Is Your PMO Set Up for Success?

Rob Saxon is a Project Management Professional, Certified Information Systems Auditor and a trained Six Sigma Specialist. Rob is currently developing methods to integrate project management into previously unexplored areas of business.

  PMO  

Most large companies and many service-oriented companies have set up one or more Project Management Offices. A PMO is usually a small group of project management professionals tasked with activities that facilitate or support a portfolio of projects. The tasks the project management office are faced with can be daunting, so it may be helpful to keep a few basic tenets in mind. To set up your PMO for success, your best bet is to play it S.A.F.E. What does that acronym mean?

Strong executive sponsorship--Your PMO needs internal leadership that knows the value of the project management office and will go to bat for the team. Remember, if your executive is not clear on the value, it is your job to educate him or her.

Advocates in the business--Projects are ultimately launched for customers, and the PMO team needs to have a very close relationship with customers to ensure success. In short, you need to make sure that your customers notice the help that the project managers, and by extension the PMO, is providing.

Facilitating Technology--One of the most tragic time sinks for the project manager is administrative tasks. Things like status reporting, risk & issues logging, and budget reporting are all extremely important to project success. A PMO should strive to implement technologies that grease the project engine and let PMs know that the information that …

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