How I Build PMOs in Less than 6-Months

Establishing a PMO at an organization can be the difference between execution and hoping for the best. Here I share some key strategies I followed in the past at mid size organizations (200 - 5000) employees to bring up a well-oiled PMO in less than 6 months.

Secure Leadership Buy-In: It is extremely important to have one C-Suite executive on board with the CIO in this initiative. Having executive leadership sponsorship will empower the PMO leader in promoting ideas throughout the organization, gaining momentum and stakeholder engagement.

Engage Experienced Stakeholders : Create a network of experienced partners throughout the organization in different areas of operations, strategy, management, leadership, and customer facing roles. This network will be able t provide valuable insights on bottom-line value proposition and ensure the PMO is helping delivering the right KPIs and organizational objectives. A team of PMO advisors are not only your ears and eyes on the ground, they are your advocates and sounding board.

Clearly Define Objectives and Scope: Before initiating the PMO setup process, clearly define the objectives and scope of the PMO. Determine the specific goals, functions, and services the PMO will provide. This clarity helps in streamlining the establishment process by focusing efforts on the most critical aspects of the PMO.

Leverage Existing Resources and Templates: To expedite the PMO setup, leverage existing resources and templates that have been proven effective in other organizations. This includes project management methodologies, frameworks, templates, and guidelines. Utilizing these resources saves time in developing PMO processes and documentation from scratch, allowing for a quicker setup.

Adopt Agile Implementation Approach: Instead of pursuing a lengthy and comprehensive implementation approach, consider adopting an agile methodology for setting up the PMO. Break the PMO establishment process into smaller, manageable phases or iterations. This allows for early delivery of some PMO services, providing immediate value to the organization while continuing to build and improve the PMO incrementally.

Keep it Simple & Organized: Start off with spreadsheets to track projects, initiatives, requests, issues, risks, objectives and organizational goals. Then build your simple, but modular and flexible internal PMO database. I typically leverage Salesforce.com to build my clients PMO backbone. The ease of application development allows for data storage and relationship building, workflows, approvals and reporting. I also have used SharePoint sites or internal Google Sites to display impact and showcase reporting. Data can be pulled out using tools like PowerBI or other integration tools, Form Assembly can be utilized for demand management and issue tracking, or other input capture throughout the organization.

Foster Collaboration and Knowledge Sharing: Promote collaboration and knowledge sharing among project managers and teams within the organization. Encourage the exchange of best practices, lessons learned, and project management expertise. This helps in establishing a culture of project management excellence and creates a fertile environment for the PMO to flourish. Our educational brown bag lunches were great ways to build competence throughout the organization and promote strategies, collaboration, knowledge and skills. 

Invest in PMO Team: A key component I have always found invaluable is investing in my project management team's training, conference attendance, internal brainstorming sessions, creating an environment of learning and innovation. It not only boosts team morale, but also keeps the team on the cutting edge of problem solving, strategic thinking, stakeholder engagement and goal achievement.

Drop me a line and let me know how it goes!