Presented by Matt Warren, Head of Corporate P3MO, Health and Safety Executive Establishing or re-energising a PMO can add real value in supporting an organisation deliver its change or operational agenda. However, to embed such a function, so that it delivers that value is no mean feat. Even once ‘embedded’, the life of many PMOs are short-lived and seldom provide the ‘value’ envisioned from the outset. Why is this? As PMO professionals it is vital we challenge our own notions or assumptions of what success looks like in a particular organisation when implementing PMOs– remember, there is no unique definition of what a PMO is or does! In my session, I discuss how organisational context and ‘cultural DNA’ can mediate the effectiveness of a PMO deployment and how a PMO needs to align itself to the core values espoused by the organisation. In addition, I shall discuss the importance of understanding the organisation’s stance, assumptions and/or pre-existing notions of what a PMO is before implementing.

1. Health and Safety
Executive
Health and Safety
Executive
Changing Buttons on
an Old Jacket
Matt Warren
Head of P3MO, Health and
Safety Executive

2. Overview
• Introduction
• Importance of culture
• The importance of language
• Setting your stall out early
• Seeking support
• How to get traction quickly
• The Journey

3. Insight
• 50% of project management offices close within 3 years
(Association for Project Mgmt)
• Since 2008, the correlated PMO implementation failure
rate is over 50% (Gartner Project Manager 2014)
• 68% of stakeholders perceive their PMOs to be
bureaucratic (2013 Gartner PPM Summit)
“One of the overriding issues fuelling these poor
stats is the fact that in many organisations, there
is a wide gap between what the PMO is doing
and what the business expects”

4. What do you think of?

5. So where do the buttons and
jackets come in?
‘Organisation Culture
and values can be
described as the threads
that keep an organisation
together’
Your Organisation
Your ‘new’ PMO
“Best practice PMO”

6. So how do you understand
culture?
*Language*
PMO
Alignment
Crucial
*Language*

7. Perception – 2 way transaction
Organisation
Shared experience,
assumptions and
values
PMO
‘Best practice’
Success!

8. Understanding culture
• Challenge your own assumptions
• Many people will have had experiences of
PMOs before, and will view your
implementation through a lens of experience
(or even social construct)
• Speak to people – get their thoughts and
ideas
• Build your allies
“People support what they help create”

9. Importance of language
• Remember, not everyone works, or has
worked in a PPM environment ( )
• Workplace language is part of the culture
itself. Where possible use it
• Use positive language

10. Set your stall out early
• Don’t let there be an information vacuum
• There are many definitions of what a
PMO is and a variety different views on
what a PMO does
• Colleagues will have preconceived ideas
– its important to reconcile that view early,
Otherwise, you will end up adding value
in ‘wrong areas’ - PMOs are all about
value

11. Set your stall out early
• Be explicit about what functions and
services the PMO will be providing

12. Seeking support
• Not everyone will be supportive from the
outset
• It will be a lonely place without the right
support
• Understanding your key stakeholders is
critical (not just seniors)
• Be prepared to challenge your own
assumptions

13. How to get traction quickly
• People believe what they see, not necessarily
what they hear!
• When ‘stuff’ is visible, this starts to make the
PMO more tangible
• Small wins/low hanging fruit - but have a plan
• Keep is simple - mature slowly

14. The Journey
Sense
and
Adapt
Define
Business
Need
Plan
Quick
Wins
Govern
Build
Capability
Evaluate
Value
The ‘challenge’

15. The Journey
Key Activity Description
Sense and adapt Understand the business (maturity,
assumptions, culture)
Define Business
Needs
Based upon business strategy and maturity
define the business needs and prioritise
services
Plan This is a change programme - have a plan
which the business is signed up to!
Quick wins Based on value and capabilities determine
what are ‘things’ you could put in place quickly
Build Capability Don’t focus on developing PMO services
without focusing on capability - as tempting as
that is*
Evaluate Value Value is key to everything. Remember value I
subjective and can change

16. Any Questions?