Course
digicode: PMOST
Project Management Office (PMO): Manage, don't administer
Course facts
- Defining and establishing uniform project standards and ensuring their sustainable application within the organization
- Controlling and prioritizing a project portfolio, including proactive management of resource bottlenecks
- Developing and interpreting meaningful dashboards and KPIs as a sound basis for decision-making by management and stakeholders
- Strengthen the role of the PMO as a strategic advisor and enabler to increase acceptance and effectiveness among relevant stakeholders
- Integrating hybrid and agile process models into effective PMO governance
1 Foundations & Standards (Focus: Process Excellence)
- Role Image & Positioning:
- The PMO between Administration and Strategy
- Defining your own maturity level
- Standardization:
- Developing «Light» to «Full» PM Methodologies
- Creating a PM Manual
- Practical Phase
- «Standard Check» Workshop: Which templates are ballast, which are critical?
2 Control and Governance (Focus: Portfolio and Resources)
- Portfolio Management:
- Prioritization methods (utility analysis, scoring)
- Multi-project management
- Resource planning:
- Capacity balancing and conflict management across project boundaries
- Governance:
- Roles, responsibilities, and escalation paths
- Practical phase:
- Simulation of a portfolio board: Prioritization in the event of resource shortages
3 Value creation & Trends (Focus: Stakeholders & Future)
- Reporting & KPIs:
- Design of management dashboards
- Stakeholder management:
- Change management for the PMO
- Turning resistance into acceptance
- The modern PMO:
- Agile governance, hybrid models
- AI tools
- Practical phase:
- «The PMO sales pitch»: Presenting the added value to senior management
The course is practice-oriented and works with level-based cases that reflect different stages of PMO maturity. This allows you to apply the content directly to your own organization.
A balanced mix of methods ensures lasting learning success:
- Structured theoretical input provides the technical foundation
- Interactive group work and simulations enable direct application and reflection
- Peer consulting promotes the exchange of experiences and the application of what has been learned in your own context.
For implementation, you will receive a PMO toolbox with tried-and-tested tools and templates, including an Excel-based portfolio tracker, stakeholder matrices, and reporting templates.
The focus is on ensuring transfer: At the end of the third day of the course, you will develop your personal 100-day plan, which you can use to further develop your PMO in a targeted manner and immediately put what you have learned into practice.
The course is aimed at PMO professionals in the early stages of their careers who want to perform their roles confidently, systematically, and effectively.
It is particularly aimed at PMO beginners who are new to the PMO and want to quickly familiarize themselves with methods, terminology, and tasks. PMO employees with initial practical experience who want to systematize, deepen, and professionally apply their previously acquired knowledge will also benefit.
The course addresses typical challenges in everyday PMO work: You will learn how to confidently deal with the complexity of project management methods, bring structure to an often reactive work mode, and use PM tools with confidence. At the same time, you will gain tried-and-tested approaches for increasing the acceptance of PMO standards among experienced project managers, improving data quality from projects, and constructively managing conflicts in resource allocation.
The added value for you lies in your ability to act quickly: You will gain clarity about your role in the PMO, work confidently with standards and terminology, and reduce your workload with structured checklists and templates. In addition, you will develop the skills to actively manage project portfolios, plan resources proactively, and create management-friendly dashboards efficiently and effectively.
A basic understanding of projects or initial PMO experience are advantageous for attending the course.