The grandega Integral PMO: project management of the future

Berlin Brandenburg Airport was supposed to be ceremonially opened in November 2011. Seven further official opening dates followed. Until the BER finally started its first commercial flights quietly and unobtrusively on October 31, 2020, while the general focus was still on the effects of the corona crisis. This way, further mockery and scorn were spared for a project that, with the scale of its failure, kept the nation in a mix of agitation and schadenfreude for many years.

But even if Berlin Brandenburg Airport is a lackluster prime example of bad project management, it's by far not the only one. Quite the opposite – in nearly every organization there are projects that, for lack of suitable steering, are poorly delivered or even cancelled.

How much do you think you lose in a fiscal year through inadequate project management that isn't adapted to current circumstances?

Even if this question is uncomfortable, an honest answer can give you important impulses for the success of your company. Because in times when projects are an everyday standard for business processes, a large volume of failed initiatives represents a serious risk for the future.

But why is project management actually such an important topic and what has changed, so that new solutions are suddenly necessary here? We'll tell you.

1. The digital and global age as a demanding starting situation

Project work in companies isn't what it once was.
Admittedly, you'd probably have heard this sentence from most leaders and team leads over the past decades – no matter when you'd ask. The universality of the statement has a reason: constant change and development simply lie in our nature.

Now too, at the beginning of the 21st century, the most diverse upheavals, trends and innovations are underway. To name just a few:

• Digital transformation has Germany firmly in its grip and continuously enters the processes of administration and the economy. Traditional methods are replaced by new technologies, and with artificial intelligence the next revolution is already in the starting blocks.
• Through the corona crisis, companies were practically forced overnight to find new strategies for working models, communication and everyday business. It's already foreseeable that these effects of the pandemic will influence us in the long term. We're already living a New Normal.
• Nevertheless, globalization continues to increase. The world markets grow ever more together. Companies thus face the task of acting not only nationally but also internationally and sometimes managing global supply chains.
• With new markets, new actors with relevant interests and requirements also come into play. The complexity of the company landscape increases and competition intensifies.

Almost unbridled economic growth, multinational groups, digital change – all these developments feel like they create new conditions on a weekly basis.

For companies, these numerous and relatively tightly clocked changes have profound consequences. On the one hand, it's about adapting your own strategy to constantly changing trends and securing your positioning in the market.

On the other hand, internal management has to be realigned. Many traditional ways of working, techniques and models no longer hold up in this fast-paced cultural and economic change.

2. Challenges and opportunities for companies

To stay future-proof despite these dynamic conditions, more and more companies decide against a rigid line organization. Instead, project-oriented ways of working are the means of choice. As a central instrument, they can be used effectively even with complex and fast-paced strategies and concepts.

But before you breathe a sigh of relief at this point, we unfortunately have to disappoint you: project work too doesn't always run smoothly.

In fact, there are even numerous studies that deal with the failure of project work in companies. Depending on the focus and topic of the surveys, it's up to 70% of initiatives that aren't successfully delivered in practice. There are two causes for these frighteningly high rates.

On the one hand are structural and company-specific reasons that cause cancelled or unsuccessful projects. These range from wrong planning, communication and goal-setting to a lack of suitable technologies and expertise.

In addition to these factors, companies face a variety of challenges arising from their own organizational and the social conditions. These include that product cycles become ever shorter and procedures ever more complex. At the same time, the speed and dynamics of processes increase. And as if that weren't enough already, digital change requires new approaches, workflows and solutions.

Unfortunately, this far too often creates a setting that's anything but conducive to successful project completions:

• Employees are under permanent pressure;
• Individual activities comprise more and more parallel tasks;
• Familiar structures are broken up and changed at relatively short intervals;
• Especially with new strategies and applications, experience and know-how are often missing;
• Not infrequently, there's a lack of competence in project planning and management;
• Stress, overload and conflicts increase.

The consequence? Goals aren't reached, plans and deadlines can't be kept, additional costs arise and the project brings poor results.

To counteract this course, many companies rely on project offices, readily also called PMO (Project Management Office).

3. What role do PMOs play?

A PMO basically has the task of improving processes within an organization and thereby making the management of projects more efficient. In practice, this role is usually taken on by an internal or external department or group.

Depending on what authority a project office is granted by a company, it can cover up to three important areas: the support, the control and the management of projects. The PMO thus stands, in effect, as a central body above the respective project leads and helps them through…

• …creating guidelines, processes and specifications that reflect the general company goals and enable a better project organization;
• …monitoring and steering progress;
• …analyzing project data;
• …training and, if necessary, motivating employees and leaders;
• …providing suitable methods, techniques and applications to standardize procedures and use resources beneficially.

The Integral PMO supports diverse tasks and thus significantly contributes to project success.

Used correctly, project offices can be an effective means against planning errors, overload and delays. If only there weren't one catch – global and digital change.

With the constantly new trends and technologies, the increasing dynamics and the ever-higher complexity of procedures, the demands on project management grow. So much so that many classic PMO models no longer do justice to the expectations. No wonder, when the skill set and the methods don't match the project-specific reality, a project office can hardly provide relief.

4. grandega's Integral PMO as a solution

Traditional PMOs reach their limits in the cultural change of the 21st century. And now?

Before you think now of dark scenarios full of red figures, dissatisfied employees and total project chaos, we'd like to present a possible solution: the Integral PMO.

Unlike conventional models, the Integral PMO stands out above all for its proactive and flexible character, which reflects the zeitgeist of current developments.

One of these properties is PM Collaboration as the pivot for your project management. Procedures are no longer viewed in isolation, but integrated into a standardized system. Processes, documentation and workflows are thus complemented and synchronized by suitable technical applications. The SharePoint tool also provides project managers with best-practice guides, resources and support, so tasks can be carried out professionally and in a standardized way.

On top of that comes a strong emphasis on proactivity. Classic PMOs serve rather as a supporting and consolidating point of contact, while the project lead is involved in the practical delivery of projects. grandega's Integral PMO sets itself apart from both these actors by deliberately driving projects forward and questioning developments holistically.

In summary, the Integral PMO differs in that it standardizes and professionalizes project management. At the same time, it drives projects forward proactively and meets challenges early. Through these abilities, it generates a clear added value over a traditional PMO and project assistance. This not only relieves your project organization, but also comprehensively contributes to project success.

The Integral PMO is more than project assistance or a classic PMO.

This is how working on projects functions

grandega's Integral PMO can act as a project team member in various functions. These include above all phase-specific or cross-phase activities. As needed, the consultant can take on tasks like controlling, resource management or also risk management at the start, during planning or the final delivery of projects.

Here, the aspect of flexibility in particular is a great advantage. Whether remote or on site, whether as PMaaS („project management as a service“) or advisor – it's deployed where you need its support.

Plus: the Integral PMO doesn't come alone. It's part of the grandega product portfolio Integral XMO. This also contains an Integral TMO (Transformation Management Office) as well as an Integral SMO (Strategic Management Office) for transformation and strategy initiatives. So your company is fully equipped for all the challenges the coming time holds.

Would you like to learn more about grandega's Integral PMO? Then feel free to contact us.