Background and History
The Project Management Council that we currently have in place grew out of an effort that began in September 1994. A small group of dedicated Project Managers, who had found each other in business meetings, conferences or in classes, realized that they shared the same passion for project management. This group decided to band together to address the prevalent project management issues that existed at that time—constrained resources, lack of a standard process or methodology, little or no training requirements and inconsistent project performance. They knew that most project managers in our company were operating within independent circles, without a consistent way of doing project management. Managers of project managers were using different criteria to determine what should be project managed. Very few project managers had much organizational support and fewer still were trained in project management. Most, when they did act as project managers, did it as a secondary job function.
All of the Council members were volunteers who shared a passion for the profession and wanted to make a difference. They were today’s change agents. They began to investigate the feasibility of developing project management standards in fulfillment of the original mission to move the company toward a single standard for Project Management. They believed that in order for our company to continue to be a leader in the industry, it must deliver solutions on time, on budget, to requirements while delighting customers.
This first version of the Council was a loosely constructed entity. The lack of structure gave a social club feeling to most of the meetings. The group experienced the normal phases of team building (forming, storming, norming, and performing). It became increasing clear that a more formal structure was required as well as corporate/executive support and recognition of the Council. The first step was to create a clearly defined direction statement, mission and a project plan.
While progress was being realized, when asked, “from an executive perspective, who sponsors the Council?” there was no quick answer as the Council had no sponsor. There was no champion to whom the Council could go to obtain legitimacy. Without an executive sponsor or champion, the Council lacked the power or authority to implement its program plan. As a result, some project managers even resisted joining the Council since it had no executive backing, viewing it as a waste of their time. The Council was able to move quickly to obtain a sponsor. One of the existing Council members had a vice president who shared the Council’s belief in project management and, when asked, willingly accepted the role and responsibilities. This was a significant turning point for the Council. With an Executive Sponsor/Champion, the Council was able to accelerate its progress and become a “legitimate” entity.
Wanting to expand its accomplishments, the Council recommended the creation of an Executive Project Management Council (PMEC) to the sponsor, believing that this would help establish a broader base of sponsors and champions. The sponsor readily accepted the recommendation. In short order, invitations to a number of executives were sent out, asking them to attend the first PMEC meeting. At this meeting, the Council’s vision of the role and responsibility of the PMEC and its relationship with the Council were discussed. The PMEC today consists of 10 executives, representing the major units of the company. During 1999, they (1) agreed to the creation of the Project Management Center of Excellence (PMCOE), (2) approved the implementation of a standard project management process methodology, and (3) attended the pilot of a Project Management Executive Strategy Session—a new training course for executives.
The Council’s recommendation for the PMCOE included a staffing design of three to five professional Project Managers. These individuals would be Project Management Professionals (PMP®) as certified by the Project Management Institute, and expected to be role models in their respective communities. Their assignments were proposed as rotational to allow for a broader exposure and development. The PMCOE would have a clear set of deliverables in support of improving the company’s overall project management performance. It would also be tightly linked with the existing Council and the PMEC.
The Present
Organizational Structure
The organizational makeup of the PMCOE has been structured around functional areas of responsibility. These areas are Leadership, Sharing and Recognition, Training and Development, Deployment, and Reviews and Results.
Leadership
This area is responsible for the preparation of the annual program plan and the establishment of cross-company project management goals. This area is also responsible for providing overall guidance and direction for COE activities.
Sharing and Recognition
The primary responsibility within this area is the planning and delivery of the annual Project Management Symposium. This extremely successful event brings together project managers from many of the individual units in a forum that is complete with presentations from leading consultants in the industry and company leaders, “track” presentations by project managers within the company and other related items. Other responsibilities include designing and implementing enhancements to the COE/Council web site, adding new items and ensuring an ongoing, timely, consistent and two-way communication with the project management community.
Training and Development
This area’s primary focus has been on the implementation of a best-practices project management process methodology. This methodology provides a standard approach for the management of projects. Process flows as well as detailed step-by-step backup documentation is available to the project managers. In conjunction with the Council, and in partnership with the training organization, this area also provides support for the development of additional project management training. Included in this training focus is the development and rollout of an executive strategy session, targeted for executive familiarity of project management principles as well as a definition of the kind of support required by project managers.
Deployment
Still under development, this area will focus on obtaining information directly related to the project management of the company’s key projects to establish a current baseline and track the progress of deployment.
Reviews and Results
Also under development at this time, this area is planned to include the design and implementation of a review process that will be utilized to collect information, provide consultation and corrective advice, and determine additional areas of opportunity.
Objectives
Communication Plan to the Project Management Community
Since the Council already had an established web site, to avoid duplication of effort, a joint Council and COE web site was created in January 2000. A new look and feel was incorporated, while still maintaining the same URL to avoid user confusion. A new banner for the home page was added utilizing the logo used for the annual symposium as “brand” identification. The web site was placed under the control of the COE to maintain a single-point-of-contact with the web master to ensure overall consistency. All Council Working Committees are able to utilize the web for communications purposes. A “What’s New” section was added to keep a high level of interest with the web site information. The objective was to maintain the interest of the project management community and ensure the frequency of their visits to the site.
Various Council Working Committees have regular postings on the web site. The Awards and Recognition Committee created a mailbox to gather the most frequently asked questions about submitting for the Project Management Excellence Awards. Questions are gathered, and posted for all to see, as opposed to replying to each question individually. The Communications Committee will create a quarterly newsletter to be posted on the site, with the intent to move to a monthly publication. The newsletter will have a standard set of features and columns.
Many e-mail messages received by the COE via the web mailbox have centered on locating a project management opportunity within the company. A consideration for a future feature on the site is to post project management job opportunities. The Project Management Executive Council will be the initial source of soliciting these opportunities. The COE will open the communication between the candidate and the hiring manager. The second largest clamoring from the project management community was to create a repository of lessons learned. This is an objective to be considered for future development.
What’s the next best communication method to reach a large number of project mangers besides having a web site? E-MAIL!! Through a partnership with the training organization, the COE was able to create discrete distribution lists to reach a large number of project managers or individuals that had a strong interest/desire in project management. E-mail distribution lists were created based upon three types of criteria: all Symposia attendees; individuals with a Masters Certificate; and individuals that had attended more than one project management course in the last three years. Most messages were short, directing recipients to the web site for specific up-coming events, hot topics from “the top,” and other updates.
Thanks to a partnership with PMI, a list was created for a PMP®-only distribution. The list provided by PMI was cross-referenced and validated against our employee database to ensure accuracy.
Project Management Process Methodology
Every leader and consultant in the project management industry will tell you that one of the first steps on the road to corporate project management competency is to have one project management methodology consistently applied. With PMEC endorsement, the COE plotted this course. During the first quarter of the year, the COE published the company’s first standardized Project Management Process Methodology. It was based on an earlier process created by the Council in 1997. Long hours and some great work were put into it, but it was never released due to restructuring within the company. The COE took a long look at the old version and decided to revamp, update, and release it.
This was accomplished in two sequential releases. The first release contained process flows; and the second release contained supporting detailed documentation. The Project Management Process Methodology is industry standard and PMBOK® compliant. It has five phases, incorporating Initiation, Planning, Execution, Control, and Closeout. Utilizing the e-mail distribution lists compiled, a letter was sent explaining what the project management process methodology was all about, the need for it in the company, and where it could be found on our web site.
Led by the COE, a team was formed of Council and COE members to review and update, and rework when necessary, the existing process methodology. The team was comprised of 10 members. The process was scrubbed over the course of two-and-a-half months. Each of the five phases of the process methodology was divided among the members to create six subteams, one for each phase and a separate overall communications team. Each team member was urged not to rewrite the work, merely to enhance it. Weekly status meetings were held to review progress. A plan was created to review one phase per status call, reviewing the last phase one week prior to the due date set by the team. The entire team reviewed each subteam’s updates jointly for discussion.
Per the Communications plan, the first release rolled out to the project managers in the form of a formal letter via e-mail and an attachment announcing the corporate Project Management Process Methodology. The first release was a process methodology flow diagram, with the written commitment to roll out the second release, containing supporting detailed documentation of the flows, a month later. The first release of the methodology contained both prescriptive and descriptive steps. The most essential steps, or the “what” were incorporated under the highest level or prescriptive category, e.g., “Create a Project Plan.” The descriptive steps, or next level of detail, provided more information on the “how.”
The methodology was placed under change control coincident with the delivery of the first release. A change control request form was designed and posted on the web site along with the process methodology. A Change Control Board, composed of members of the initial team, was created. The Change Control Board meets quarterly to review all change control requests, unless the number of change requests received mandate a more frequent schedule. There is one point of contact in the COE who receives all change control requests and leads the Change Control Board. The plan is not to constantly release updates to the process methodology, but to keep it as static as possible, and release updates bi-annually.
The feedback on the project management process methodology has been positive. Project managers clamored for the delivery of the second release weeks before publication.
Project Management Symposium
One of the most successful and major events sponsored jointly by the COE and Council is the annual Project Management Symposium. This year the program manager is a dedicated resource from the COE, supported by a team of Council volunteers. The two prior years’ symposia were an overwhelming success with sellout attendance and positive feedback. In addition to the support demonstrated by the project managers, there is strong executive support and involvement from the PMEC and other business unit leaders.
The symposium provides a forum to link the executives and project managers within the company. The executive presence provides an avenue for two way communication by giving the audience an opportunity to hear first hand the direction the executives want to take the business, including the role of project management, as well as providing a question and answer session. By answering audience questions, the executives, in turn, gain an understanding of opinions and concerns of the audience. At the past two symposia, the executive participation was in the form of a panel discussion moderated by a leader in the project management industry. For 2000, we are considering several key business leaders as individual presenters. Guest speakers will include outside industry leaders and consultants.
Track presentations have always been successful in providing a learning experience for the attendees. In addition to presentations by project managers, we have opened the tracks to include vendor participation. The vendors have supported the symposium by providing a networking session, as well as providing product demonstrations and discussions. Some vendors have also donated products/services for a raffle drawing.
In 1999, the Project Management Excellence Awards were sponsored by the Council and announced at the symposium. A key business leader rearranged his calendar to be able to present the Excellence Awards to the recipients at the symposium.
Middle Management Positioning
A part of the COE’s current focus is ensuring the awareness, involvement, and support of the middle management ranks. This is an important constituency since, in most cases these managers have direct control of the project managers and can strongly influence not only what is managed, but also how projects are managed as well. Feedback from the project managers has also indicated that more support is required from this set of managers. We view this group as one of three important groups within our company with respect to project management. The three groups are our executives or upper management, middle managers, and the project managers. Large strides have been made to capture the attention of the executive ranks with the establishment of the PMEC, the Executive Strategy Session and the annual symposia. At the other end of the spectrum, we have been able to easily gain the support and attention of the project managers. Little has been done with the middle managers to gain their buy-in and support.
As of this writing, the COE plans to create a Deployment Team, made up of key middle managers from the various internal units. This team will work together with the Council and the COE to identify and address critical project management needs. Involving this team will ensure more direct support of the project managers and their needs, while also allowing for a better deployment of new or enhanced processes, training, or other project management practices.
The targeted team members include the managers of some of the largest programs within the company as well as those who have responsibility for project management organizations. Conference calls and/or face-to-face meetings are planned. These meetings, to be facilitated by the PMCOE, will provide a forum for all to share existing tools, processes and practices and to collectively determine gaps or other needs that would provide the opportunity to improve overall project performance.
Training
The COE has worked with the internal training organization on the development of project management training. The first of these was an Executive Strategy Session. This was designed through a joint effort of the Council’s Education and Training Working Committee, the training organization and the PMCOE. The pilot session was held in 1999 and attended by the PMEC. Heralded as a success by the initial group of attendees, the PMEC’s comments and suggestions for improvement were captured and incorporated into the course content for further deployment in 2000. An additional four sessions are planned during 2000.
The area of advanced project management training has also been investigated. Once again, working in conjunction with the Council and its Education and Training Working Committee, a potential list of subject areas for advanced training was developed. This initial list was reviewed and prioritized. Additionally, the potential list was shared with the project managers attending the 1999 Symposium through a survey. The responses were tabulated and rank ordered. Some of the areas under consideration are managing multiple projects, project recovery and program management skill-sets.
Partnerships
What’s the easiest way to get a job done? Get help! That’s exactly what was done. The COE has established successful partnerships with several internal organizations: the training organization, Quality Office, Project Management Council, Project Management Council Steering Committee, Human Resources, PMEC, and Corporate Auditing.
The training organization provides project management training to the entire company. The COE has successfully partnered with this organization. The COE is consulted and provides feedback on the content of project management training courses, as well as attending vendor demonstration presentations. An information sheet that provides information about the COE, Council and PMEC is distributed as part of the package handed out in each project management class. This is done to increase each attendee’s awareness of this support infrastructure. The information provided includes the “why” behind the PMCOE, its placement within the company, its functions and its linkages. The PMEC is described and its members listed. The Council, its history, vision and mission statements are provided as well as a listing of all of the current positions.
In addition to the write up in the course materials, the COE has been given the opportunity to make a regularly scheduled short presentation at project management courses to inform students about the COE, Council, PMEC and how they all work together. As a part of this “infomercial” the project management process methodology is reviewed. The focus of these infomercials is to meld together the educational experience of the project management curriculum and the application of it in the workplace ... where the educational theory meets reality.
The COE has also successfully partnered with our Human Resources department. The partnership has focused on items such as the project management career path, the ongoing identification of the individual project managers, and an enhanced, internal job post and search capability. The discussions and plans are in the early stages of development with more work necessary. Given current company priorities, the Human Resources department’s workload is fairly significant at this time. Discussions, and the formulation of plans, will mostly occur in the latter part of 2000.
The partnership with our internal Auditing department began during the Council’s early stages of development, with the sharing of root cause findings from project audits. The Internal Auditing Director personally teamed with the Council in the initial development of the Project Management Process Methodology. This teaming provided data to support the Council’s convictions at the time and another champion for its cause.
Today, this partnership continues to thrive. The recently introduced Project Management Process Methodology was reviewed with the Auditing department in order to establish a project review approach tied to the methodology. Summary findings from project audits will be shared with the COE for consideration as additional areas of focus.
Within the organizational structure of the company, the COE and Quality Office reside under the same key business leader. There are strong synergies between the two groups. The COE has been consulted on a new Six Sigma® (a registered Trademark of Motorola) training course to ensure that the project management perspective has been accurately represented. Team members from the two groups work together at joint strategy sessions to identify the interdependencies of project and process management.
The partnership between the COE and the Project Management Executive Council (PMEC) has provided enormous support for the COE’s efforts. Since agreeing to establish the COE at its first meeting, the PMEC has continued to respond to its requests. Communication has flowed easily and rapidly between the COE and the PMEC members. The meeting schedule for 2000 was relatively easy to establish—quite a feat given the busy executive calendars. When asked for support for the 2000 Symposium, the PMEC members once again responded with the same high level of support that had been provided in the past. The Symposium appears to be a fairly popular event among the PMEC. When called upon to provide members to our Excellence Awards team, most of the PMEC members “rose to the occasion” by forwarding our message for help throughout their organizations.
Several new members, as replacements for others, have joined the PMEC. These new members have accepted their position on the PMEC quickly and easily. We expect their level of support to be no less than that of the original members. As of this writing, we are planning the agenda for the first 2000 PMEC meeting.
The Project Management Steering Committee is composed of the Chair and Co-Chair of the Council and all Council Working Committee leads. This year there are seven members on the Steering Committee. The areas represented are Education and Training, Awards and Recognition, Standards and Tools, Communications, Membership and Symposium Planning. Several Steering Committee members are also members of the COE. The Steering Committee meets quarterly, with more frequent meetings scheduled as necessary.
The Future
Looking ahead, growth for the COE is anticipated, both in its staff number and responsibilities. More involvement in the identification and support of key projects and/or programs within the company is expected. This support may involve the review of these projects to determine the type of methodology applied, the expected deliverables, and the project manager’s experience and credentials. For planning purposes, the COE will then be able to determine target areas. Areas of strength will look to be leveraged across the company.
Another area included in the COE growth is the setting of a corporate-level project management goal. This goal would be targeted at establishing a desired level of performance while baselining and understanding the current level of performance. The goal may focus on a specific objective within the project management process (e.g., change management control) or be more general in nature (e.g., improved performance with respect to the triple constraint).
The COE receives many inquiries for project management job opportunities. Currently under consideration is posting job opportunities on the web site. Initially, opportunities will be solicited from the PMEC organizations, and then solicited from other organizations within the company. The intent is to establish a communication vehicle for candidates and hiring managers. The COE will remain neutral and not endorse the candidate or the job. However, some thought on the process to receive, review, and confirm job opportunities must still be investigated prior to its implementation.
Within the area of project manager recognition, the COE works closely with the Awards and Recognition Working Committee of the Council to create new ways to recognize areas of accomplishment. A plan is being established to acknowledge individuals that receive a Master’s Certificate or PMP® certification. One consideration is to post individual names on the web site monthly and present a commemorative certificate at the annual symposium.
Summary
The Project Management Center of Excellence grew out of the successful work of the Project Management Council. The Council’s volunteers were able to overcome an unstructured initial effort, company reorganizations, and other roadblocks to eventually sustain a significant contribution to project management within our company. The Council was instrumental in obtaining an Executive Sponsor to support its efforts. Together, the Council and Sponsor assembled the Executive Council. This group of executives has provided a broad base of support from across the company. Their endorsement of the COE demonstrates the value they place on project management.
The COE today is in its infant stage. Its structure supports the current areas of focus. Its objectives in 2000 are aimed at positioning, partnerships, communication, methodology deployment, and training. In the future the COE expects to grow in size and responsibilities with a deeper involvement in the company’s significant projects and programs.