The PMO Squad

The PMO Squad was founded by Joe Pusz, PMO Joe in March 2013. The organization started in Atlanta, GA before moving headquarters in 2017 to Phoenix, AZ. The original idea to create The PMO Squad came to PMO Joe after years of running PMOs within Corporate America. Many times he sought out consulting support for his PMOs but could not find firms dedicated to project management. After several failed attempts working with firms who offered, but didn't specialize, project management services, Joe decided to build a firm dedicated to supporting PMO Leaders. Throughout the life of the company they have offered services and capabilities built specifically to address real-world project management challenges faced by organizations.

In addition to leadership in the project management community, The PMO Squad is also strong supporters of Veterans of the US Military. Each year since 2021, The PMO Squad has earned the Platinum Medallion from the US Department of Labor in recognition of their work hiring and retaining veterans. Joe Pusz, along with Eric Wright, is also the Co-Founder of VPMMA, the Veteran Project Manager Mentoring Alliance. VPMMA is a 501c3 non-profit organization assisting Veterans and Military Spouses transitioning from active duty service to civilian project management careers.

In recognition for their outstanding service to the community and within their profession, The PMO Squad was honored by the Phoenix Business Journal in 2022 as the winner of the Small Business of the Year.

The PMO Squad helps organizations deliver projects better. Their team of Project Management experts assist clients across all industries with Solutions Made Simple to improve their project delivery capabilities. Their Customer Focused and Purpose Driven Approach provides custom Agile and Project Management solutions to fit your needs.

The PMO Squad History

• 2013 The PMO Squad is formed in Atlanta, GA
• 2013 The PMO Squad serves our first Fortune 200 client
• 2013 The PMO Squad performs our first PMO improvement initiative
• 2014 The PMO Squad delivers our first Project Management Training Courses
• 2016 The PMO Squad leads our first Agile Transformation
• 2017 The PMO Squad delivers our first global eCommerce program
• 2018 The PMO Squad opens second location in Phoenix, AZ
• 2018 Project Management Office Hours Radio Show and Podcast launches
• 2019 The Purpose Driven PMO framework is finalized
• 2020 PMO Joe named one of the Top 15 Global PMO Influencers by the PMO Global Alliance.
• 2021 The PMO Squad establishes Partnerships with leading global brands Planview, Cora Systems, QuantumWorks, and TrackVia.
• 2021 The PMO Leader global community launches.
• 2021 The PMO Squad earns Platinum Medallion from US Department of Labor HIRE Vets program.
• 2021 PMO Joe named one of the Top 8 Global PMO Influencers by the PMO Global Alliance.
• 2022 The PMO Squad invited to sit on PMO Executive Roundtable hosted by PMI.
• 2022 The PMO Squad wins Small Business Awards, micro category, presented by the Phoenix Business Journal.
• 2022 The PMO Squad earns for the second consecutive year the Platinum Medallion from the US Department of Labor HIRE Vets program.
• 2022 PMO Joe named the top PMO Influencer in the Americas by the PMO Global Alliance.
• 2022 The PMO Squad establishes partnership with Asana.
• 2023 The PMO Squad establishes partnership with TransparentChoice.
• 2023 The PMO Squad earns for the third consecutive year the Platinum Medallion from the US Department of Labor HIRE Vets program.
• 2023 PMO Joe invited to participate as member of the Project Management Institute PMO Insight Team.
• 2024 The PMO Squad expands and grows at record rates earning designation as one of the fastest growing organizations in the United States.
• 2024 New Leadership Team onboarded to guide The PMO Squad to achieve continued growth as the leading PM and PMO Consulting firm in the US.

Consulting

The PMO Squad Consulting Services are built to address the challenges organizations and PMO Leaders face navigating the many twists and turns on your Organizational Project Delivery Journey. Whether you are just getting starting or looking to reach your ultimate capability, The PMO Squad understands the journey can be difficult to travel alone. Utilize their team of PMO Leaders and Project Delivery Experts to push forward delivering Agile, PPM, Project Management and PMO solutions to help you reach your goals. The PMO Squad provides the following Consulting Services for your organization:

• PMO Assessments & Health Checks
• PMO Builds
• PMO Improvements/Optimization
• Resource Management & Utilization
• Strategic Planning
• Portfolio Planning and Governance
• Organizational Project Delivery Capability Analysis

Technology Services

The PMO Squad is not a software company and does not build PPM systems for organizations. However, The PMO Squad does work with clients in need of technology solutions. In addition to internal technology expertise, they have established partnerships with several leading global PPM providers. As such, The PMO Squad is an official Asana Partner. As a Asana Partner, The PMO Squad provides expertise in Asana Implementations, Improvements, and Training. They are also an Asana Reseller and combined with their solutions capability, The PMO Squad is a full service Asana Partner to handle any Asana need your organization may have.

The PMO Squad technology team is able to support a variety of system based needs your organization may have. Additional systems supported by The PMO Squad include: MS Project Online, Monday.com, ClickUp, AirTable, Planview, Clarity, Trello, ServiceNow, Sciforma and Smartsheet. Support for these various systems range from one-off requests for system enhancements or integrations through full system administration depending upon your needs. Our internal team of technology experts has the added advantage of immediate accessibility to The PMO Squad Consulting team bringing a true full-service capability to any technology engagement.

As of 2024, The PMO Squad is also an official partner of TransparentChoice and MeisterPlan.

Resources

The PMO Squad is not a staffing firm, but they do work with clients to meet their Project Management resource needs. Since they focus only on Project Management services they have access to experienced Agile, PMO, and Project Management talent. Over the years they've built a virtual bench of highly qualified project delivery experts which allows them to respond quickly to your resourcing needs. They supply Agile, PMO and Project Management resource for Contract engagements, Temp to Hire arrangements and also for permanent placement with Direct Hires.

In the post-COVID gig economy many organizations have sought out partnerships with external firms to outsource, partially or fully, their project management teams. The PMO Squad is one of the leading Project Management Outsource firms in North America. Regardless the size of your need or the industry in which you work, The PMO Squad has the capacity to supply your necessary Project Management resources. This Project Management as a Service (PMaaS) capability is limited to a select few service providers as only a few have the team available to support your outsourcing needs.

Many organizations utilize staffing firms to fill a variety of resource needs across an organization. These large staffing firms are limited in their Project Management expertise and often overwhelm a PMO Leader with a volume of resumes hoping to deliver a single matching candidate. The PMO Squad Direct Placement Services offers expertise beyond the generic staffing firm. As experts in Project Management, The PMO Squad provides full candidate screening & vetting limiting the number of candidates to review. The PMO Squad Direct Placement Services offers quality candidates compared to staffing firms providing quantity of candidates. In a true quality vs quantity comparison, The PMO Squad Direct Placement Services is a far more economical and timely path to filling your direct hiring needs.

Training

The PMO Squad training classes are developed to provide hands on learning for your teams. They are also offer Team Building Workshops centered on Project Management gaming experiences for fun and educational sessions. These Team Building Workshops are a half-day or full-day workshop for your team. The workshop utilizes the PMZone Board Game to provide a fun and engaging learning environment. The workshops are all conducted in-person which is a welcome relief in our virtual work environment.

Organizational Project Delivery Journey

Most important to successful project delivery within an organization is the capability of the organization to work cohesively within an accepted system. This is not foreign to organizations as they have historically developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the core operating activities within the organization. The great majority of organizations around the world have not adopted similar accepted practices for project delivery within the organization and as such, the organization struggles to consistently and repeatedly deliver successful projects. After years of research, client feedback, and study of successful project delivery organizations, The PMO Squad has developed the Organizational Project Delivery Journey.

The OPD Journey is a realization of the timing to build organizational capability to deliver projects successful. Every organization, regardless of size, location, or industry, travels this journey achieving breakthroughs upon reaching certain milestones of capability. The Journey milestones are listed below in greater detail.

The Organization Project Delivery Journey created by The PMO Squad

AD HOC PROJECT MANAGEMENT

This is where organizations start their Project Management Journey. Individual Project Managers working on assigned projects without any coordination between the projects. The PMs most likely are using their own project management templates. The projects are not within a larger Project Portfolio. Multiple Project Management tools are being used. PMs don't have a career path defined. Some or all PMs haven't received formal project management training. Projects are being done, but no one is really sure of the project status, the PMs probably aren't being managed, and the organization is most likely not getting any values from Ad Hoc Project Management.

STANDARDIZING PROJECT DELIVERY

Once you've reached this stage you're no longer running projects ad hoc, you now have some standardized processes and tools. You've made good progress! The challenges are not gone however, as you must now meet increased expectations from leaders that you are going to consistently deliver successful projects. Your organization may be getting ready to build their first PMO during this stage your improvements are getting noticed. The Project Managers are working together to share best practices but leaders now want to see reports and measurements to understand what the added costs are giving them. You most likely have many skeptics in the organization who feel project management discipline isn't necessary. Resource Management and Portfolio Management still aren't accepted and projects are still being run by Accidental PMs.

ORGANIZATIONAL PROJECT DELIVERY

You are really starting to make an impact at your organization with Project Management! During this stage your organization is utilizing great practices with Portfolio Management, Resource Management, PPM tools, KPIs or other Metrics and your PMO is organized and effective. This is also usually when organizational leaders are grumbling about the overhead of the PMO, process is getting in the way of progress. You may also be struggling with the PMO still reporting to a specific function, such as IT, rather than at an Enterprise level. The Project Management software you originally purchased is now being stretched to its limits and a more robust tool is most likely in order. Your Project Managers probably have a defined career path but are seeking additional training to help them take on the high-visibility projects. As the PMO Leader you're now seeking some coaching to help you navigate the strategic organizational discussions you're being pulled into more often.

STRATEGIC PROJECT DELIVERY

This is where many PMOs hit the wall. The industry has begun developing the SRO or Strategy Realization Office concept but in reality they are trying to jump through the Project Management Journey without understanding the complexities and benefits of walking through the stages of the journey.

In this stage, Organizational Leaders participate in portfolio and resource discussions. They are seeing the benefits of successful project delivery and start planning which Project Management rock stars would be assigned to critical projects. But something is missing, it seems as if the PMO and Project Management push has stalled.

You know there can be more but you're not sure how to get there. This stage is when PMOs shift from tactical execution and governance to strategic delivery. This requires a changing mindset from "how are we doing" to "here's how we can drive competitive advantage". Project Management is now a core competency within the organization and Executive Leadership openly participates and supports Project Management activities and rituals.

GENERATING VALUE

You've reached the Project Management Mountaintop, a place few PMOs reach! The journey to stage 5 is long, usually taking 5 - 10 years to reach this point and many lessons have been learned along the way. Once you are here the organization is now feeling the benefits of advanced Project Management and PMO capabilities.

Your organization now embraces project delivery and aligns project outcomes with strategic decision making. It is understood that each project is an investment in time, people, dollars, culture and reputation. The Leadership Team and shareholders expect that projects will generate value for the organization. There is enterprise-wide alignment on Portfolio and Resource decisions, Strategic Goals, and Project Delivery.

The challenge here is greater than at any other stage. Once you reach the pinnacle, how do you maintain this standing? How do you ensure you have the team, tools, and partners to maintain such a high-level of performance?

Purpose Driven PMO

Within the Project Management Industry there has been many standards set to provide a proper naming convention for PM related terms and activities. However, one item remains open to interpretation and definition, the PMO. For many, PMO is a Project Management Office. For others, it may be a Program Management Office and yet others may name it a Portfolio Management Office. In recent years, the PMO has also been relabeled an XMO, SRO, VMO, or AMO. To eliminate some confusion, The PMO Squad has said why the PMO exists is more important than what it is titled. With that in mind, PMO, in the Purpose Driven Approach, has been redefined as Purpose, Measure, Optimize. A singular definition now fits regardless of the Purpose. We no longer have to change our titles, documentation, or roles to fit with an evolving understanding with the industry.

There are many versions of PMOs advertised by firms around the world. Only one, the Purpose Driven PMO from The PMO Squad, starts by defining the reason for the PMO within your organization. Many PMO Leaders struggle to answer three basic questions about their PMO;

1. Why Does Your PMO Exist?
2. How Does Your PMO Provide Value?
3. How Does Your PMO Stay Relevant?

The Purpose Driven PMO created by The PMO Squad

The common approach from most PMO consulting firms is to start building or improving your PMO by defining 1) What is the PMO Scope and 2) How will you provide your services. This novice approach is often a "cookie-cutter" solution trying to fit your unique organization and PMO needs. The Purpose Driven PMO consists of 7 steps to enable organizations to generate value from their PMO. The 7 steps within the Purpose Driven PMO are:

1. Define Your PMO Purpose
2. Build Your PMO Playbook
3. Empower Your People
4. Measure Your PMO Value
5. Communicate Your PMO Value
6. Optimize Your PMO Playbook
7. Optimize Your PMO Team

At minimum, the PMO Purpose Statement should be reviewed and validated with the Executive Leadership team to ensure alignment across the organization. When constructing or improving your PMO be sure you can answer the 3 questions listed above. More importantly, for long-term success, the PMO Leader needs to ensure that the Executive Leadership team has the same answers as the PMO Leader. It is critical to maintain alignment and expectations for PMOs to deliver the value necessary for the organization to succeed.