How many project management offices have you been involved in or led? How many, in your opinion, have been successful? How many have served their purpose, helped the organization, properly equipped the projects managers, and positioned themselves for long term ongoing project successes?
I was reading about a 2012 survey indicating that 87% of organizations now have some form of project management office (PMO). That was an increase of 40 percentage points from a similar survey in 2000. Yes, most organizations now have PMOs. But are they effective? According to an April 2010 survey that I conducted of project managers and PM-related staff, the answer is no. 58% of respondents indicated that they did not feel their PMO was effective. Only 34% said that their PMO had good repeatable processes, procedures and templates in place to help them do their jobs well. And a full 47% indicated that their company’s senior leadership had no visible involvement in the PMO. One of my personal strong beliefs – backed by seeing failures where this was not the case – is that the senior leadership needs to back the PMO, have buy-in to the PMO and support it in order for it to succeed.
I was reading about a 2012 survey indicating that 87% of organizations now have some form of project management office (PMO). That was an increase of 40 percentage points from a similar survey in 2000. Yes, most organizations now have PMOs. But are they effective? According to an April 2010 survey that I conducted of project managers and PM-related staff, the answer is no. 58% of respondents indicated that they did not feel their PMO was effective. Only 34% said that their PMO had good repeatable processes, procedures and templates in place to help them do their jobs well. And a full 47% indicated that their company’s senior leadership had no visible involvement in the PMO. One of my personal strong beliefs – backed by seeing failures where this was not the case – is that the senior leadership needs to back the PMO, have buy-in to the PMO and support it in order for it to succeed.
