Making the Case for a Project Management Office

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RTM Consulting
We help consulting, professional, and support services
organizations get better at what they do
Making the Case for a PMO
Marc Lacroix
Managing Partner, RTM Consulting

Agenda
 Introduction
 What is the Right PMO forYou?
 Making the Case for a PMO
 Getting Started
 Wrap Up

Objectives
 Understand the value of having a PMO
 Learn about the different variations to PMOs, and which is
right for your organization
 Describe the costs and benefits associated with having a
PMO, and the associated ROI
 Learn key considerations when getting a PMO started

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Marc Lacroix
 FormerlyVP of Consulting & Professional Services for Convergys
◦ Brought in to help launch Consulting and Professional Services Group, a global unit
◦ Led the North American practice, approx. $100M in revenue with a CAGR of 22%
◦ Developed and managed the common SI methodology for the Global practice, deployed to
over 1,000 practitioners
 Previously Sr. Director in charge of Professional and Customer Services for
Cygent, Inc.
◦ Cygent, a privately-held software company, grew to 200 employees and approx. $15M in
revenues and was eventually acquired
◦ Led Professional Services, Education &Training and Support Services (Help Desk) units
 Previously a Consulting Manager with Ernst &Young (now Cap Gemini)
◦ Led process improvement and IT implementation engagements for telecommunications,and
financial services clients
◦ Key contributor to the continuous improvement of the Accelerated Software Development
(ASD) methodology for custom software implementation engagements
 MBA from the University of Florida; BA in Economics fromWake Forest
University
 Managing Partner
◦ Specializes in consulting/PS strategy and operations, delivery methodologies and
practices and professional services automation (PSA)

Agenda
 Introduction
 Getting Started
 Wrap Up

Why Do We Need a PMO?
“Our PMs can do this in
the margins”
The work requires a
comprehensive vision and
effort is not trivial
“We can dedicate some
PMs temporarily to get
this done”
PMO scope is not all
project based, and
requires continuous
attention
“Our customers want less
project management, not
more”
A PMO makes project
management more efficient
and effective, and…
…Project Management should be ~15% of project budgets
Point Counterpoint

Global vs. Regional?
The best practice is to have
BOTH!!
• Maximize standardization
• Pooled resources
• Greater scale
• Closer to the delivery
• Localized adaptations
• Better adoption

COE vs. Project Manager Organization?
 Smaller, dedicated
team
 Dotted line
relationship to PMs
 Usually in the PS
Operations team
 Houses all the Project
Managers
 Typically, its own
practice in a matrix
organization
Center of Expertise PM Organization
• More common approach
• Easier to establish
• Less disruptive to the business
• More commonly found in larger or
highly “matrix’ed” organizations
• Depends on org. structure

External and Internal Focus?
Some organizations consider leveraging their internal PMO
or Program Management function to support and enable a
client delivery PMO
A PM process is a PM process … a PM tool is a PM tool,
right?!
Wrong
Client facing work is distinctly different than internal work.The
client facing PMO should take priority in order to get the value for
the delivery organization and the needed impact for the client
Stay focused on establishing a client delivery PMO

Agenda
 Introduction
 Getting Started
 Wrap Up

TSIA Findings
Observation
An all-important
metric for all PSOs:
performance
against planned
billable hours
Overrun performance
is substantially better
for projects that have
a PMO in support
Those without are
TWICE as likely to
see an overrun of
billable hours
Source: Technology Services Industry Association 2014 Project Performance

TSIA Findings
Observation
For some companies,
this will be the most
important impact of
PMOs.
Look at the HUGE
benefit of PMOs from
a C-Sat perspective
… ¾ of projects with
a PMO gain a
satisfied rating vs.
about ½ that do not.
PMOs in support
clearly increase C-Sat
performance
Source: Technology Services Industry Association 2014 Project Performance

 Focus on project margin improvement
 Determine your project portfolio revenue value
 Use the 14% parameter fromTSIA findings as proof point for
correlation
Making the Business Case
 ‘Rule ofThumb’ for PMO coverage: 1 fte per 100 billable staff (or
0.5% - 1.0% of delivery staff)
 Average loaded cost of $120k/year for each PMO resource. This can
vary for your organization.
Measuring the Costs
Defining Benefits

ROI for the PMO

Agenda
 Introduction
 Getting Started
 Wrap Up

Have a Well-Defined Charter
• Establish and manage the
project delivery methodology
and supporting tools
• Provide reporting and
analytics on project portfolio
performance
• Perform project reviews and
audits
• Provide direct support for
project managers on complex
projects
• Get involved in ‘at risk’
projects and help to save
them
• Monitor the education and
knowledge development of
the project managers
The scope of the PMO can be more impactful than many understand

Get Results Early
 PMOs can be build incrementally. No need for a “big
bang” approach
 Early areas of focus:
ProjectTemplates Portfolio Dashboard
Tools Metrics
 Demonstrate early value. Isolate specific projects for
application of practices and governance
 Try RTMC’s PMO QuickStart

Make if Work forYour Organization
Your Project
Management best
practices and tools
Your unique customer
and project
characteristics
Your PMO
synthesize
adapt
prioritize

Agenda
 Introduction
 Getting Started
 Wrap Up

Wrap Up
 Not all PMOs are structured similarly, but they
all deliver benefits.
 Survey data shows that PMOs significantly
increase the likelihood of projects staying within
budget.
 The ROI for a PMO is compelling, even with
conservative assumptions.
 When getting started, have a clear charter, build
incrementally and make sure it works for your
delivery practitioners.

Contact Information
RTM Consulting
We help consulting, professional, and support services
organizations get better at what they do
RTM Consulting, Inc.
855.786.2555
info@rtmconsulting.net
www.rtmconsulting.net

Making the Case for a Project Management Office

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