology, the PMO’s ability to execute could cover all 47 PM processes that are covered under the 5 process groups of the methodology. This again would depend on the PMO’s type but for argument’s sake the assumption is that it’s a full-fledged PMO.

Although a PMO’s execution ability hinges upon a number of factors a...