IT

The Project Management Office (PMO) Best Practices and Processes

There are two (2) standard Project Management Office (PMO) models: Administrative and
Functional. The key difference between the two is “ownership” in terms of Accountability. The
Administrative PMO is responsible for maintaining the approved policies, processes, and
procedures commonly applied across all programs/projects, as well as the centralized Project
Administration support necessary to ensure consistent implementation.
A Functional PMO, on the other hand, is an organizational activity that assigns the Project
Manager (PM) resources responsible for program/project cost, schedule, and technical/quality
performance. It is important to note that a Functional PMO also performs all of the functions of
an Administrative PMO, including assignment of a Project Administrator.
The primary reasons for implementing a PMO include:
• Efficiency – making optimal use of available resources;
• Effectiveness – ensuring Project Management processes are delivered in a correct,
consistent, and timely manner; and
• IT Governance – providing the leadership, organizational structure, regulations,
standards and processes that ensure projects comply with best practices in accordance
with the enterprise charter/mission, strategies, and business objectives
Regardless of whether it follows an Administrative or Functional model, the PMO serves as a
mechanism for satisfying six (6) standard process control objectives:
• Process Owner – designates an “owner” for each Project Management process so that
performance responsibility is clear
• Process Repeatability – Project Management processes are defined and yield consistent
process results/outcomes
• Clear Goals and Objectives – establishes clear goals and objectives for effective
execution of each Project Management process
• Assigned Roles and Responsibilities – defines unambiguous roles, activities, and
responsibilities for each Project Management process to ensure efficient execution
• Process Performance Evaluation – objectively measures the performance of each
Project Management process against defined goals and objectives
• Approved Policy, Plans, and Procedures – documents, reviews, approves, and
communicates to all stakeholders the applicable policy, plan, and procedure/work
instructions that drive each Project Management process
Whether a PMO has an Administratve or Functional role, the accountable PM is responsible for
implementing Project Management best practices and procedures for the Company. Regardless
of the project-specific technical focus, IT projects should utilize PM processes compliant with
best practices as prescribed by the Project Management Institute (PMI®), as well as Engineering
Management processes compliant with best practices as prescribed by the Institute of Electrical
and Electronics Engineers (IEEE®), American National Standards Institute (ANSI®), and the
Software Engineering Institute (SEI®) for software development.

© 2010, T. K. Gaughan, PMP – IT Process Architects & Engineers Global Services, LLC
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At PA&E Global we know from experience that for any project to be successful it needs mature
and effective Project Management policies, processes, and procedures. Our PMs have
successfully managed Information Technology (IT) Projects applying a disciplined System
Development Life Cycle (SDLC) approach for hundreds of multi-disciplinary efforts, from
Requirements Definition through Planning, Design, Development, Implementation, and ongoing
Operations and Maintenance.
In addition to knowledge and experience in all of the standard project processes and practices,
the skill set required of our PMs includes:
• Senior management knowledge and leadership;
• Use of PM tools (e.g., MS Project);
• Communications Management practices that engage the Project Team, Sponsor and other
Key Stakeholders;
• Change Management and Configuration Management standards and practices;
• Quality Management methods and practices;
• Project Control applying Earned Value Management System (EVMS) practices; and
• A positive value proposition by consistently delivering project performance on time, on
quality, and within budget.

Project Planning
For the PMO and PM to be successful, all activites, goals, milestones, and schedules must be
documented in a Project Plan. Project Plans are based on the Work Breakdown Structure
(WBS), which identifes the activities necessary to deliver the highest value project work
products and performance. The WBS defines the total project work scope, and each descending
level of the WBS represents an increasingly detailed definition of the work to be performed. The
WBS provides the project scope definition foundation for resource and performance planning,
time and cost estimating, budget formation, and progress/performance tracking and reporting.

Communications Management
Effective communications are a key factor in Project success. Project communications best
practices include periodic Project Team meetings, regularly scheduled Client meetings and
formal reviews and audits, and submission of regular (e.g., monthly) Cost and Schedule Status
Reports (CSSRs). To facilitate communication among the Project Team members and timely
service delivery to Clients, a PMO can employ a variety of collaboration tools, including
SharePoint, Project Server, Exchange Server, and even FTP.

Change Management
All projects require Change Management practices that provide written procedures and work
instructions for managing change. Configuration Management is a functional elemet of Change
Management that encompases Configuraton Management (CM) Planning, Configuration
Identification, Configuration Control, Configuration Status Accounting, and Configuration
Audits and Reviews (i.e., configuation validation). A mature PMO uses documented Change

© 2010, T. K. Gaughan, PMP – IT Process Architects & Engineers Global Services, LLC
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Management processes and procedures that are compliant with recognized industry standards
and best practices. These processes and procedures ensure a proven effective and auditable
method for managing all types of changes, including Project scope, work products, and
organizational and business process change.
PA&E Global helps Clients implement best practices by applying our established Quality
Procedures (QPs) for Configuration Management. For example, our CM QPs provide a template
of step-by-step instructions for a Configuration Control Board (CCB - see Exhibit 1 below). In
software development environments, we recommend utilizing rules-based Change Management
process tools that maximize automation of process functions.

Exhibit 1- Configuration Control Board (CCB) Process Flow

Quality Management
Our recommended approach to Quality Management as part of PMO best practices is a Project
Deliverables Management (PDM) process (see Exhibit 2 below). This process applies to all
Project work products, regardless of type (e.g., text documents, website graphics, software
applications, etc.). The process utilizes Peer Review and Client Review as the inherent methods
for Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) of each deliverable. Deliverables (i.e., Master
Original releases and associated hardcopy and softcopy artifacts)are archived in a CM Library
and recorded/indexed in a CM Database (CMDB), thus enabling each approved change to be
closely controlled, verified and consistently recreated (i.e., repeatable).
We ensure Clients can maintain positive control of quality by helping design and develop Project
processes that include:
• Mature, proven, and effective Project Deliverables Management;
• Peer reviews of designs and deliverables for objective quality validation and verification,
and to facilitate professional consensus on technical accuracy among Subject Matter
Experts (SMEs); and

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• Designating the PM as the single Release Authority with ultimate responsibility and
accountability for approval f the Project Team’s work quality.

Exhibit 2 – Project Deliverables Management (PDM) Process Flow

Risk Management
For any Project, management of risks is an important part of controlling changes to scope and
cost (see Risk Score Matrix in Exhibit 3 below). As a basic approach, PA&E Global helps
Clients implement a Risk Management process that applies both Qualitative and Quantitative
Risk Assessment techniques. Our Principal Consultants have an extensive knowledge base of
subject matter expertise and experience utilizing Risk Management best practices, including
maintaining recodes in a Project Risk Register. All members of the Project Team (including
Customer staff) should be proactive participants in vigilantly monitoring the Project “risk
horizon” for the onset of known and/or previously unforeseen Project risk events.

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Exhibit 3 - Risk Score Matrix

Earned Value Management System – Cost and Schedule Control

For any Project, best practices require accounting for expenditure of budgeted costs. PA&E
Global helps Clients implement Earned Value Management System (EVMS) processes that
ensure auditable compliance with best practices as prescribed by ANSI/EIA-748-A (American
National Standards Institute/Electronic Industries Alliance Standard for Earned Value
Management Systems). Properly implemented EVMS processes include cost and schedule
performance measurement, reporting, analysis and decision making. Exhibit 4 below illustrates
the relationships among the primary EVMS performance metrics.

Exhibit 4 – Relationships Among EVMS Performance Metrics

© 2010, T. K. Gaughan, PMP – IT Process Architects & Engineers Global Services, LLC
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