The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study Analysis The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study was assigned for this class to provide an overview of the challenges faced by management in the development and deployment of a PMO in an existing company. Based on the case study, respond to the questions below incorporating not only the course reading materials, but any outside research that may be relevant. Be sure to cite the authority for any research included in your response.
1. What were the changes in AtekPC's business environment that caused the company to introduce a PMO? Based on your assigned readings and research do these appear to be appropriate reasons for developing a PMO? Why or why not? Limit your response to one page. 2. Draft a program charter for AtekPC utilizing your reading assignments, outside research, and the guidelines and model charter linked to this week's lecture and attached below). Limit your responses to 3 pages, not including end notes, supporting documentation and refererences. Submit the completed document using the Attachments tool on this page. Please be sure to include your own name in the filename, last name first then first initial (for example:doej_assignX.doc) and in the text of the document, so your instructor/facilitator always knows whose submission he/she is reading.
RUNNING HEADER: THE ATEKPC PROJECT MANAGEMENT OFFICE CASE
The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study Analysis
Lecture Two: Managing Structuring and Functioning PMO
Change
Timecca Warren-Cordero Professor Virginia A. Greiman, B.S., M.Ed., J.D., LL.M. March 25, 2012
Assignment two for week two of the AD646 Program Management and Planning online course, conducted at Boston University is to answer specific questions as well as develop a project charter related to The AtekPC Project Management Office Case
Table of Cont ents:
Study. Through the assignment I will be enhancing my knowledge of PMO as well as incorporating course reading materials and academic resources.
Quest
ion One: Challenges of AtekPC ………………………………………………………Page 2 Question Two: Project Charter ……………………………………………………………...Page 3 References …………………………………………………………………………………..Page 6
AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study Analysis The changes in AtekPC‟s business environment that cause the company to introduce a Project Management Office was to address the following issues: “[…]aligning strategic business directions with IT resources[…], “[…]cost pressure […]”, “a period of consolidation”, “[…] new markets for growth opportunities”, “[…] transition from a growth industry to that of a maturing industry”, “[…] manage projects more efficiently and effectively […]”, “[…] the quality of the work that we did on projects could be improved”, “[…] handle multiple projects at one time”, “[…]cross-functional integration”, and to […]provide standardization in managing these projects and gain improvements in planning and performance of initiatives (McFarlean, Keil, & Hupp, 2007)”. Based on my assigned readings and research these do appear to be appropriate reasons for developing a PMO. “A project management office (PMO) is an organizational unit used to centralized and coordinate the management of projects. A PMO oversees the management of projects, programs, or a combination of both. (Kanabar & Warburton, 2008, p. 15)”. The PMO has various functions in which supports project managers that are detailed in PMBOK, p11, these functions are aligned with the reasons in which AtekPC has developed a PMO. In sum, PMOs are “ […] dedicated to improving the practice and results of project management (Kendal & Rollins, 2003, p. 7)” While the PMO may indeed help towards the goals and objects of the organization the implementing of the PMO can be challenging. “Unfortunately, there is little shared understanding of the challenges of implementing a PMO. Therefore, managers and their organizations have inadequate guidance to help them identify and overcome the obstacles they are likely to encounter (Greiman, B.S., M.Ed., J.D., LL.M, 2012).”
AtekPC Headquarters, Information Technology Department Program Charter 1. Program Name and Sponsorship: Program Name: AtekPC headquarters, Information Technology; Program Sponsor: CEO, CIO, DAD, DPMSG 2. Contact and Historical Information: CEO(not mentioned in case study), Senior Vice President; Chief Information Officer, John Strider; Director Application Development, Richard Steinberg; Director Project Management Support Group, Larry Field Historical Information: Exhibit 1 AtekPC Information Technology Organizational Chart
1984 ATekPC founded,10/2006, 3/3/2007 update new PMO 3. Introduction: In the past IT projects were handled internally by the current staff members carrying project management responsibilities. The benefit for a program management has been recognized as changes and new challenges within the IT industry forced AtekPC to focus on IT improvements, efficiency, resource utilization, cost management , consulting, mentoring, and training. 4. Program Organization and Governance: Executive sponsor: Senior Vice President- weekly or bi-weekly project reviews Program Sponsor: Larry Field, Director of the Project Management Support Group; Richard Steinberg, Director of Application Development; Steven Gardner, Manufacturing Systems Manager – support the PMO in providing necessary resources Project Management Office Owner: John Strider, Chief Information Office Program Management Office Program Manager: Mark Nelson, PMO Director – project management coaching, training, and mentoring Program Management Office Team Member: Linda Star, Lead Analyst – use consistent PM methods across IT. *PMO roles and responsibilities (Kendal and Rollins, 2003 p.295-300) 5. Program Scope: To provide formal program management office, which incorporates PMO value driven mythologies, while being mindful of the current culture of AtekPC. Keep coordination and effective standards of programs performed across functional units in order for AtekPC to meet its revenue, expense, investments and ROI goals (Kendal & Rollins, 2003, p. 157). 6. Program Goal: “[…]the PMO must help executives to directly link their strategic planning process to project management across the organization (Kendal & Rollins, 2003, p. 53)”. To provide “IT improvements in project performance, efficiency, and resource utilization to enterprise improvements in cost management and corporate capability to launch products (McFarlean, Keil, & Hupp, 2007)”. To receive the support of all senior executives through authority of the value of the PMO services. 7. Program Objectives: “- managing shared resources across all projects administered by the PMO; Identifying and developing project management methodology, best practices, and
standards; Coaching, mentoring, training, and oversight; Monitoring compliance with project management standards, policies, procedures, and templates, via project audits; Developing and managing project policies, procedures, templates, and other shared documentation (organizational process assets) [schedule base]; and Coordinating communication across projects.” (PMI, 2008 p.11) 8. Program Boundaries, Constraints and Assumptions: The PMO will need to prove itself in order to earn the resources they want, implementing the right form of PMO, PMO not receiving the support of all senior management at AtekPC, lack of authority of the PMO, different expectations of the PMO responsibilities across the organization. Cultural resistance to PMO, no standardization, coordination with senior management. 9. Deliverables: PMO charter, “[…] compile and publish its findings and recommendations to all function units (Kendal & Rollins, 2003)” 10. Stakeholder expectations: To provide standardization in managing large complex projects and to gain improvements in planning and performance of initiatives. For the PMO to prove its value. 11. Milestones (not specified within case study) however to be done with IT projects at a shorter time then without an implemented PMO; 12. Finance and High level budgets: 2006 sales of $1.9 billion, “[…]should be able to return to the sponsoring organization a minimum of 10% of the total fiscal year project portfolio budget in the first year […] (Kendal & Rollins, 2003, p. 29)” 13. Assumptions: implied authority, no changes in the project scope, all needed information is within the project charter, project priorities are infrequent (Kendal & Rollins, 2003). 14. Program risks: PMO responsibilities were not clear, expanding the scope of PMO responsibilities, minimal acceptance of the PMO, shortage of PMO expert resources, unforeseen value/savings, lack of authority, reducing the capabilities of someone else‟s work for the advancement of the PMO; PMO resources were acquired at the expense of other operational teams, no clear purpose
PMO Challenges Posted by erictse2 on February 11, 2012
The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study was assigned for this class to provide an overview of the challenges faced by management in the development and deployment of a PMO in an existing company. Based on
the case study respond to the questions below incorporating not only the course reading materials, but any outside research that may be relevant. Be sure to cite the authority for any research included in your response. What were the changes in AtekPC’s business environment that caused the company to introduce a PMO? Based on your assigned readings and research, do these appear to be appropriate reasons for developing a PMO? Why or why not? “One might be cost reduction. Another motivation to get better on projects would be that we have to get more creative, adaptive, and agile in launching new products. “ [1] “The PC industry was changing, and AtekPC was engaged in dealing with dramatic pressure from larger competitors such as HP, Dell, and Lenovo. To compete in a changing industry in which consolidation was occurring, AtekPC had implemented a corporate Planning Office. Recognizing the role that IT would likely play in enabling AtekPC to respond to the industry pressures, the senior vice-president had supported the creation of a PMO within IT. “ [1] Somewhat true but not sufficient Here are some other reasons of why we should have PMO. (of course it cannot represent everything) In mature organizations, the PMO is the focal point for improvement and enhancement in project management through the implementation of the enterprise-oriented functions. Enterprise-oriented functions are intended to bolster the overall capability of the organization for long-range benefits. The enterprise functions will provide the long-term stability and backbone for the project management success. This mission is met by establishing, and maintaining, a project historical database, by developing and disseminating project management best practices, by providing training in all project management knowledge areas, and by providing visibility for the value of project management to the organization. [2] Distinguish between project-focused and enterprise-oriented duties of a PMO? The specific duties of a PMO were typically divided into two categories: project-focused and enterprise-oriented. Project focused responsibilities such as consulting, mentoring, and training were services that enabled the success of individual projects. On the other hand, enterprise responsibilities addressed services that might improve all projects such as portfolio management, PM standards, methods, and tools, and project performance archives. [1] PMO’s are more effective and can better impact the bottom line, when they are operating at the corporate enterprisewide strategic level, rather than at the departmental level. Departmentally based Project Management offices are successful in their own silos but not accepted outside their span of influence, and therefore, are unable to influence the organization as a whole. This is because many project management offices started off from a grass roots approach. [3] A PMO that is organizationally based versus departmentally based is more likely to get executive support. After all, project management should not be a departmental strategy; it should be an organizational strategy. The Enterprise PMO will oversee the management of all strategically aligned projects. [3]
Describe the primary issues faced by AteKPC management under the two organizational modelsthat were under consideration for the PMO. Explain the limitations of each of these models.
Models and Characteristics
PMO-heavy
PMO-light
Full staff of project managers who assumed responsibility for the management of all IT projects.
minimal staff of experts who worked through internal project managers to perform the responsibilities of the PMO
acquisition of project management experts, either from internal or external sources, and used these resources to manage projects under the direction of the PMO.
This model focused on the development of the skills of internal project managers who were not formally connected with the PMO
In the extreme version of PMO-light, all projects operated outside of the PMO under existing
Extreme no project would operate outside the management and direct control of the PMO.
organizational controls, and the ownership of projects resided within the functional area and IT group charged with execution of the project.
Limitations and issues For considerations
Heavy
Not enough people to move fast. Company want to move fast to be competitive.
Light
No management want to move to the PMO. People in the department and functions challenge the values of PMO. This depends on the culture of the organizations
Light
the delays from this approach might compromise their ability to provide PMO services and to demonstrate its worth to the functional areas of the business. Hard to acquire resources and hard to find funding for PMO resources. Now he just expenses other operation teams.
Light
how the functional areas might perceive adding more people at this time. He explained: “What is the implication of a sponsor in Sales trying to initiate a project that gets approval from the PMO? They don’t literally understand what the PMO is. They think it’s sort of a road block and an obstacle to progress—a bureaucratic thing.”
how people might view the PMO was shared by Strider. The fact that you can add them at all is a
Light
breakthrough. Do you add them in this PMO, or do you add them somewhere else? Being too aggressive may violate the culture so much that you cause a big red flag.
Heavy
grapevine about staff new PMO. They want a heavy PMO.
Having the business resources available is already becoming a problem for us. With a
PMO-light we are lined up better with the business side in terms of the number of resources, light
and it‟s a better balance.
PMO-heavy as the best model for AtekPC, but he recognized that he would not be
able to gain acceptance immediately for this approach. The demand for resources was great Light -> Heavy
throughout AtekPC, and the PMO would need to prove itself in order to earn the resources he
wanted. He intended to build support for the PMO-heavy model through project successes. As the PMO gained acceptance, he wanted to implement a PMO-heavy approach, furnishing project managers to the various groups.
1.
Draft a program charter for AtekPC utilizing your reading assignments, outside research, and the guidelines and model charter linked to this week’s lecture and attached below. [1] [4] [5][6]
Program Name and Sponsorship Project Management Office Program Charter, Information Technology Department, AtekPC. Sponsors: Xxx, Vice President Larry Field, Director of the Project Management Support Group Steinberg, Director of Applications Development John Strider, Chief Information Office (CIO)
Contact and Historical Information Mark Nelson, PMO Manager, phone number, email Document History Version Date Author(s) Revision Notes PMOCHTR_1.0 09/24/2007 Mark Nelson 1. Document Ready for Distribution PMOCHTR_2.0 11/13/2007 Mark Nelson 1. Incorporated Changes – Document Ready for Distribution PMOCHRT_3.0 11/20/2007 Mark Nelson 1. Incorporated Changes – Document Ready for Distribution PMOCHRT_4.0 01/10/2008 Mark Nelson 1. Incorporated Changes – Document Ready for Distribution
Introduction The PC industry was changing, and AtekPC was engaged in dealing with dramatic pressure from larger competitors To compete in a changing industry in which consolidation was occurring, AtekPC had implemented a corporate Planning Office. Recognizing the role that IT would likely play in enabling AtekPC to respond to the industry pressures, the senior vicepresident had supported the creation of a PMO within IT
Program Organization and Governance
executive sponsor
Xxx, Vice President
Larry Field, Director of the Project Management Support Group
Steinberg, Director of Applications Development Program sponsor
Steven Gardner, Manufacturing Systems Manager
PMO Owner
John Strider, Chief Information Office (CIO)
PMO Program Manager
Mark Nelson
PMO Member
Linda Starr, etc
Team
Program Scope
The PMO will reside within Information Technology Organization and will provide project support for all Enterprise IT projects and its Clients across the Company. The specific duties of a PMO were typically divided into two categories: project-focused and enterprise-oriented. Project focused responsibilities such as consulting, mentoring, and training were services that enabled the success of individual projects. On the other hand, enterprise responsibilities addressed services that might improve all projects such as portfolio management, PM standards, methods, and tools, and project performance archives
Program Goal 1. Deliver successful IT projects 2. Build Project Management maturity at the organizational level 3. Keep Management and Project Community informed 4. Serve as the organization‟s authority on IT Project Management practices
Program Objectives Deliver successful IT projects The PMO collaborates with ICT and stakeholders / clients to manage the IT Projects portfolio: 1. Work with Clients / Data Custodians / Prioritization Committee to make the IT projectselection process successful 2. Maintain and publish a master IT projects schedule 3. Assist Organization and Clients with project resource management 4. Identify IT projects at risk and provide recommendations
Build Project Management maturity at the organizational level 1.Mentorproject teams 2. Assist project teams in all phases of their projects from project initiation to project closure 3. Train organizational Project Managers in a full range of Project Management topics if necessary or requested Serve as honest broker on all issues brought forward to the PMO by Project Managers
Keep Management and Project Community informed 1. Report to CIO and UNO DC / Prioritization Committee on: a. AtekPC IT projects – monthly b. Metrics that measure PMO effectiveness – annually
c. Issues and opportunities – as they arise 2. Maintain and publish a “Lessons Learned” archive 3. Maintain the PMO Web site
Serve as the organization’s authority on IT Project Management Practices 1. Set the IT Project Management standard a. PMO works with an advisory group of Project Managers to update and maintain this standard b. Standards are posted on the PMO Web site 2. Be the resident advocate for good Project Management practices in the organization 3. Provide Project Management tools for organization-wide use 4. Serve as the official source of project templates and other project aids
Program Boundaries, Constraints and Assumptions The EMPO does not provide project managers or project management services, except on an as required basis by the CIO If the PMO is to be successful, there are several key issues that must be assumed. The success of projects, in general, all rely on the following factors being implemented: the integration of client, implementer, and software vendor goals and plans, constant management of the project‟s scope, and finally a method for gaining visibility into project health at all levels throughout the life of the project. Moving from a single project perspective to a more holistic perspective, the following factors will be absolutely critical to the success of the PMO. 1. Executive Support 2. Effective Data Custodian Committee / Prioritization Committee 3. Compelling Business Case 4. Agreement to Requirements and Scope 5. User Involvement & Collaboration 6. Resource Alignment Reflective of Current Need 7. Management of Expectations 8. Strong Project Management Infrastructure a. Minimal Scope Creep b. Strong Change Control Process c. Standardized Project Management Methodology 9. Ability to Measure and Report Constraints Adoption by Leadership – The adoption and adaption of practices is driven by executive leadership, which if delayed could erode the value and result in significant impacts to project results and benefits to the State. Financial Accountability – The company currently does not
consistently practice full project accountability which reduces the ability to track and measure results. Workforce Utilization – The company currently does not practice time tracking of staff efforts which reduces the ability to track and measure performance. Integration Management – The company currently does not practice governance approaches that allow for inter/intra-organizational deployments, which limits the effectiveness and increases the risk and effort for Enterpriseinitiatives
Deliverables 1. Gain agreement on the PMO Charter from the Office of the CIO and additional stakeholders outside of ICT 2. Gain CIO approval for the PMO Business Case consisting of: a. PMO Requirements (high level) b. Implementation Strategies and Schedule c. Project Plan d. PMO Handbook 3. Perform a Project Management Maturity Assessment and take steps to remedy 4. Refine and agree upon PMO performance targets 5. Establish PMO review process and performance metrics
Stakeholder Expectations Metrics should measure those aspects of PMO performance that are directly related to its Goals and support its Vision andMission. On that basis, the following areas of focus can be used to assess PMO value to the organization.
Internal Review & Assessment The PMO staff will develop or acquire the appropriate tools in which to measure PMO effectiveness. The PMO Executive Sponsor will approve such tools before they are used. Assessments will include: 1. Improvements in project successes over time can be measured through: a. Decreases in schedule and budget overruns b. Client / project participant responses
2. The Project Management approach can be measured by: a. Quality and timeliness of project planning documents b. Accuracy of time and cost estimates c. Effectiveness at mentoring and coaching project teams The PMO, with input from Clients, will be responsible for the gathering of performance metrics.
Milestones
Finance and High-level Budgets
The PMO is a function of AtekPC which provides funding for the EPMO operations as part of its IT Governance responsibilities to AtekPC. As such, it is an „overhead‟ function which requires an allocation method for funding. In order to estimate the overall costs for the allocation, the following guidelines are provided: 0.5-1% of project portfolio being managed, depending on the level of overall maturity in the AtekPC. The current project portfolio is estimated as $367 as of Oct. 2007, which estimates an PMO budget of $1.8 – 3.7m.
Program Risks In addition to the items listed above, the following barriers have been identified as opportunities to address when considering the implementation of a PMO as they often lead to difficulty and resistance in acceptance. 1. Unclear purpose – not well defined or communicated 2. No executive buy-in 3. PMO is seen as an overhead or marketing function 4. Unrealistic expectations that the PMO is a „silver bullet‟; giving a quick fix to core business-level problems 5. PMO is seen as too authoritative, or perceived as a threat 6. Politics and power struggles 7. Hard to prove value
Where a company’s efforts to a project management organization, or PMO, and the challenges they faced to implement it. Issues brought into the case, the definition of the PMO purpose and mission, the structure and management of the PMO, and how to successfully implement in what appears to be a robust culture. John Strider, AtekPC Chief Information Officer (CIO), had strong beliefs that the PMO-light model was the way to go. He had held back on hiring employees filling … Read more » Where a company’s efforts to a project management organization, or PMO, and the challenges they faced to implement it. Issues brought into the case, the definition of the PMO purpose and mission, the structure and management of the PMO, and how to successfully implement in what appears to be a robust culture. John Strider, AtekPC Chief Information Officer (CIO), had strong beliefs that the PMO-light model was the way to go. He had held back on hiring employees for filling the PMO and was moving very slowly and carefully, so as not to offend AtekPC culture. He was also concerned about the many problems that had already raised the PMO implementation. Were small steps, building on small successes go to get the job done fast enough? With the ever increasing challenge of successfully managing information technology (IT) organizations are recognizing the need for more discipline in the management of IT projects. For many companies, this has meant ratcheting project management, processes and governance structures within the organization through the implementation of a Project Management Office (PMO). Unfortunately, there is little common understanding of the challenges of implementing a PMO. Therefore, key executives and their organizations need to help poor leadership to identify and overcome the obstacles they are likely to encounter.
AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study Part One. What were the changes in AtekPC’s business environment that caused the company to
introduce a PMO? Based on your assigned readings and research do these appear to be appropriate reasons for developing a PMO? Why or why not? Limit your response to one page. The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Study presents a business entity faced with decreased sales and profitability due to a maturing Personal Computer market. AtekPC, once profitable and an industry leader, found itself behind the curve in areas of new technology such as mobile phones, PDA’s, and web-based applications. Costs were up, resources were becoming limited, and competition among pc manufacturers grew fierce. Harold Kerzner points out in his book, “Using the Project Management Maturity Model: Strategic Planning for Project Management”, that to be to be truly successful, management must have a repeatable process in place: “As economic conditions deteriorate, change occurs more and more quickly in business organizations, but still not fast enough to keep up with the economy. To make matters worse, windows of opportunity are missed because no project management methodology is in place” (Kerzner, 2005). Atek realized it was necessary to begin strategically placing itself for the future. The environment that AtekPC has found itself in has accelerated the company’s maturity level, therefore making the development of a PMO a viable option. As J. Kent Crawford points out in his book, “The Strategic Project Office”, a PMO should be considered a suitable solution for a struggling company in AtekPC’s environment because, “they allow companies to make the most of slim resources: streamlining the portfolio, accurately forecasting resource availability, and allowing changes in strategic focus necessitated by economic factors to be seamlessly carried out because the project portfolio management processes add nimbleness to the organization” (Crawford, 2011). References Crawford,
for J.
K.
(2011).
The
Part strategic
One:
project
office.
CRC
Press.
Kerzner, H. (2005). Using the project management maturity model: Strategic planning for project management . (2 ed., p. 11). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Part Two. Draft a program charter for AtekPC utilizing your reading assignments, outside
research, and the guidelines and model charter linked to this week’s lecture and attached below). Limit your responses to 3 pages, not including end notes, supporting documentation and refererences. Program
Charter
Document
AtekPC ________________________________________ Program
Sponsors
Xxxx Xxxx Mark John Richard
Organization
Xxxxx Xxxxx
CEO Senior
Nelson
PMO Dir.
Information xxx-xxxx
President
(xxx)
Manager CIO
Of
Contact (xxx)
Vice
Strider Steinberg
Role
Application
(xxx)
xxx-xxxx
(xxx) Development
xxx-xxxx xxx-xxxx
(xxx)
xxx-xxxx
Steve
Gardner
Manuf.
Systems
Manager
(xxx)
xxx-xxxx
Larry Field Dir. PM Support Group (xxx) xxx-xxxx Program
Charter
Version x.xx
Date
Author
xxxx
x.xx
xxxx
History
John Mark
Change Strider
Nelson
•
Description
Created •
3/3/2007
[revision.1
xx/xx/xxx]
[revision.2
xx/xx/xxx]
• [revision.3 xx/xx/xxx] Introduction
and
Background
AtekPC is a mid-sized U.S. PC manufacturer founded in 1984. 2006 sales equaled $1.9 billion. The company employed 2100 full-time employees and an additional 200 part-time workers. By 2007, AtekPC found itself in the midst of an industry-wide decrease in sales and profitability. PC makers in general were forced to deal with a transition from a growth industry to that of a maturing industry by seeking out new markets for growth opportunities. Due to this environmental change and to remain competitive, it has become necessary for AtekPC to refocus its efforts in areas such as cost control, manufacturing efficiency, resource allocation, and project management methodology. Historically, the latter had been accomplished in an informal manner, with Lead Analysts acting as impromptu project managers. Senior Management realized that a centralized, Project Management Office was necessary to focus efforts in the areas of improvement and enhancement via project management and coordinate the
organization’s
enterprise-oriented
functions.
________________________________________ Program
Organization
and
Governance
The Project Management Office will report directly to the AtekPC CEO. The Senior Vice President will act as Executive Sponsor. Program Sponsors include Larry Field, Richard Steinberg, and Steve Gardner. Mark Nelson will oversee the Program Management Office as the Program Manager. ________________________________________ PROJECT
SCOPE
Goals
and
Objectives
Goals
Objectives
The Project Management Office will provide company-wide project management support through consulting, mentoring, and training while promoting portfolio management and PM standards, methods, and tools. 1. Reduce costs and more effectively utilize resources. 2. Work within the AtekPC culture in order to promote Project Management methodology and overcome cultural resistance. Program
Boundaries,
Constraints,
and
Assumptions
There are a number of critical factors to the success of the PMO. The PMO must gain executive support and authority from leadership. It must also gain support across functional lines and end-users. There are a number of Boundaries, Constraints, and Assumptions that will effect the outcome •
PMO
of purpose
and
these responsibilities
must
factors: be
clearly
defined
•
Inconsistent
executive
•
support
for
Company
the
PMO
initiative
culture
limitation.
• The PMO has a small window of time to prove its value – it cannot provide a quick fix to immediate
problems
that
require
long-term
solutions.
Project
Deliverables
Deliverable •
Obtain
input
• •
on
the
Present Strategic
program
charter
a
from
stakeholders
refined
Planning
Process
and
sponsorship
Program
within
first
Charter six
months
Stakeholder
Expectations
Stakeholder
Expectations
Leadership/Sponsorship Gain and maintain support for the PMO and resolve discrepancies and conflicts, particularly in the areas of budgeting and resources. PMO initiatives will reduce costs and
improve
efficiencies.
Project Manager Responsible for setting the standards and policies for the various projects. Plan and
execute
Department
Heads
End
PMO
User
the Provide will
work staff
not
of
members
be
a
barrier
the
to
the
to
project. project
effort
real
work”
“doing
________________________________________ Finance
and
High
Level
Budget
According to a 2012 survey conducted by Project Management Solutions, Inc., PMO’s directly contributed to a 15% cost savings per project, or an average of US$411,000 savings per project. Additionally, 25% more projects were delivered under budget where a PMO was involved (The state of, 2012). With these figures in mind, the PMO must set a realistic baseline based on the organizations current state, define goals for improvement, and measure results(Fister Gale, 2011). Project Unable Cultural
Risks to
meet
and
political
goals
due
environment
not
to
Inadequate
conducive
to
Resources PMO
success
PMO unable to prove its value in short time frame References
for
Part
Two:
The state of the pmo 2012. In (2012). A PM SOLUTIONS RESEARCH REPORT. Project Management Solutions, Inc.
Harvard Business School: the Atekpc Project Management Office By Kgbros1 | July 2013
Page 1 of 5
Cases
in
Applied
Project
Management
Individual Assignment Identify the main purpose and mission of a PMO and what are the main challenges and obstacles in implementing a PMO? (HBS: The AtekPC Project Management Office) Submitted
by:
KMO
Greene
Introduction The AtekPC Company found in 1984 has grown in size and scope to become a mid-sized technology PC manufacturer. The company now boasts 2100 fulltime employees with an additional 200 part time workers and revenues of $1.9 billion. AtekPC finds itself, like all other PC manufacturers facing a changing industry, one that is transitioning from a growth market industry to a maturing market industry and like all competitors in the marketplace, AtekPC is experiencing tremendous cost pressure and demands from management to adapt. In order for the company to survive must less thrive, company CIO John Strider believes a PMO implementation is very necessary but he is conflicted about the best way to implement said PMO office. Does he implement a PMO–heavy or PMO-light model? Can the PMO implementation change the organizational culture for the better and deal with the pressure AtekPC is facing or would the PMO implementation be disruptive to the organizational culture and as such become more of a problem than a solution. Questions about the main purpose and mission of the PMO and the main challenges and obstacles in implementing the PMO are questions that John will struggle with and questions that this assignment tries to answer. The purpose and objectives of a Project Management Office (PMO) as defined by PMBOK is as follows: A project management office (PMO) is a management structure that standardizes the project-related governance processes and facilitates the sharing of resources, methodologies, tools, and techniques. The responsibilities of a PMO can range from providing project management support functions to actually being responsible for the direct management of one or more projects. There are...
THE ATEKPC PROJECT MANAGEMENT ASSIGNMENT/CASE STUDY SOLUTION
OFFICE
The AtekPC Project Management Office Assignment/Case Study Solution. Based on the case study it can be recommended that John Strider should adopt a combination of Project Management Office (PMO) heavy and light in bringing a positive and long term change in the organization. As stated by Langlois (2006) PMO heavy has the disadvantage that it forces radical changes on the employees which gain shirt term results only. The case shows that the personnel in the organization seem to have a tendency to resist adopting a changed structure of processes. A combination of the two approaches will enable Strider to bring long term change
on the basis of the already employed personnel who can easily establish feelings of trust and cooperation among the workers. The new hiring will allow Strider to introduce formal pattern of control and policy implementation. This is a sample paper. If you like to order your own paper, please Click Here Case Study: The AtekPC Project Management Office What is your recommendation to the CIO, John Strider, for the PMO organization model? Is it PMO-heavy? PMO-light? or something in between? Be specific. Based on the case study it can be recommended that John Strider should adopt a combination of Project Management Office (PMO) heavy and light in bringing a positive and long term change in the organization. As stated by Langlois (2006) PMO heavy has the disadvantage that it forces radical changes on the employees which gain shirt term results only. The case shows that the personnel in the organization seem to have a tendency to resist adopting a changed structure of processes. A combination of the two approaches will enable Strider to bring long term change on the basis of the already employed personnel who can easily establish feelings of trust and cooperation among the workers. The new hiring will allow Strider to introduce formal pattern of control and policy implementation. Explain how your recommendation would handle the following: Cultural issues: AptekPC seems to have an informal pattern of communication, which can’t be radically changed within a short time. However a gradual shift can be brought through the use of PMO light by focusing on the strengths of the process and allowing the employees to understand, accept and adapt to the changed procedures. Staffing issues A combination of the two approaches will require the company to hire an individual for PMO implementation. Along with that the current managers can be trained for the PMO implementation to make it effective without hiring new staff as the company has limited resources available. Enterprise-oriented responsibilities for the PMO The PMO will be focusing on creating an effective alliance between the various departments of the organization and achieving the company objectives in a specified time frame with support from the employees. The project related activities, reporting and maintaining of different organizational processes will also be developed by the PMO. Governance The performance of the PMO can be measured by the CIO to evaluate if the PMO has been successful in achieving the objectives. The evaluation even though based on subjective observation can be done to see if the PMO initiative has been able to make the structure of the processes formal or not. The formal structure and centralized chain of command will reflect the initial success of PMO. After that the success of business processes and ability to compete in the market can be used as criteria of success for the PMO. What are your recommendations to John Strider on how to “sell” the PMO office? Include your thoughts on his bottom-up versus top-down approach. If your recommendation includes the need for more staff, how would you sell that? Strider needs to support the idea of hiring the new manager for PMO application with the past experiences that they had and the lack of formal communication and project management practices that they faced. On the basis of the past failures, Strider can logically support the hiring if new PMO manager. Along with that he also needs to ensure that the current managers get appropriate training to manage the processes more effectively. A combination of the efforts of new hiring and trained staff can be quite beneficial for the company as it can provide long term benefits to the organization. What company do you think AtekPC is?
AtekPC seems to be a PC manufacturing company as the case study shows. The company has experiences rapid growth when the PC industry was booming, and was negatively affected when new forms of technology such as PDAs and mobile phones declined the number of PC users.
Abstract Presents one company's efforts to implement a project management organization, or PMO, and the challenges they faced in doing so. Issues brought out in the case include defining the PMO's purpose and mission, the structure and governance of the PMO, and how to successfully implement it in what appears to be a resistant culture. John Strider, AtekPC's chief information officer (CIO), had strong convictions that the PMO-light model was the way to go. He had held back on hiring fill time employees for the PMO and was moving very slowly and cautiously so as not to violate AtekPC's culture. He was also concerned about the many issues that the PMO implementation had already raised. Were small steps building on small successes going to get the job done fast enough? With the ever increasing challenge of successfully managing information technology (IT), organizations are recognizing the need for greater discipline in managing IT projects. For many organizations, this has meant ratcheting up project management skills, processes, and governance structures within the organization by implementing a project management office (PMO). Unfortunately, there is little shared understanding of the challenges of implementing a PMO. Therefore, managers and their organizations have inadequate guidance to help them identify and overcome the obstacles they are likely to encounter.
Atekpc By gautama | November 2009
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Case Analysis The AtekPC Project Management Office Case Overview AtekPC is a mid-sized U.S PC maker with sales of $ 1.9 billion and employed 2100 full time employees and additional 200 part time workers. This case discusses most of the obstacles to establishing a PMO (Project management Office) are beyond the CIO and PMO Manager's control. We see a lot of problems faced by the CIO in implementing a PMO in the enterprise. Regardless of the technical challenges during the implementation, the core of the problems seems to be that the PMO is lacking organization support, from the top to the bottom. There is not enough executive stakeholder support, there is no visibility of the program, there is a conflict of interests within departments and employees are reluctant to change the ways they have been doing things. Issues brought out in the case include defining the PMO's purpose and mission,
the structure and governance of the PMO, and how to successfully implement it in what appears to be a resistant culture. Objective of PMO PMO’s objective is to provide more consistent and better practices for both business and IT projects. Realize benefits derived from consistent project practices. Challenges faced by AtekPC and PC industry and Need Analysis for PMO • Reduction in time and cost and increase profitability:- PC industry was going under major cost cut PMO can help in achieving it by reducing time in implementing projects and there by reducing cost by saving resources. • Slow down in sales :- Looking at new products and new markets to maintain revenue growth and increase profitability .Cost reduction strategies aimed at further improving the efficiency of their supply chains, while lowering the cost of distribution. • Provide Standardization; - PMO implementation was required in order to provide standardization in managing projects and to gain improvements in the planning and performance of initiatives.
Abstract This paper discusses the external affairs of Project Management Offices instead of focusing on theinternals. The article was initiated by the "AtekPC Project Management Office" [1] , Most of theobstacles to establishing a PMO are beyond the CIO and PMO Manager's control. There are externalfactors within the enterprise that will hinder progress of a PMO implementation.We are going to take a PMO as a black box, and focus on how the PMO/Program Manager can manageexternal relations from diplomatic, marketing, public relations, international relations, corporateculture and political perspectives. This involves cooperation between the PMO and other entities in oroutside the enterprise, to facilitate a successfully organizational integration. Introduction By reading the case studies in the "AtekPC Project Management Office" [1], we see a lot of headachesfor the CIO when implementation a PMO in the enterprise. Regardless of the technical challengesduring the implementation, the core of the problems seems to be that the PMO is lacking organizationsupport, from the top to the bottom. There is not enough executive stakeholder support; there is novisibility of the program; there is a conflict of interests within departments; people are reluctant tochange the ways they have been doing things. This paper is going to provide some high levelsuggestions to improve external relations for the PMO. Problems Identification After an in depth study in [1], we can abstract out a few root causes of PMO implementationhindrance. The PMO vision and role is not clearly defined. There is no complete consensus regarding itspurpose, its responsibilities, and its authority. It has slowly evolved. Not enough executive stakeholder support. Not all of the senior executives were equally enthusedabout the PMO concept. Authority was primarily being developed bottom-up through the value of thePMO services. Even this was limited to those functional areas and IT areas actively engaging the PMO.There was no current plan to enforce usage at the enterprise level. Corporate culture limitation. Corporate cultural change had been informal. They never treated PM,PMO, formal processes seriously. Normal Operation Processes and function units have to change theirculture, behaviour, and even habits if they work with a PMO. No support from department management. Department managers may see no value inintroducing a PMO in their projects. Also there are political conflicts as well, with managers worryingabout the PMO getting to much authority.
Hard to prove value before the PMO can get more support. This is a chicken and egg problem.The senior IT managers encouraged a slow, incremental strategy (baby steps) that would allow thePMO concept to prove itself with small victories won through mentoring one project at a time. Whileproving themselves, they may fail the challenges of addressing all the cultural limitations and barriers.The PMO had raised issues that had proven too controversial to resolve immediately. Strategies y Diplomatic perspective - How to approach and broaden Senior Executive Stakeholder support. y Marketing perspective - How to convince people to buy something they have never used before
