PMO best practices to maximise the value of a project portfolio
Particularly in this day and age, the role of a project management office extends beyond the realms of project delivery and portfolio coordination. Indeed, a PMO functions as a strategic asset; guiding the organisation in streamlining project processes, elevating success rates, training team members and, of course driving strategic value across project portfolios. So, let’s explore PMO best practices to maximise the value of a project portfolio.
PMO best practices
Align the PMO with the organisation’s strategy, aims & goals: aligning the PMO with the organisation’s strategic objectives forms the foundation of the PMO’s operations and allows all projects and resources to be focused on strategic objectives; increasing the efficiency of the PMO.
Management & mitigation of risks: risk management and risk mitigation is an incredibly vital part of project management and therefore one of the most important and effective PMO best practices. PMOs need to proactively identify potential risks at inception and planning, in order to plan appropriate responses. What’s more, as projects progress, the PMO should also have an overview of said projects and any potential risks that may crop up along the way.
Learning & development: PMOs should also have a focus on training and the continuous learning & development of project teams in order to get the very best results from and for employees. PMO teams who have an opportunity to learn and grow within an organisation are not only much more likely to stay within an organisation long term, but are also typically highly motivated and much more productive; contributing positively to many aspects of the project management office and the organisation as a whole.
Regular reporting: reporting, reporting, reporting! Regular reporting is a fundamental practice in a well-operated and high performing PMO; allowing team members and key stakeholders the opportunity to understand, analyse and evaluate the success of projects within a portfolio or portfolios.
A summary
Essentially, PMO best practices revolve around:
- Strategic organisational alignment
- Risk management
- L&D
- Reporting
All of these hinge on good communication, team and stakeholder engagement, increased productivity, and simply having access to key project metrics all of which are possible with Sycamore Gap’s pre-built PMO solution; created to increase productivity, improve communication between team members, improve processes and automate reporting.
To find out more about our PMO, please book a free demo or contact us to find out more.
Or, please consider signing up to our email newsletter for monthly updates, news and PMO tips & advice.