There is something gratifying in being able to create order from a previously erratic project management landscape. In 2009 I was part of a team which was specifically set up as a PMO in response to a business problem. It was exciting to be part of a developing profession in the organisation, and by the[…]

Ignoring any “Well, it depends…” type answers (which aren’t necessarily wrong, but neither are they necessarily helpful), the best answer I can come up with is: “By performing value-add activities which cannot be performed more efficiently and effectively in other areas of the business, and the performance of which does not impact current PMO performance”[…]

Even a great vision and strategy can fail to deliver the intended benefits if changes are not implemented well. Assuming that the new strategy is sound, why is that implementation seems to be such an issue? Reasons tend to vary from: Lack of stakeholder alignment – the strategic intent is interpreted in an inconsistent manner[…]

In my last blog I discussed how to restore your calm and equilibrium when deciding What do you tell your manager when the wheels come off? In this article I’ll discuss how to prepare for that difficult conversation using a simple four-step plan: Situation analysis Options development Options selection Communication 1. Situation analysis It is[…]

Panic! Have you ever had that horrible surge of panic in your project? Everything is going as expected, if not exactly to plan, and then, without warning, disaster strikes. A contractor comes up and says “the plug in adaptor doesn’t fit, we’re stuck!” or “the pumps gone down and the spare is missing” or “it[…]

Senior managers and PMO staff, in all organisations, increasingly recognise that one of the most efficient ways of ensuring that their projects and programmes deliver the intended value for the organisation is through formal portfolio management. A recent PMI survey [1] reported that 55% of organisations frequently use formal portfolio management, a 5% increase over the previous year.[…]

Innovation has become the new “buzz word” and desired state for organisations in both the private and the public sector. The term “innovation” has been used and, sometimes, overused by a lot of people and organisations. Common to all implicit or explicit definitions is the claim that although “invention” refers to the generation of new[…]

I recently followed a lecture about benefit attribution in change programmes and projects where the presenters from a large organisation were claiming that although benefit attribution is very important to their organisation, it is considered very hard to implement and therefore they do not put any concerted efforts behind it. I found myself carefully considering the various ways[…]