Is there a value in having an ongoing PMO or should it be set up for a limited time to solve a specific need?

I wrote an article last year, “Is there a place for a Project management office (PMO) in agile organizations?” I still believe that there is a value in having an ongoing PMO provided it is empowered correctly. 

I read an article recently that listed that the lifespan of an average PMO is about two years. And most PMOs struggle to deliver value. What is your experience? Is it true? 

I recently consulted on a large digital transformation program for a large healthcare provider. I observed that a number of their initiatives were off-track and failed to deliver the promised benefits. In my assessment, this is because they do not have a central PMO to manage and direct various initiatives. Most initiatives are driven by individual towers and business units. Again, in my opinion, because of no central command structure, there was a lack of clarity for product managers and scrum masters. Priorities were constantly changing, impacting delivery and above all causing employee burnout.

In my 30+ years of experience, organizations that have a clear vision and mature governance processes are more likely to meet both their long and short strategic goals. And the PMO office is the entity that provides the governance processes so that:

1. Organizations can maintain focus– and prioritize initiatives that align with their strategic goals. PMO helps to hold Product Owners’ feet to the fire, i.e., ensuring that they only pitch initiatives that are most realizable and are finished once started. 
2. Ensure issues, decisions, and external dependencies are resolved in a timely manner.
3. Above all, enhances visibility as it provides a bridge between the project/product team and the senior leadership of the organization. 

I continue to believe that PMOs were and will continue to play an important role in helping organizations realize their strategic goals. Because my experience has proven time and again that organizations that do not have a strong PMO continue to struggle to deliver their projects and create value for their firm. For me, the most important role of PMO is, that it drives ACCOUNTABILITY.

Have you seen any instances where projects turn from “Green” to “Red” status overnight? What action did you or your organization’s leadership team take? Was there any ACCOUNTABILITY? If yes, where did it rest? If you are observing these patterns in your company, you must raise alarm bells to your leadership team.

I believe that it is the responsibility of executives and board members to establish an incentive system where the project sponsor and director are rewarded for the success of the project and at the same time held accountable for its failure to deliver promised benefits. 

The funny thing is that the majority of executives either fail to investigate the causes of these failures or fail to learn from them. Why? The only conclusion that I can come up with is that they may believe that the causes of failure are not systemic and will not repeat. But as I’ve learned the hard way, they do not go away on their own. Having a mature PMO will force that root causes for failures are investigated and learnings are converted into actionable processes and instilled into the fabric of future project/product delivery processes.

Bottom line, having an effective PMO means, aligning prioritization of projects to your strategic vision, improved transparency, timely decision making, constant goal post, resulting in higher employee morale and lower employee burnout/attrition, and above all, achieving your business goals. 

Let me know what you think?