New Program Management Office Boosts Coordination, Visibility, and Results
Client Challenge
This multi-brand leading manufacturer and wholesaler of bedding and accessories in the US and Canada manufactures most of its products, but also sources from domestic and overseas suppliers. Along with increasing competition, the company was facing pressures to improve customer service and enhance its supply chain capabilities. The client embarked on nine different projects to meet these new demands. Unfortunately, each of these projects was planned separately with no visibility to the other projects’ timelines or requirements.
Moreover, many employees within the company were juggling multiple projects simultaneously, necessitating access to the same code base within the ERP system. Project timelines were disrupted when an associate was unavailable due to commitments to another project. When leadership inquired about the status of delayed projects, the team could not provide answers because they lacked an integrated plan to track associate availability. Additionally, the leadership team was not consistently informed of key issues or risks, hindering their ability to help the teams resolve roadblocks.
Parker Avery Solution
Parker Avery used a multi-step approach to create and implement a new program management office (PMO) for the client’s multiple projects:
- Gathered timelines, resource requirements, and tasks from each project
- Created a high-level program plan that identified key dependencies between projects
- Developed a program reporting structure and hierarchy, rolling all projects into one program
Key activities included:
- Maintained program-level project plan
- Reviewed risks, issues, and change request logs per the client’s SDLC methodology
- Contributed and participated in key stakeholder meetings (program status, project team, design workshops, steering committee)
- Reviewed and consolidated project manager status reports to create a program-level report for executive-level review
- Led program weekly status meetings and monthly program steering committee meetings
Deliverables consisted of:
- Program-level project plan
- Weekly program status report
- Monthly steering committee meeting presentations
Results
Following the implementation of the client’s new program management office, the leadership team was able to understand project timelines, dependencies, key risks, and issues. If an issue was at risk of causing a delay, the client had visibility of the issue and what was required to ‘get back to green,’ including requesting support from the leadership team to remove any roadblocks.
Ensure the success of your next project.
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