PMO's Strategy Implementation
PMO's Strategy Implementation
PMO's Strategy Implementation
The Impact of
PMO
S
on Strategy
Implementation
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
54%
46%
15%
15%
44%
47%
19%
12%
Enterprise/Organization-wide/Strategic/Corporate/Portfolio/Global PMO:
Highest-level PMO often responsible for alignment of project and program work to strategy
% who have this PMO in their organization:
Primary Functions Performed (top 3 listed with % responding):
39%
30%
25%
20%
35%
41%
24%
Strategic Planning:
14%
46%
16%
11%
31%
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
FullPotential
Potential
Full
33%
Figure 2: Percent reporting their PMO has fully
realized its potential to contribute business
value to the organization.
77%
57%
Portfolio
Reporting
65%
42%
Strategic
Alignment
EPMO
62%
43%
58%
35%
Project
Confirmatgiiocn Alignment
of Strate s
w/Strategic
Prioritie
Objectives
Other PMO Type
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
StrategicExecution
Execution
Strategic
November 2013
LowHighPerforming Performing
PMOs
PMOs
Figure 4: High Performers are four times more
likely than Low Performers to be rated better
than their peers on strategy execution.
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
Create an
organizational
culture of project
management
Continually
evaluate
PMO
performance
Evolve and
improve through
knowledge
management and
change management
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
62%
45%
32%
Project
identification
& prioritization
21%
Strategy
formulation
In some cases, there is a link between strong PMOs and their access to
top-level management: high performers are almost twice as likely to report
directly to the chief executive27 percent compared with 15 percent of
low performers.
Forrester Researchs 2011 report Are You Ready to Transform Your PMO?
also demonstrates the need for a stronger linkage between the PMO and
senior executives: PMOs that have been able to bring change report
directly into senior management. The most successful PMO leaders we
interviewed report to C-level executives, which gives the PMO authority
to enforce changes as well as accountability for supporting practices that
drive company success.7
PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
77%
High-Performing
PMOs
54%
Low-Performing
PMOs
Staying true to the goals of a project or program has always been a key
element of success, but scope creep and new priorities not aligned to
strategic goals can skew projects off-course. It is therefore important for
PMOs to evaluate performance, be self-critical and assess work in the
context of the organizations overall success. This consequently reinforces
the business value of the PMO and helps senior managers understand the
contribution being made.
PMIs research supports this approach: three-quarters of PMOs carry
out fundamental checks by tracking their progress and filing reports
either weekly or monthly. Key performance criteria for these reports
tend to cover a variety of critical components including project delivery
versus schedule evaluations (74 percent) as well as customer feedback
evaluations (67 percent) and cost reviews (63 percent).
Overall, high-performing PMOs are routinely involved in results
monitoring and assessment (Figure 6). Moreover, 44 percent of highperforming PMOs measure themselves by criteria other than simply
project metrics compared to only 32 percent of low performers who do so.
How successful PMOs evaluate their progress is evident from the methods
used by high performers:
zz Conduct project owner feedback evaluations: 61 percent of high
performers routinely do this compared to 33 percent of low
performers
zz Seek feedback from other stakeholders: again, 60 percent of high
performers do this, whereas only 41 percent of low performers
engage with their stakeholders.
zz Seek feedback from customers: while only 58 percent of low
performers sought such crucial feedback, 76 percent of high
performers considered this as part of their evaluation process.
High performers are also far more likely to make basic evaluations of
the project. Eighty-six percent looked at project delivery versus the
original schedule (compared with 68 percent of low performers) and cost
versus the original budget (74 percent, compared with 58 percent of low
performers).
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
information they need and only that information with enough time to
make course corrections and ensure that the initiative gets delivered in
terms of both impact and timing.9
High-performing PMOs know the importance of assessing their
performance continually. Assessing performance and reporting out
the results reminds senior management of the value the PMO brings
to the organization. Reporting on project-specific metrics is standard,
but successful PMOs go beyond this by assessing project quality and by
soliciting feedback from key stakeholders. And they do not stop there.
They use the information they collect to continuously improve their
practices, which encourages efficiencies and drives successful strategy
execution.
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
Continual
Feedback
PMO
C-Level
Figure 7: Success comes from ensuring continual feedback between those formulating
strategy and those implementing strategy.
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
Conclusion
PMOs are still maturing.
High-performing PMOsthose with the greatest force behind the
completion of successful projects are perceived as an integral part
of strategy implementation. They are given a set of specific priorities
and are tasked with making projects work in a way that complements
business goals. They have support, both financial and in the form of skilled
employees, and are asked to improve with each project by learning from
their mistakes. Our research confirms that PMOs equipped with a high
level of decision-making authority, as well as influence at the C-suite level,
are much more effective than those operating at a lower level and lacking
the proper resources.
Effective organizations are often those with confident PMOs that are
self-critical and prepared to hear feedbackpositive and negativefrom
stakeholders, and that are keen to act on advice to continually improve
the processes that underpin success in project and program management
and therefore drive business results.
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
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PMIs Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: The Impact of PMOs on Strategy Implementation
November 2013
References
1 PMIs Global Executive Council is a community of decision makers, subject
matter experts and influencers who believe that shared learning, along with
program and project management, can bring about real change and improve
business results. The Council contains representatives from approximately
80 globally recognized and influential organizations, ranging from financial
institutions and IT to aerospace, defense and energy.
2 Deloitte Consulting. Transforming the Program Management Office into a
Results Management Office. 2009.
3 High-performing PMOs are those that achieve 80 percent or more projects on
time, on budget and meeting original goals.
4 Low-performing PMOs are those that achieve 60 percent or fewer projects on
time, on budget and meeting original goals.
5 APQC (American Productivity & Quality Center). Effective Project Management
Offices: An APQC Best Practices Study. 2013.
6 Economist Intelligence Unit. Why Good Strategies Fail: Lessons for the C-Suite.
2013.
7 Forrester Research. Are You Ready to Transform Your PMO? 2011.
8 The Boston Consulting Group. Changing Change Management, A Blueprint
That Takes Hold. 2012.
9 The Boston Consulting Group. Strategic Initiative Management: The PMO
Imperative. 2013.
10 Forrester Research. Map Your Journey to the Future with Next-Generation
Portfolio Management. 2013.
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