Texas Health PMO: The Value Realization Office

September 9, 2011 | by Jeannette Cabanis-Brewin

PMO of the Year semifinalist Texas Health has a way with words. Their uniquely (and precisely) named Portfolio & Project Management Office (PPMO) resides within a department called the Value Realization Group.

Wow. I think it would be good for every business to have a department dedicated to "value realization." After all, every investment we make is meant to realize some value - not necessarily monetary - but often that objective gets lost in the shuffle.

The Texas Health PPMO scored high "realizing tangible business benefits" and "positive impact on organizational success" - two of the criteria used in judging entrants in the competition. One of the key ways they have achieved these benefits and impacts was by focusing on demand management. Their application describes how they started by tracking hourly resource time for all operational, administrative and project work. When it became obvious, though this tracking and analysis, that 80% of time was being spent on operational work instead of strategic projects, executives were better able to establish priorities and forecast demand. "Optimization Teams" were formed to help the organization keep on track.

In a system of 14 hospitals, where life and death matters are dealt with daily, the quiet efficiency of the PPMO probably does not attract much attention. But smooth IT operations play a key role in today's technology-dependent health care organization. Texas Health, in the words of one judge, is "a successful and evolving PMO."

About the Author

Jeannette Cabanis-Brewin

Jeannette Cabanis-Brewin is editor-in-chief for PM Solutions Research, and the author, co-author and editor of over twenty books on project management, including the 2007 PMI Literature Award winner, The AMA Handbook of Project Management, Second Edition.

View Posts by Jeannette Cabanis-Brewin

Jeannette Cabanis-Brewin

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