Voices from the PMO
Step by Step
“Of the four initial managers at the PMO here, I took the lead on bringing in the project portfolio management tool. We had a very limited budget, so we chose something basic. It turned out well. I don’t think the organization was ready for some of the more sophisticated tools, and with this one we were able to set a good base. In reality, we needed baby steps. The company was not ready culturally for all that a PMO could require.
I don’t run into too many businesspeople who don’t understand what a project is. It’s still common to encounter people who don’t understand the bigger picture, like project portfolio management. Now that we’ve established the PMO and got people working within a project culture, the areas that are becoming extremely important are for the business to understand its role in prioritization, and ensuring IT is working on the highest-priority projects. Looking forward, we need to do a better job at portfolio management and better engaging senior management.”
Mary Shy is PMO manager at Omnicare, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA.