Playbook
The 90-day PMO setup playbook
A practical guide to establishing the governance, visibility and delivery discipline needed for a PMO to create value from day one.
Before Day 1. Preconditions
- Confirm executive sponsorship and commitment
- Confirm there is a clear business need for the PMO
- Secure the budget required to begin the implementation
Days 1–30. Assess and design
- Build an inventory of active initiatives and identify their current status
- Assess governance forums, reporting practices and decision-making processes
- Define the PMO charter, including its mandate, scope, authority and success measures
- Design the governance model and operating approach
Days 31–60. Launch
- Launch the governance cadence and executive review forums
- Publish the first portfolio dashboard with a consolidated view of active initiatives
- Standardize the minimum set of delivery templates and reporting practices
- Define the Risk, Assumption, Issue and Dependency (RAID) management process and escalation path
- Clarify PMO roles, responsibilities and ways of working
Days 61–90. Build credibility
- Produce regular portfolio reporting to support executive decision-making
- Monitor governance actions, decisions and follow-up commitments
- Support delivery teams in applying the new governance and reporting model
- Define PMO performance indicators and review cadence
- Build an improvement backlog based on lessons learned during the first three months
Common mistakes to avoid
- Trying to standardize everything before understanding how delivery actually works
- Measuring the PMO by the number of reports it produces instead of the decisions it enables
- Expanding the PMO before establishing clear governance and delivery practices