Each year at the House of PMO we release the top ten trends in PMO to watch out for. We will be releasing the trends for 2024 in a couple of weeks.
In the meantime, how did 2023 shape up? Read on for the December 2023 update.
*Interested in the previous trends, why not have a [browse here.]
PMO Trends for 2023 – Recap
Here are the new predictions for 2023, what will it have in store for us?
- The strategy execution gap: how the strategy breaks into programmes and projects
- Rethinking the project data strategy to create tangible benefits to the organisation and support rapid delivery and reporting
- Back to basics with the three-area mantra – planning, risks and issues
- The PMO leads the way in being back in the office – as business concerns increase over productivity and performance levels
- The PMO as a Business Function – taking portfolio management and strategy execution to the next level
- Seeking out more external insights and benchmarking to take the PMO to the next level
- Tailored development based on individual assessments
- The service-based approach to PMO
- Integrated PMO model and one PMO ecosystem
- An increase in PMOs recognising the benefit of having a clear vision and mission and directly linking them to their metrics
The strategy execution gap: how the strategy breaks into programmes and projects
More and more PMOs are getting switched onto the strategy execution gap and beginning to explore what that gap looks like for their organisation. The common gap – project prioritisation – is where the majority of PMOs have focused their support in recent years, for example, understanding how many initiatives are running across the business that are there to meet strategic objectives? Which projects are most aligned with the strategy and in what order should they be executed?
The next gap area to consider is how the PMO can support the decision-making required in the initial stages of how the strategy breaks down into projects and programmes.
> You can check out portfolio management-inspired sessions in the library here.
December 2023
For Portfolio-level PMOs, project prioritisation remains their number one service. During 2023 we have seen multiple stories, experiences and insights from PMOs – award winning PMOs – which have focused on maturing their approaches to project prioritisation and in turn, building trusted relationships with senior executives and stakeholders in the process. Improvements in decision-making support are not only dependent on the relationships, it is also linked with one of the other predictions of 2023 – improvements in data on which insightful information can be used in the decision-making process.
>> Check out the session from BDO which all stems from the organisations’ strategic objectives.
Rethinking the project data strategy to create tangible benefits to the organisation and support rapid delivery and reporting
PMOs are increasingly utilising apps and business intelligence tools and strengthening their understanding of what data is needed and how to get it. It throws up many questions on how to make improvements in analysis and insights – which is now driving the need to rethink their project data strategy and plan. Better data is needed to gain the insights that will really make a difference to project delivery and the PMO have a role to play in planning what is really needed to make that difference.
>> Check out this session all about utilising apps
December 2023
If there is one area which promises a lot but is hard work in terms of time, cost, politics and direction, it’s data.
This year we have learnt that gaining improvements in useable data really is linked to organisation culture. PMOs don’t operate in a vacuum, it has to take the lead from the organisation’s wants and needs. During 2023, the bigger picture organisation data strategies have stalled, PMOs are still operating with O365 licenced approaches – Excel, Power Apps, PowerBi.
With AI led data tools and techniques, PMO practitioners on the whole are staying away – limited to what has been introduced in their existing O365 licences.
A disappointing year for advancement in this area for sure.
Back to basics with the three-area mantra – planning, risks and issues
It’s back to basics once again with the three-area mantra – get the planning, risk and issues standards up to a higher level of maturity across all projects and programmes – it’s these three that have the biggest impact on the delivery success of traditional predictive projects. At the House of PMO we’ll be putting extra focus on these during 2023.
>> Get started with the session that shaped this trend for 2023
December 2023
Throughout the year we have focused on risk management here at the House of PMO. Alongside that it’s been governance, resource management and benefits management which we have focused on.
These sessions, well attended at the time and always available in the library, are enabling us to focus on the core competency areas which all PMO practitioners must have knowledge in.
One thing is certain, for the House of PMO, we will continue to ensure we are covering the basics.
The PMO leads the way in being back in the office – as business concerns increase over productivity and performance levels
We will start seeing increased time in the office as getting work done effectively and efficiently takes a nosedive. With economic uncertainty driving business concerns about productivity and performance affecting the bottom line – the hybrid pendulum will swing to more time in the office than working from home.
The PMO will take the first steps in becoming a more regular feature of the working week and a central point of contact and hive of activity in the office once again.
Why not read up on the articles informing this shift, including insights from Hybrid headaches; Why a recession in 2023 could see remote workers return to the office and Bosses Are Winning The Battle To Get Workers Back To The Office
December 2023
A mixed update on this one – for some PMOs it has been about being back in the office – certainly Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursdays. For others, it’s back in the office once or twice a month. The nature of the business has a big bearing, so does the downsizing in corporate offices and infrastructure. One downside has been the offshoring of PMOs – if PMOaaS (PMO as a Service) can operate from anywhere, why not take it offshore?
The PMO as a Business Function – taking portfolio management and strategy execution to the next level
PMO as a business function – the thinking continues – how the PMO can be seen as an essential business function, supporting company-wide portfolio management incorporating all delivery, change and business-as-usual activity. Will 2023 be the year we start to see more PMO functions of this nature?
December 2023
We published the Inside PMO Report – The PMO as a Business Function and launched it at the PMO Conference in London in June, 2023.
The report has been well-received, certainly by PMOs and organisations who are operating an enterprise-wide model of PMO or making advances in portfolio level PMOs. The report does state that PMOs of this nature are still in the minority – the key is, does the PMO get involved in portfolio definition and also report to the board? Those are two of the main indicators that your PMO is on the way to being recognised as a business function.
Seeking out more external insights and benchmarking to take the PMO to the next level
As PMOs continue to up the value they provide to their organisations, practical ideas and proven approaches are required to take them to the next level. It’s time to stop being so insular and seek out more external lessons and benchmarking with other PMOs. The PMO adopts a growth mindset.
We’re seeing an increase in the number of corporate members at the House of PMO looking to collaborate and share insights with others. If your PMO would like to benchmark externally in 2023, why not become a corporate member? Find out more details here.
December 2023
As PMOs continue to up the value they provide to their organisations, practical ideas and proven approaches are required to take them to the next level. It’s time to stop being so insular and seek out more external lessons and benchmarking with other PMOs. The PMO adopts a growth mindset.
We’re seeing an increase in the number of corporate members at the House of PMO looking to collaborate and share insights with others. If your PMO would like to benchmark externally in 2023, why not become a corporate member? Find out more details here.
Tailored development based on individual assessments
With each PMO serving and supporting different organisation strategic objectives it stands to reason that each PMO requires different knowledge, skills and approaches to make that support effective. In 2023 there will be more tailoring of the development needs of PMO practitioners – utilising a self-assessment, training and reassessment approach.
We’ve heard from a number of different PMOs sharing their stories of developing and retaining talent in their PMOs. To hear some of the sessions, search in the library for PMO Conference and there are plenty to choose from.
>> You can also check out the self-assessment session here
December 2023
With the PMO Competency Assessment being two years old in 2023, and individual and corporate membership increasing, we are also seeing an increase in the PMO Competency Framework self-assessment being utilised.
Self-assessments are enabling PMO practitioners to better manage their development and performance reviews. At the House of PMO it is also starting to show the strengths and weaknesses collectively (from all the self-assessments being completed) across the competency areas plus knowledge, skills and behaviour areas. These insights will enable the House of PMO to focus its efforts on tailoring its programme of events and member articles going forward.
The service-based approach to PMO
2023 sees a major mindshift for the PMO. The PMO provides services not a person although those services are provided to people. It’s not a riddle, just a recognition that programme and project delivery don’t need a specific person to support them, it’s the services that the PMO provides that matters the most. When the PMO presents itself as a service-based offering, it moves another step away from “the PMO is just admin”
We have seen more and more PMOs make this step change – focusing on what services are required by the organisation; building that service; delivering it and ensuring it’s meeting the service level required.
>> Take a look at what service-based PMOs are
December 2023
The service-based approach keeps on developing and being taken up by PMOs across different industries and sectors. Why? It just makes sense plus it’s a simple approach which makes clear business sense.
This year, the House of PMO also took ownership of the PMO Service Catalogue book, originally published by Stuart Dixon. Not only that, we have kicked off the next community project which is focused on updating and expanding the service catalogue too.
The service catalogue is the practical guide which helps PMOs to define their service based approach – which services to add and how to measure the effectiveness.
Integrated PMO model and one PMO ecosystem
The PMO in larger organisations adopts an integrated PMO model – a linking up of all PMOs across the organisation, especially where PMOs have sprung up over time to support individual initiatives. It’s time for the next stage of evolution to provide one eco-system.
This trend is as much about linking together existing PMOs which have sprung up over the years without any connection to a centralised function. When we talk about the eco-system (seen in the PMO Competency Framework) it is about all PMOs being joined up and utilising shared resources, knowledge, skills and tools.
For many PMOs, the integrated PMO model is also similarly known as the P3O model, however not all organisations subscribed to the full best-practice approach (much like saying all project managers deliver to the PRINCE2 full standard). The integrated PMO model gives an alternative phrase to describe an organisation’s entire collection of PMOs – both permanent and temporary PMOs.
December 2023
On the back of the latest InsidePMO Report, the integrated PMO model is about bringing together all PMOs within an organisation, each with a service-based approach.
It’s an approach which larger organisations that have already adopted the P3O model can utilise. 2023 makes the P3O model over a decade old and much has changed in projects, programmes and portfolios which makes the P3O model in need of an update.
An increase in PMOs recognising the benefit of having a clear vision and mission and directly linking them to their metrics
An increase in PMOs recognising the benefits of having a clear vision and mission – and utilising them to alter the perception of the PMO across the organisation. They are also helpful in deciding which services are needed from the PMO and which metrics need measuring. Time to task the PMO sponsor with defining the purpose of the PMO and instilling a sense of belonging and identity in the people who are part of the PMO as we head into a turbulent 2023.
December 2023
Throughout 2023, there has been a focus on the benefits of the PMO – what the PMO does and the benefits it brings to the organisation. The service-based approach has enabled PMOs to directly link their work from the strategic objectives of the business, through to prioritisation of the projects and programmes the PMO is supporting, how the PMO is supporting them – through selected services and ultimately how effective it is in doing so (the key performance indicators).
What do you think?
How has your year in PMO been? Was 2023 a year of success? A work in progress?
Leave a comment below and let us know.
