Mature portfolio management offices—a key to success

While the KPMG and PM Solutions’ survey reports list the typical functions of a PMO, neither identifies the functions of a mature PMO that would produce the benefits claimed. Furthermore, the UK Office of Government Commerce (OGC) Guide to Portfolio, Programme and Project Offices (P3O Guide) lists PMO functions according to the following three categories: (i) planning; (ii) delivery; and (iii) centre of excellence, but it also does not identify which functions are undertaken in support of which level in the OGC’s Portfolio, Programme and Project Management Maturity Model (P3M3).

Using the OGC P3M3 as a guide, a corporate PMO that supports a P3M3 level 3 maturity would have the following functions (grouped by P3M3 topics).

Establishing a PMO with the above functions will deliver not only a mature PMO with all the performance improvements suggested by the research, but will also contribute to an organisation improving its P3M3 rating; an important consideration for government entities as they seek funding for new initiatives in these financially constrained times.