The Virtual PMOTM provides a concise template to introduce project management best practices and demonstrate immediate value. The template condenses key processes from the PMBOK Guide into a simple format that includes plans for communication, quality management, resources, scheduling and risk. It is designed for organizations at lower levels of project management maturity to help generate an "aha moment" about potential efficiencies. The template can also serve as a training tool while offering structure and accountability similar to a formal PMO. It is customizable depending on an organization's needs while focusing on initiation, planning and closing process groups for quick impact.

1. PMI Virtual Library
© 2011 Marc Lotti
The Virtual PMO™ — Jump-starting
Project Management Efficiency
By Marc Lotti, PMP

I
t might surprise you to learn the project management community
that 97% of organizations give decision-makers their first “aha”
are only at a Level 2 or 97% of organizations moment? First, an assessment should
below (out of 5 levels) in be made on how mature the project
project management maturity are only at a Level 2 or below management efforts are within a
and few have a formal project/ given environment. What exactly
program/portfolio management (out of 5 levels) in project is project management maturity?
”
office (PMO). This presents Like most maturity models, it is a
management maturity
a tremendous opportunity framework for knowing where an
for efficiencies in the area of organization is (benchmarking) and
project management across measuring progress. The United
most organizations. Often, the Kingdom Office of Government
problem with selling a project Commerce (OGC) offers a simple
management discipline or framework is generating the “aha” definition of a maturity model, as depicted below (Figure 1)
moment—the moment in which enlightenment or value is in graphical form.
finally realized. Decision-makers want to see the value in This article presumes that an organization at a
implementing something new, and, today, more quickly than Level 3 or above, by definition, already understands the
ever before. Once they have their “aha” moment, however,
they become engaged and eager to learn more. Typically, at  
this point, the value of something isn’t yet based on a financial
calculation; it’s solely driven by benefits. As with most 

proposals, however, decision-makers want to be convinced
quickly of a return on their investment; this changes the 


analysis from being exclusively benefits driven to a financial 
calculation as well. 


Return on investment (ROI), however, is no longer 
the only factor to consider—time and opportunity cost  
calculations are moving to the forefront of the decision- 

making process. There are few data supporting the positive

ROI for investing the time, resources, and money in formal 
project management or a PMO; hence, it is difficult to
convince managers to undertake these initiatives. How can Figure 1

2. merits of project management, as defined in A Guide to Where the Virtual PMO™ really shines, however, is
the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® in addressing a leap that organizations fail to make
Guide) or a comparable framework; they’ve already had because of the perceived and often real complexity and
their “aha” moment, so typically, it isn’t these people we costs of implementing a PMO. Often, this results in a
need to convince. Levels 0-2 organizations, however, need delayed or unrealized “aha” moment and, consequently,
to be convinced that efficiency can be driven through little to no progress in project management maturity.
proper project management. We could ask all Levels 0-2 Thomas and Mullaly cited that measuring organizational
organizations to grab a copy of the PMBOK® Guide—Fourth value is challenging for any corporate undertaking. The
edition and run with it, but the process can be made simpler. Virtual PMO™ addresses these challenges through a low-
To demonstrate the immediate value and usability, we’ve cost (dollars, implementation, training, etc.) framework
condensed the key Process Groups of the PMBOK® Guide while offering the best parts of a PMO (best-practice
and added an easy-to-understand detail framework that standards, saving time, budgetary control, risk
Levels 0-2 organizations can use, and there are many of containment, etc.) in a condensed format in which value is
them. According to Thomas and Mullaly, the distribution of immediately visible.
organizations they studied was as follows: 50% at Level 0-1, The Virtual PMO™ template maintains sections that
47% at Level 2, and only 3% at Level 3 (Figure 2). are often requirements or the least common denominators
of most projects, irrespective of size. It focuses primarily
on the Initiation, Planning, and Closing Process Groups
Level 0-1 of the PMBOK® Guide, with the expectation that the
Level 2 Executing and Monitoring and Controlling Process Groups
are addressed using other project management tools. Just
Level 3
as every component of the PMBOK® Guide is typically not
Level 4 appropriate for every project, so are not all components of the
Level 5 Virtual PMO™ template appropriate for every project
and sections can often be excluded without compromising
project success.
Figure 2 Included here is a section for a project charter, as defined
in the following statement:
No organizations in their study qualified for Levels 4 “Drafted by the Project Sponsor to secure
and 5. Presuming these statistics are representative of industries
at large, there is a tremendous project management growth project funding and communicated high-level
opportunity across many organizations that could possibly project purpose and objectives. Typically a
benefit from a Virtual PMO™ jump-start, or, more simply,
these organizations could discover their “aha” moment! separate document and not in the project
plan, however, added here for simplicity and
The Virtual PMO™
The simplicity of the Virtual PMO™ is its effectiveness in centralization.”
introducing and leveraging the best practices from the PMBOK®
Guide and immediately demonstrating value to stakeholders. This is followed by a table of stakeholders and their roles
The Virtual PMO™ does not employ a staff, rather it uses (Table 1), a critical component so often missed by novice
a basic template for governance; hence, the “Virtual” in its project managers. The PMP knows there’s nothing quite
name. Its simplicity is deceptively effective and is extensible like missing stakeholders and discovering later that they have
based on an organization’s particular needs. The template requirements. This table specifies the stakeholder’s “name”
offers guidance (a description of what belongs there) in each and his or her role in the project or organization.
field for the project management novice who might not know Table 2 lists embedded plans that can be expanded as
what a particular field represents or what its purpose is. So, needed; however, the basic plans of communication, quality
although it is immediately useful to a Project Management management, resource and scheduling, and risk are included
Professional (PMP)®, it is also a training tool for less by default and detailed in the appendix of the complete
experienced staff and Level 0 organizations. Virtual PMO template.
PMI Virtual Library | www.PMI.org | © 2011 Marc Lotti
2

3. Name Project/Organization Role
Individual primarily managing the project Project Manager
Individual who will assist the project manager or another project manager Project Management Resource
Individual providing technical assistance Engineering Resource
Individual representing business needs in the project Business Resource
Individual managing project risk as prescribed by the risk management plan Risk Manager
Individual responsible for the group within which the project will be executed Functional Manager
Person securing project funding Project Sponsor
Table 1
Probability Effect Cost to Probable Cost
Risk Corrective Action
0-10 0-10 Correct of Inaction
Catastrophic failure 1 9 Disaster recovery plan and insurance US$5,000 US$170,000
Client backlash 3 10 Client relations to monitor changes US$3,000 US$20,000
Table 2
The Risk Management Plan “All project updates will be provided to
The all important Risk Management Plan tops the list of
embedded plans and covers the organizational management stakeholders as per the table below. Additional
of risk, including external vendors, client risks, and a risk-
steering committee. This creates accountability for project dialogue and updates will occur in weekly team
risk and defines participants’ roles in risk management.
How risk is analyzed, screened, and ranked is defined next, meetings after which minutes will be posted to
followed by risk tracking and a budget. Once the plan is
the project repository.”
approved, a Risk Register (Table 3) within the template acts as
the repository of all identified project risks, the probability of
occurrence, the effect, and the mitigating action. The Quality Management Plan
The Quality Management Plan is distilled in the template to:
The Communication Plan
The embedded Communication Plan can be very brief and “This plan defines the procedure and level of
is often accompanied by a table for conciseness, making the
plan very readable and effective. An example follows: quality management for this project.”
Project/Organization Role Distribution Medium Frequency (days) Content Requested
Project Manager E-mail 1 All updates
Project Management Resource E-mail 7 Responsibility reports/updates
Engineering Resource E-mail 10 Technical updates/tasks
Business Resource Hard-copy reports 30 Schedule and cost variances
Risk Manager Project repository Continuous Identified risk updates and new risks
Functional Manager E-mail 15 Resource variances and product changes
Identified risk updates, new risks, or schedule
Project Sponsor Project dashboard 7
and cost variances
Table 3
PMI Virtual Library | www.PMI.org | © 2011 Marc Lotti
3

4. • Client Requirements: What are the limits to satisfy the before you’ve made your case. Consider the Virtual PMO™
client requirements? the 30-second “elevator pitch” for the PMO—quickly engage,
• Control Limits: What are the internal control limits intrigue, and impress on decision-makers the value, and
before action is taken? they’ll be convinced!
• Out-of-control Thresholds: What limits require
immediate intervention, analysis, and a work stoppage? Reference
• Quality Assurance Members: Those who will analyze the Thomas, J., & Mullaly, M. (2008). Researching the
data value of project management. Newtown Square, PA: Project
• Quality Control Members: Those who will collect the Management Institute.
data through inspection
About the Author
The Resource Acquisition and Scheduling Plan Marc Lotti has worked in information technology and
The Resource Acquisition and Scheduling Plan rounds management consulting for over 15 years and presently
out the embedded plans by advocating the use of standard provides guidance to business executives and operations
methods for resource acquisition, vendor engagements, the management through Mandragore, a boutique consultancy
RFP process, and the project scheduling approach. firm he founded in 1996. Marc sits on several advisory
Naturally, there’s a section for the all-important scope boards, contributes to strategic operations direction, and
and a few sections are included as scope-creep inhibitors. The mentors staff in both operations and technology. Most
template includes the following instructions in the scope section. recently, he bootstrapped UFlexData, a turn-key technology
platform for small and medium-sized businesses. In
“State the project’s objectives including the addition to Marc’s leadership role at Mandragore, he was
the acting Chief Technology Officer of Trilogy Global
objective project outcomes that can be measured. Advisors between 2004 and 2009, where he managed
technology operations and led all technology integration
(e.g., reduce the RFP process time by 30%) Enter during their 2005 merger with BPI Global Funds. In
2003, he developed a notable strategic computing roadmap
order of magnitude costs, which may be from
for the Corporate Travel division of American Express.
50% below to 100% above actual project costs. From 1996 to 2002, Marc was a technology consultant
for Goldman Sachs Asset Management, followed by the
These are very rough estimates that will be more Investment Management Division, where he was employed
in multiple capacities across many projects. Prior to
accurate as the project is elaborated.” founding Mandragore, Marc was the Infrastructure
Manager for International Emerging Markets worldwide
There’s also an important Assumptions/Clarifications/ at Merrill Lynch and later, an Assistant Vice-President
Exclusions or Limitations section to clarify any ambiguity and at Fuji Securities, where he led firm-wide technology
disclose as many assumptions about the project as possible to infrastructure. Marc earned a BA in Economics from Stony
enable stakeholder feedback early on in the process. Project Brook University, holds an MBA from Thunderbird School
justification and a cost outline are also included to appease of Global Management, and is a Project Management
those paying the bills. Professional (PMP)®, with more than 15,000 hours of
As with so many corporate undertakings, introducing project/program/portfolio management experience. Marc
too much, too quickly, and promoting something new can lives in Connecticut with his wife Andrea and their children,
often be a turn-off, and decision-makers may walk away Nicolas and Bianca.
PMI Virtual Library | www.PMI.org | © 2011 Marc Lotti
4