Setting Up a PMO: All that You Need to Know

A project management office (PMO) is a framework that defines a set of practices, standards or objectives for a particular project. They involve in the designing UX/UI, development and security testing for the smooth operation and delivery of a project. It can either be an individual running it or a team depending on the size and scope of the project.

Types of PMO

Before hopping on the PMO Set Up process, knowing the various roles that PMOs serve is critical. The roles of a PMO also depend on the organizational structure which would determine what type of PMO is needed. PMOs can be categorized into three segments:

a)    Supporting PMO

Their role is to provide support to the project managers in various forms whether its availability of information or any other expertise required and is less involved in controlling the executing the project.

b)    Controlling PMO

These are the types of PMO who supervise the governance of the project. They make sure that the project is conforming to all compliances and deliverables by providing a set of methodologies for implementation and ensure these processes are followed.

c)    Directive PMO

These PMOs engage directly with the project managers, understand the requirement on the root level, define step by step procedures, share domain expertise and provide supportive tools on various fronts to achieve the desired output.

PMO Set Up

Now since we have grasped a background of what and how PMOs operate, let’s get to the layout of a PMO system.

Step 1: Assess

The first step in this process would be to understand the requirement of the assignment and also check the status of existing projects and protocols which are in place. There are a lot of aspects involved in the development of a project which include people, processes, tools etc., so a thorough understanding of these is of utmost significance to address any gap in the system before beginning any work.

Step 2: Strategize

Once the first step is completed, it is time now to build a plan of execution.

a)  Work with the stakeholders and plan the sponsorship.

b) Document each and every process starting from any process or tools required for addressing the loopholes in the ongoing operations.

c)  List down the apparatus which is essential for the upcoming tasks and prepare teams to distribute the jobs as per their domain skills.

d)  Set up goals, provide the necessary coaching to project managers where required, evaluate the risks, and have a quality assessment policy in place.

Step 3: Implement

After you have built the roadmap for the project deliverables, we move on to design, development, and execution of the plan of action. While developing the project, it’s important to keep in mind of the end user experience and interface. UI/UX design is one of the important skills project managers should possess which would give them the ability to be involved in all designing and development phases, application security testing and see through that the ultimate output does not lack anything.

Step 4: Revise and Conclude

PMOs have to be constantly engaged in various facets of project management and it is a good practice to review every process before and do the required application security testing before concluding to ensure a flawless outcome.