Armed with an arsenal of KPIs, a PMO leader confidently presents the executive board with a sea of green indicators, all provided by the latest AI-enabled project portfolio management software.
This PMO leader is confident their team is doing a great job keeping project delivery on track. Yet stakeholders are disengaged, innovation has stagnated, and the organisation struggles to adapt to market shifts.
The truth is that traditional, rigid approaches to project portfolio management are no longer sufficient in our complex, fast-paced world. Success in project management is no longer solely determined by the iron triangle of scope, time, and cost. Enterprise PMOs must evolve from project overseers to strategic enablers of organisational success.
PMO leaders now face the challenge of integrating the precision of data-driven methodologies with the adaptability of leadership in a rapidly changing environment. Integrating structure and flexibility is not just a nice-to-have—it’s a strategic imperative. Shifting the approach of PMO leadership is necessary to ensure the adaptability and success of our organisations.
This shift is what I call the Art and Science of PMO.
The Evolution of PMO
The journey of PMOs from their inception to their current state is a testament to the ever-evolving nature of organisational strategy and leadership. In their early days, PMOs were primarily viewed as administrative hubs focused on standardising project management practices and ensuring compliance with established methodologies. However, organisations began to recognise the strategic potential of effective project management.
The second wave of PMOs emerged with a broader mandate, moving beyond oversight to actively support project delivery. These PMOs began to provide training, mentoring, and project portfolio management tools to enhance organisational project management capabilities. However, they still operated largely in a tactical realm, often siloed from broader business strategies.
The real transformation came with the third generation of PMOs, which marked a significant shift from tactical to strategic focus. This evolution was driven by the increasing complexity of business environments and the recognition that projects are critical for implementing organisational strategy. Strategic PMOs align their activities with the organisation’s objectives, provide actionable insights that drive decision-making, foster innovation and adaptability, and measure and communicate their strategic value. These PMOs are responsive to change and deeply connected to all aspects of the business. They are not isolated functions but integral to a complex organisational ecosystem.
As Jack Duggal described in his 2006 PMI Global Congress paper, these PMOs function as ‘facilitating and enabling engines that help realise business objectives'[1].
What this means for the PMO leader
The evolution of the enterprise PMO from a tactical overseer to a strategic partner represents a fundamental shift. It has also fundamentally changed the competencies required of enterprise PMO leaders.
Being well-versed in project management methodologies and tools is no longer sufficient. These PMO leaders must be strategic thinkers, relationship builders, and adept navigators of organisational complexity. They need to balance the scientific rigor of project management with the art of leadership, seamlessly blending hard and soft skills to drive organisational success.
The science of PMO management forms the backbone of effective project delivery and organisational efficiency. It encompasses structured, systematic approaches that provide consistency, measurability, and scalability to organisational project management practices.
It is grounded in established methodologies and frameworks such as the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) Guide and PRINCE2 (PRojects IN Controlled Environments). These frameworks offer PMOs a solid foundation for standardising processes, terminology, and practices across diverse projects and teams.
Data, metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) provide quantifiable project and portfolio performance measures*. PMOs are encouraged to leverage these metrics to create dashboards and reports that offer real-time insights into project health and portfolio alignment with strategic objectives. These elements provide a robust framework for PMO operations, building a solid foundation for success.
Then there are the sophisticated tools and platforms for Project Portfolio Management (PPM), data analytics, and artificial intelligence. These technologies promise to enable PMOs to centralise project data, facilitate resource allocation, predict project outcomes, identify risks, and suggest optimal resource allocation strategies.
While the science of PMO management provides the necessary structure and methodology, the art of PMO leadership truly elevates a PMO from a tactical overseer to a strategic partner. This artful aspect of PMO is characterised by soft skills, intuition, adaptability, and the ability to navigate complex organisational dynamics.
It’s not just the numbers and processes but also the people and relationships that make a PMO successful
Emotional intelligence is at the centre of the art of PMO leadership. Successful PMO leaders possess a keen ability to read and respond to the emotions of stakeholders, team members, and executives. This emotional understanding allows them to tailor their communication style, motivate diverse teams, and navigate sensitive political landscapes within the organisation.
Adaptability, intuition, and experience play significant roles in the artful side of PMO leadership. In today’s volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) business environment, PMO leaders must be able to pivot strategies quickly, adjust to changing priorities, and guide their teams through ambiguity. Experienced PMO leaders often develop a ‘sixth sense’ for potential issues, allowing them to proactively address problems before they escalate.
The art of PMO leadership also involves relationship building, innovation, and storytelling. Effective PMO leaders understand the informal power structures within their organisations, can build coalitions to support their initiatives and craft compelling narratives that articulate the PMO’s value.
The true value of an effective PMO lies in the balance between art and science
It’s not about choosing one over the other but finding the right balance. These two approaches are complementary; each addresses the limitations of the other to create a holistic and adaptive PMO strategy.
The science of PMO management provides the necessary structure, consistency, and measurability, while the art of PMO leadership brings flexibility, intuition, and the human touch. The key is to leverage both approaches, adapting the balance as the situation demands.
For instance, while data analysis might indicate a project is on track based on traditional metrics (science), a PMO leader’s intuition and stakeholder insights (art) could reveal underlying issues not captured by the numbers.
Similarly, in stakeholder management, science provides frameworks and communication plans, while art involves reading the room, adapting messages, and building relationships. Together, they create a powerful approach to engaging and aligning stakeholders.
By embracing both art and science, PMO leaders can create robust yet flexible PMOs that are well-equipped to drive strategic value in today’s dynamic business environment.
In my next post I’ll dig a little deeper into how PMO leaders can embrace art and science by building trust, understanding complexity and mastering executive sponsorship.
Footnotes
[1] Duggal, J. S. (2006). Next Generation PMO: The Secret of a Successful PMO. Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2006—North America, Seattle, WA. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.
