William M Hayden JrAdjunct Assistant Professor| University at Buffalo, School of Management, Operations Management & StrategyBuffalo, Ny, United States
Briefly. . . .
When accountants . . .educated, professional, licensed. . .go to work, they work within a system of accounting processes established and approved by the orgs CFO.
When IT/MIS professionals . . .educated, professional, licensed. . .go to work, they also work within a system of MIS/IT processes established and approved by the orgs CIO.
And so, when PM professionals. . .educated, professional, licensed, certified. . .go to work, they work within a . . . . .
Whooops…right.
Basically, it varies, with most based on “Who you get is what you get.”
Are there exceptions to this?
Of course!
Do the professionals of PMI wish to be continuing victims of “Exceptions?”
Project managers are to work within the system of project management provided, resourced, maintained, and controlled by the executive/senior management of the org. PMs * work within * that system; Exec. Mgt. is to * work on * that system.
Thanks for reading and considering my thoughts.
Cheers,
Bill
p.s. And to be clear, the PMO is NOT a solution for this process-system vacuum. Saving Changes...
Yes. Other officers care about their own goals and if you're project is not in their goals, there is a lack of interest. Even worse is when you get a culture among officers that says if you don't knock down my project, I won't knock down yours. Resources become overallocated and quality suffers. A CPO would help set up the structure and look at things from an enterprise view. Saving Changes...
William M Hayden JrAdjunct Assistant Professor| University at Buffalo, School of Management, Operations Management & StrategyBuffalo, Ny, United States
To one and all:
If you are in an organization that derives its main source of revenue from project-profits, you may be interested in one of my findings. Many such organizations budget from 15% to 30% profit in the pricing of such project-managed service. And if at the conclusion of their project they earn 3% to 5% profit, they celebrate!
Before responding, ask "Why?" at least 5 times.
Stay Healthy!
Cheers,
Bill Saving Changes...
Jeffrey ManhardtDirector, Project Management| Compass GroupWest Seneca, Ny, United States
Great dialogue on the CPO position. Thank-you Prof Hayden for keeping this topic relevant. As a newly minted CPO, I believe it is important to have these conversations and to bring the role of the CPO into the mainstream.
As Peter Moutsatsos, Chief Project Officer for Telstra, Australia's largest telecommunications company says: "When you consider the accountabilities that all other C-suite executives hold, there is no single accountable person who is on the hook for successful project delivery. The CPO can focus exclusively on successful project delivery, developing project talent, and effective project sponsorship. A CPO helps an organisation to shine the light on project delivery as a critical skill within an organisation. CPOs know that corporate strategy is achieved through the execution of successful projects. A CPO can make sure that the right people have the right tools and skills to work on the right projects that will maximize strategic outcomes. " Saving Changes...
Glen JonesSr. Project Manager| AFRY USATheodore, Al, United States
I believe there are organizations who could benefit from the CPO role. Within the energy industry, it is not uncommon for approximately 20-30% of the organizations overall budget to be dedicated to capital investments. It is also not uncommon for the C-suite to be filled with operations, legal and accounting backgrounds. In organizations with large project budgets, there is a need for a voice in the C-suite. How often has your C-suite been able to ask appropriate questions about status of the project portfolio?
That being said, if your organization undertakes projects only occasionally, it is probably not necessary, as it is overseen by the CFO, COO & CEO, and possibly the CIO if those projects are IT in nature.
The idea that the PMO will solve issues related to the C-suite are generally misguided, as the purpose of the officers is to have a voice at the table. PMOs are often lead by managers, directors, and if you are luck, a VP. Often the higher that leader's role, the more likely they will be over far more than just projects. This waters down the voice at the highest levels of the organization. Again, that need depends of the importance of projects within your organization.
Personally, I am a proponent for the CPO, when warranted. Saving Changes...
