Spotlight on PMOs: The Struggle Is Real

PMOs are in the limelight now more than ever with quite a few newsworthy items at the forefront, including the rise (and rise and rise) of AI in project management and PMI’s recent launch of the Project Management Offices: A Practice Guide. While we could write a new piece every day on the changing landscape of AI and project management, it might be worth taking some time to discuss Project Management Offices: A Practice Guide, especially as this coincides with our own landmark research study The State of the PMO 2025.

PM Solutions Research first surveyed organizations about their PMO practices in 2000. Twenty-five years is a pretty good chunk of time and effort put forth from all of you to help us understand current project management practices and identify trends that lead to improved PMO strategic impact and enterprise success (and if you’d like to be a part of that research, you still have a small window to jump in here).

And yet, the struggle is still real.

Specifically, organizations continue to struggle with managing consistent application of project management, program management, and portfolio management, structure, governance, and processes. Our data confirms it and PMI’s latest publication reinforces the need for strategic alignment to ensure that PMOs align with organizational goals and enhance their strategic value.

So what are we doing wrong?

PMI introduces its new practice guide with the admittedly “ambitious vision: to reshape PMOs worldwide.” And while that might feel a little daunting, it doesn’t have to. Two things stood out to me in the new practice guide, renewed focus on customer-centric and value-driven approaches to PMOs.

These are irrefutable, but they’re also not entirely new ideas. Time and again, our consultants have seen challenges that hinder an organization’s ability to deliver value consistently. They’ve seen organizations that have lost their customer-centric focus. The good news is that their hands-on experience has built a wealth of pragmatic expertise in exactly these types of situations. They’ve done the hard work. 

While clarity and standardization in written form are great guidelines, there’s no substitute for practical experience. Our consultants always come back to one common theme – an intentionally designed and delivery-focused PMO leads to effective delivery across the organization. And although the struggle is real, so are the outcomes … especially the successful ones.

PMOs will always be in the spotlight. Successful projects bring attention. Unsuccessful ones maybe even more so. As the landscape evolves, it’s important to keep open the lines of communication on all fronts. Drop us a question here on our blog, participate in our research, start a discussion thread. Let’s chat!