Skip the navigation

Forrester: Project management offices on the rise, but effectiveness dubious

Nearly one-fifth of all new project implementations are over three months late

By Thomas Hoffman
July 17, 2003 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - Most companies have now established project management offices (PMO) to help them enforce standard IT processes during IT/business projects, according to a recently released report by Forrester Research Inc. But many PMOs continue to focus too much time on compiling reports for senior management and not enough on ensuring that projects are delivered on time and within scope.
That could explain why nearly one-fifth of all new IT project implementations are delivered three or more months late.
"It's no surprise that the presence of a PMO didn't have much effect on project failure rates," said Tom Pohlmann, an analyst at Cambridge, Mass.-based Forrester and the author of the report, "How Companies Govern Their IT Spending," published June 30. The study is based on telephone interviews with 704 North American IT decision-makers between late April and June.
Sixty-seven percent of the respondents said their organizations have one or more PMOs -- either inside or outside of the IT department. That's up from 53% last year. The problem, said Pohlmann, is that too many PMOs serve as "process cops and report compilers" for executive teams and often "lose sight of what they're supposed to be doing -- to make sure projects are running effectively."
Dan Garrow, senior vice president of information systems and CIO at Mohegan Sun, agreed with the report's findings. "We have a PMO which has frequently been referred to as the 'PMO Police,' " said Garrow. The IT department for the Uncasville, Conn.-based hotel and casino is "working hard to overcome that perception," in part by trying to enlist senior management support of PMO concepts.
In addition, IT departments have to be more rigid about which IT projects they're willing to take on, said Garrow. "IS departments are so ingrained with the idea of being a service organization that to say no to a customer is almost taboo," said Garrow. He advocated calling on executive management "to assist and, in many cases, say no on behalf of the IS function so they can maintain the customer relationship with user departments."
For purposes of this study, Forrester classified a project as a "failure" if it was delivered one to three months late and affected at least 3,000 end users. According to survey respondents, 19% of their enterprise application initiatives were delivered at least three months late, and another 17% were between one and three months overdue.
For his part, Pohlmann doesn't expect any dramatic improvements in IT project delivery rates because of what he attributes to IT management apathy. "I



Additional Resources
Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World
WHITE PAPER
Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

Security KnowledgeVault
WHITE PAPER
Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All
WHITE PAPER
New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Project Management White Papers
Overcome Top 7 Admin Challenges of Active Directory
As Active Directory's role in the enterprise has drastically increased, so has the need to secure the data. Gain insight on creating repeatable,...
Insiders Can Ruin Your Company. Take Action.
Did you know that 80 percent of threats to an organization come from the inside? The threat from insiders is often overlooked in...
Top Solutions and Tools to Prevent Devastating Malware
Custom malware frequently goes undetected. According to Forrester Research, the best way to reduce risk of breach is to deploy file integrity monitoring...
Streamline Compliance and Increase ROI
Streamline, simplify, and automate compliance related activities; especially those that impact multiple business units. This white paper from NetIQ, outlines solutions that will...
X-Ray of the PCI Process-4 Proactive Steps
This white paper from Forrester Research Inc., helps break PCI into understandable components. Security and risk professionals will gain knowledge and insight into...
All Project Management White Papers
Project Management Webcasts
Optimizing Networks for the Cloud
Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere
Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware
Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence
Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®...
All Project Management Webcasts
Newsletter Sign-Up

Receive the latest news test, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Choose a newsletter
  1. View all newsletters | Privacy Policy
IT Jobs