I am the bad PMO guy!
Why Am I the Bad PMO Guy?
I was assigned the responsibility to monitor the PMO dashboard to avoid content gaps. I take this responsibility very seriously and always try to improve the process flow with help of my self made statistics reports to keep the tracking process smoother.
One day in a meeting, I was labeled the “Bad Guy” for sending serious dashboard statuses to the senior management. It’s like a teacher sending a report card to a parent directly.
Whenever I need to remind a project lead to update the dashboard before a deadline, their mind blinks in a flash and they respond back with “Oh PMO, right?” or “I am doing it right now” or “I am on leave and will update tomorrow” and so on. The same story happens often even for nonrelated PMO conversations.
I can imagine how it feels to be like a loan shark.
The tool has stung me and made me the “PMO guy”. I am no hero either, with or without a cape and mask. I am just doing my duty.
What is a PMO Dashboard and Why Do I Need It?
A PMO Dashboard is a powerful tool for senior management to understand the status and areas of concern, especially when the time is limited. It gives the summary or status of all the projects or programs or work streams. A PMO dashboard allows summarizing every piece of project data using defined and understood standards.
It helps the senior management to stay alert and to have a quick review to check if any projects need their immediate attention. A PMO Dashboard is also a transdisciplinarity approach tool for knowledge transfer.
The ease of senior management using a PMO Dashboard tool is similar to being in front of a flight or train information display system in the airport or railway station.
The PMO Dashboard is My Baby!
One of my colleagues assumed that the PMO Dashboard is my baby. This is because it builds comradeship with both project leads and team members. This tool can help us to learn a lot from each other and understand the psychological aspects of the projects or processes. A weekly monitoring of the dashboard helps everyone to stay prepared.
This tool also improves my communication skills both personally and professionally with fellow colleagues. Because of frequent conversations relating to this workflow, I can feel an increase in trust and respect with my colleagues.
The Perficient PMO Dashboard tool has attracted me towards Agile Risk Management. This flexible reporting tool has lured me a little deeper into risk management.
Sometimes little things teach you a lot. It’s the little details in the dashboard that are vital and can make big things happen.
It is a very good article.
Good one Arun. Gives an overview of Why PMO and the importance of it.