PRESENTED BY SCIFORMA

THE

PMO
OUTLOOK
REPORT

2024 EDITION
 TABLE OF
CONTENTS

PAGE 03 PAGE 11
Fo rewo rd PM O Perc epti on i s Rea l i ty

PAGE 13
PAGE 04
T h e M i ssi n g L i n k for
A bo ut t he Re po rt
Pr i or i ti zati on

PAGE 04
PAGE 14
E xe cut ive S um m ar y
Re sou rc e M a n a ge me nt –
T h e G a p w i th D e ma n d
PAGE 05
Re def ining W hat S u c c e ss I s PAGE 14
Tec h n ol ogy Su p p or ti n g PM O
PAGE 06 Su c c e ss
B ig ge st C hallenge :
Re s o urce Manage m e nt PAGE 15
Pr i or i ti zati on ( Re) Foc u se d
PAGE 06
B ig ge st C halle nge: PAGE 16
P rio rit izat io n PM - O h No’s!

PAGE 07 PAGE 17
B ig ge st C hallenge : B ra n d You r PM O
F inancial M anage m e nt
PAGE 18
PAGE 08 Top B u si n e ss I n i ta i ti ve s
B ig ge st C hallenge : i n 2 0 2 4
V is ibilit y / Re po rt in g
PAGE 19
PAGE 09
B re a k i n g i t D ow n
T he Def i nit io n o f th e PM O

PAGE 10 PAGE 20
B eco m e a Trusted Ad v i sor T h e PM O : A B u si n e ss
Fu n c ti on

PAGE 21
L ook i n g For wa rd

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FOREWORD:

PMO Outlook Report 2024:

Your PMO’s Perception is Reality

The P ro je ct Man a gem ent O ff i ce (PMO ) h a s a ch a n c e to m a ke a n a m e fo r t h e m s e l ve s i n 2 0 2 4 , b u t n o t

wi tho ut the ri ght a cti vi ty a n d foc u s . For yea rs , t h e PM O wa s s e en a s a t ra c k i n g a n d gover n a n c e f u n c -
ti o n and that has a l l ch a n ged a n d for good rea s o n .
P A G E 0 3

PMO l ea de rs a cros s th e g l ob e h ave a c h a n ce to re- wr i te t h at n a r rat i ve a n d p o s i t i o n t h e i r te a m fo r s u c -

ce ss by fo cusi ng i n on w h at th e b u si n ess ca res a b o u t . In d o i n g s o, p ro j e c t l ea d e rs wi l l ga i n a s e at at t h e
ta bl e i n beco mi n g a s ou rc e of tr u st a n d tra n sp are n c y fo r exec u t i ves i n d r i v i n g va l u e fo r t h e b u s i n es s .
But how a re they d oi n g th at?

PMOs se ei ng succ es s i n 2024 w i l l u n d ersta n d th at i t s ro l e i s a b u s i n es s f u n c t i o n fo c u s e d o n d e l i ve r i n g

val ue a nd o utcom es rath er th a n th e h i stor i ca l o n - t i m e a n d o n - b u d get p ro j ec t m a n a gem ent KPIs p re -
vi o usl y tra cke d. Now I ’m n ot say i n g th ose th i n g s a re n ’ t i m p o r ta nt a nym o re , b u t I a m s ayi n g t h at i t ’s
i mpo rtant to po s i ti on you r P MO a s a va l u e-d r i ve r fo r yo u r b u s i n e s s a n d b e s ee n a s o n e by yo u r key
stakeho l de rs.

H e re ’s why : Orga n i zati on s a re d ef i n i n g a su c ces sf u l PM O a s o n e t h at i s a c ente r o f exc el l e n c e fo r t h e

o rgani zati o n and d el i vers va l u e. O th er stati sti c s fo u n d i n t h i s rep o r t wi l l h i gh l i ght t h e i m p o r ta n c e o f
stakeho l de r al i gn m ent a n d sati sfa cti on w h i c h d irec t l y t i e s b a c k to t h e p e rc e pt i o n t h e o rga n i zat i o n a n d
yo ur executi ves h ave of you r P MO, so p osi ti on it wi t h fo c u s .

Thank yo u to all of ou r p a r ti ci p a nts i n th i s yea r ’s s u r vey. T h e d ata i s co m p e l l i n g , t h o u g ht p rovo k i n g

and ho peful l y, ser ves a s a tool to h el p P MO l ea d e rs a d va n c e t h e i r own j o u r n ey o f b eco m i n g a PM O to
be pro ud o f.

Al l th e b est,
The Sci fo rm a Tea m
 ABOUT THE REPORT
T h i s re p o r t re p re s ent s t h e f i n d i n g s f rom an online sur vey
o f 1 9 q u e st i o n s p o s ed to p o r t fo l i o m anagement leaders,
exe c u t i ves a n d p ro j e c t m a n a ge rs f ro m A ugust 2023 t hrough
Nove m b e r 2 0 2 3 . T h i s rep o r t wa s co n d ucted by Sciforma, a
l ea d i n g p rov i d er o f p ro j e c t p o r t fo l i o m anagement soft ware
a n d s e r v i c es . A to ta l o f 1 0 3 i n d i v i d u a l s represent ing project
a n d p o r t fo l i o m a n a ge m e nt f u n c t i o n s wit hin enterprise
o rga n i zat i o n s , res p o n d e d to t h e s u r vey. Findings presented
re p re s ent res p o n s e s f ro m i n d i v i d u a l s across 20 indust r y
ver t i ca l s , p r i m a r i l y l o cated i n t h e Un ited States, Canada
a n d t h e Un i ted Ki n gd o m . T h i s st u d y was not based on a
p ro b a b i l i t y s a m p l e a n d t h e refo re n o e st imate of t heoret ical
s a m p l i n g e r ro r ca n b e ca l c u l ate d .

Fo r m o re i nfo r m at i o n rega rd i n g t h e s u r vey, please contact

Sc i fo r m a , i nfo r m at i o n @ s c i fo r m a .co m .

P A G E 0 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In 2024, the role of the PMO is simple – deliver value for the organization. But, why does this continue to be a challenge for PMO
leaders year after year. It’s the lack of focus on the right things. PMOs that aren’t positioned to focus on what the business cares
about are setting themselves up for a challenging road ahead.

That said, it’s not too late! This report highlights the simple measures your organization can take to regain the focus needed to
deliver the value the business expects. The truth is, the majority of PMOs are still trying to figure this out as seen in a number of
key findings via the distributed survey.

In this survey, a number of alarming statistics continue to appear including:

- 82% of projects are not very well aligned with strategic business priorities
- 42% of project practitioners aren’t using strategic insights to drive project prioritization
- 67% of project practitioners have had a project fail in the past year
- 51% of PMO leaders cite lack of understanding of the need and no executive support that stops their PMO from improving

While the above statistics are alarming, there are some positive trends we are seeing that are occurring meaning some project
leaders have figured out just how to position their PMO for success.

The goal of this report is to analyze the data presented by those in the field to create a depiction of what the industry is experiencing
as well as what we can expect for PMOs in the coming year. The facts and opinions covered in this report are designed to help
benchmark industry standards and provide insight into current challenges. As the practice of project and portfolio management
changes to meet rising business demands, we are committed to the support and betterment of project, program, product, and
portfolio management.

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REDEFININIG WHAT SUCCESS IS

As the role of the PMO has changed in recent years and the trajectory has continued to evolve in 2024,
PMOs are a business function that enables an organization to create and maintain a more effective and
efficient value delivery. With today’s fast paced business environment, that task isn’t as straight forward
as it sounds.

Over the last four years, the top challenge for PMO leaders and project managers hasn’t changed. In this
year’s survey, we continue to see project management professionals struggle to assign the right resources
to the right projects at the right time citing resource management as their biggest challenge (46%).
P A G E 0 5

We also see that prioritizing which projects (29%) demand the time and attention of those resources
continues to be a major challenge for the PMO as well. The report shows that an additional segment (17%)
of PMO professions continue to struggle with visibility and reporting indicating PMOs are still hindered
with inadequate data and reporting capabilities. The least reported challenge, yet still important, is
project financial management (8%) as project leaders are still expected to manage projects to a budget.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE YOU FACE TODAY

WITH MANAGING YOUR PORTFOLIO OF PROJECTS?

17% 46% 29% 8%

PROJECT
VISIBILITY AND RESOURCE PROJECT FINANCIAL
REPORTING MANAGEMENT P R I O R I T I Z AT I O N MANAGEMENT
 BIGGEST CHALLENGE:
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Wh i l e resou rc e m a n a gem ent i s a to p co n c er n fo r p ro j ec t p ra c t i t i o n ers at 4 6 %,
when a sked f u r th er w h at a rea of res o u rc e m a n a ge m ent i s m o st c h a l l en g i n g , we
l ear n ed th at ca p a c i ty p l a n n i n g tops t h e l i st wi t h 5 0 % o f t h e res p o n s es , fo l l owe d
by res ou rc e a l l ocati on (28% ), res o u rc e u t i l i zat i o n ( 1 6 %) , s ki l l s t ra c k i n g ( 4 %)
and m a n a g i n g contra ctors (2% ). I t i s en co u ra g i n g to s e e ca p a c i t y p l a n n i n g at
the top of th e l i st, i n d i cati n g a g rowi n g m at u r i t y a n d fo c u s o n u n d e rsta n d i n g
the ca p a c i ty n eed ed to d el i ver th e ex p ec ted p o r t fo l i o s , p ro g ra m s a n d p ro j ec t s .

Which element of Resource Management is the most challenging?

CAPACITY PLANNING 50%

RESOURCE ALLOCATION 27%
50% RESOURCE UTILIZATION 16%
TRACKING RESOURCE SKILLS 4%
MANAGING CONTRACTORS 2%

P A G E 0 6
BIGGEST CHALLENGE:
PRIORITIZATION
Wh e n a s ked f u r t h er a b o u t p r i o r i t i zat i o n , we h a d t wo a re a s to p p ed t he list – 28%
ci ted s ayi n g “ n o ” to p ro j e c t s wa s t h e to p rel ate d st r u g gl ed t i ed wi th 28% saying
a cc u rate l y “s co r i n g t h e va l u e o f p o r t fo l i o o f p ro j ec t s . A d d i t i o n a l e lement s like
a l i g n i n g p o r t fo l i o p ro j e c t s wi t h co r p o rate st rate g y ( 2 4 %) fo l l owed c losely behind
th e to p t wo a re a s wi t h 1 2 % t ra c k i n g t h e va l u e p o r t fo l i o p ro j ec t s deliver and
8% mo d e l i n g s c en a r i o s to o pt i m i ze p o r t fo l i o va l u e to ro u n d o u t t h e challenges
rel ate d to p ro j e c t p r i o r i t i zat i o n . T h i s ye a r, we s e e a rel at i vel y s i g n i ficant shift in
w h e re t h e c h a l l en ge s l i e , wh i c h we wi l l d i s c u s s l ate r i n t h e rep o r t .

WHAT ELEMENT OF PROJECT PRIORITIZATION IS THE MOST CHALLENGING?

24% 28% 8% 28% 12%

ALIGNING PORTFOLIO A C C U R AT E LY “ S C O R I N G ” MODELING SCENARIOS S AY I N G N O T O S O M E T R A C K I N G T H E VA L U E

PROJECTS WITH T H E VA L U E O F TO OPTIMIZE PROJECTS IN THE PORTFOLIO PROJECTS
C O R P O R AT E S T R AT E G Y PORTFOLIO PROJECTS P O R T F O L I O VA L U E PORTFOLIO DELIVER

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BIGGEST CHALLENGE:
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Which element of Project
Whi l e fi nanci al m a n a gem ent wa s n ot i n th e to p t h re e Financial Management is the most
chal l e nge s fo r p or tfol i o l ea d ers , it d oesn ’t d i s co u nt challenging?
the i m po rtance of p rojec t f i n a n ci a l m a n a geme nt . W h e n

28%
P A G E 0 7

asked m o re speci f i ca l l y a b ou t th e el em ents o f f i n a n c i a l

ma na ge ment th at i s th e m ost c h a l l en g i n g , we s aw t ra c k i n g
budgets vs. actu a l s (28% ) a n d i nteg rati n g w i th a n ex i st i n g Integrating with an existing
fi na nci a l syste m (28% ) ti e for th e top res p on s e . T h i s wa s financial system
fo l l owed by effec ti vel y foreca sti n g p or tfol i o an d p ro j ec t s
co sts (14%), gath er i n g a c cu rate f i n a n ci a l d ata ( 1 4 %) , a n d
re al - ti me fi na nci a l rep or ti n g (14% ).
28%
Tracking
budgets vs. actuals
Financial management is a core component
of project management and while it is
encouraging to see most seem to have
gotten it right, it is concerning to see 23%
14%
Effectively forecasting
portfolio or project costs
use financials as a measurement of project
success/failure.
14%
Gathering accurate
financial data

14%
Real-time financial
reporting
 BIGGEST CHALLENGE:
VISIBILITY/REPORTING
A p or ti on of res p on d ents ci ted p ro j e c t v i s i b i l i t y a n d rep o r t i n g a s t h e i r b i g gest c h a l l en ge ( 1 7 %) . T his findi ng is
i ndi cati ve of th e fa ct th at s om e te a m s a re co nt i n u i n g to u s e d i s co n n e c te d s p re a d s h e et s a n d systems t hat don’t
l en d th em s el ves to th e l evel of s p e ed a n d v i s i b i l i t y at wh i c h effe c t i ve p o r t fo l i o a n d p ro j ec t m a n a ge ment is done.
It i s n o s u r p r i s e we conti n u e to s ee v i s i b i l i t y a n d re p o r t i n g to p o f m i n d fo r m a ny p ro j ec t p ra c t i t i o ners.

Wh en we l ook f u r th er at th i s ch a l l e n ge by d i g g i n g i nto wh at a rea o f v i s i b i l i t y ca u s e s t h e greate st p ain, we see t hat

38% s ay i nteg rati n g p rojec t-rel ated d ata f ro m system s t h e PM O d o e s n o t co nt ro l , a n d p ro j e c t p o r t folio data not
bein g centra l i zed (31% ) top th e l i st . So m e c i te l a c k o f re a l - t i m e p ro j ec t p o r t fo l i o d ata ( 1 9 %) , generat ing stat us
re por ts (6% ) a n d en com p a ssi n g a g il e p ro j ec t s ( 6 %) a s c h a l l en ge s re l ate d to v i s i b i l i t y a n d re p o r t i n g . T he concern
o f com p reh en si ve, con n ected rea l -t i m e d ata i s a ve r y b i g a re a fo r PM O s to fo c u s a s t h e ro l e o f t h e PMO becomes
the ep i c enter for b u s i n es s va l u e d e l i ve r y.

WHICH ELEMENT OF VISIBILITY/REPORTING

IS THE MOST CHALLENGING?
Project portfolio data is not centralized
Lack of real-time project portfolio data

Integrating project-related data from

P A G E 0 8
systems the PMvO does not control

Encompassing Agile Projects

Generating status reports
(e.g., Jira)

19% 31% 38% 6% 6%

Visibility into portfolio data is crucial for driving PMO excellence. With
accurate real-time visibility, PMO leaders are able to make better decisions,
provide better outcomes, gain better executive engagement and improve
resource optimization. Giving the PMO the information to make insight-led
decisions driving business value.

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THE DEFINITION OF THE PMO

Understanding what the purpose of the PMO is in an organization likely
reflects directly on the success and longevity of the function in the

How would you describe the role of your PMO today?

organization. We asked survey responders to share what they see the
function of their PMO is and results continue to evolve. When asked, 13%
cited their PMO as a reporting and tracking function for their business, 7% BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT
stated their role was business improvement, 16% saying governance and 7%
standards, and 64% stated a mix. But, how does a individuals’ role effect
their view of what the function of the PMO is? G O V E R N A N C E A N D S TA N D A R D S

16%
When looking at the survey responders’ role and how they see the
function of the PMO there are some alarming disconnects. The surveyed REPORTING AND TR ACKING

executives noted that the function of the PMO is a mix (75%) of business 13%
improvement, governance, and reporting and citing 0% saying it’s solely a
A MIX
reporting and tracking or governance function. While looking at a PMO/
portfolio leaders view 12% cited that the function of the PMO is strictly a 64%
reporting/tracking function and 12% citing strictly a governance function
for the business. This was similar for project managers citing 20% saying
the PMO’s main function is reporting and tracking and 20% saying the
main function is governance.
2 9
2

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE ROLE OF YOUR PMO TODAY?

P A G E 0

67%

53%

28% 27%
27%

18% 17%
11% 13% 11% 9%
0% 2% 0% 4%
BUSINESS REPORTING AND TRACKING A MIX OTHER
GOVERNANCE AND
IMPROVEMENT
STANDARDS

EXECUTIVE PMO/PORTFOLIO MANAGER PROJECT MANAGER

These disconnects likely highlight the important and necessary agreed upon definition of the PMO communicated by executives and key
stakeholders. If executives are expecting the PMO to be more than solely a reporting and tracking or governance function and yet the PMO believes
that’s their role – that disconnect will likely results in a failed PMO as executives won’t be satisfied. Communicate with your executives and have
the right conversations around defining the role of the PMO for the business. We will talk more about this in a different section of this report.
 BECOME A TRUSTED ADVISOR

P A G E 1 0
As PMOs strive to define their role in becoming a value driver for an organization, it becomes apparent
that executive stakeholder buy-in and support are crucial. Industry thought leader, Laura Barnard –
founder of PMO Strategies, says “You have to be valuable to be seen as valuable.”

So, how do you accomplish this? Successful PMO leaders become a trusted advisor for the business.
The trick here is the PMO needs to position themselves as strategic arm of the business by providing
the insights needed to make strategic decisions, monitoring those decisions, and being able to adapt
strategically when the business requires a pivot.

When doing this successfully, the PMO gains a set at the table and truly becomes the strategic driver
of value for the business. A PMO that is a trusted advisor for the business solidifies the longevity of
the PMO with the full support of executives and the business.

“You have to be valuable if you

want to be seen as valuable.”
Laura Barnard, Founder - PMO Strategies

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PMO PERCEPTION IS REALITY

DE LI V E R ING ON -T IME A ND ON - BUD GE T

How is your PMO primarily measured?

The data continues to illustrate a disconnect in how a PMO is primarily
25%
measured with how organizations determine or define project failure.
DE LI V E R ING T HE MOS T VA LUA BLE PROJEC T S
Delivering the most valuable projects became the highest reported 30%
answer at 30% of how their PMOs are being measured. This is followed by
DRIVING BUSINESS FORWARD
delivering on-time and on-budget at 25%, stakeholder satisfaction at 18%, (E.G . R E V ENUE GROW T H , COS T CU T T ING , E TC .)
12%
achieving agreed-upon “soft” benefits (15%) and driving the business
A C H I E V I N G / E X C E E D I N G S TA K E H O L D E R E X P E C TAT I O N S
forward (12%). For reference, only a single response was allowed for this 18%
question.
ACHIEVING AGREED -UPON “ SOFT ” BENEFITS
( U S E R F E E D B A C K , I M P R O V E D E F F I C I E N C Y, E T C . )

15%

Ensure your PMO is setup for success by

defining metrics based on business goals
and measuring to those metrics. For an
on-time, on-budget PMO, ensure projects
2 1
2

are measured to that goal. Similarly, if PMO

P A G E 1

goals are to drive business results, create

project KPIs that support that result.

HOW DOES YOUR ORGANIZATION When asked “what is project failure,” the majority responded with

DEFINE PROJECT FAILURE? stakeholder satisfaction (43%), which doesn’t align with the success
metrics of the PMO which reported a much lower percentage that

43% actually measured achieving stakeholder expectations (18%) as

a key performance indicator. The next most common response,
project is delayed or over budget (23%) which is closer to the PMO
measurement of delivering on-time and on-budget (25%). When
23% comparing the response of revenue growth or cost-cutting goals not
being achieved (10%) with a PMO success metric of driving business
10% 10% results (12%), we again see a small cap in consistency in the success
of projects and the success of the PMO. There are other definitions
7% 7%
of project failure reported by project practitioners, including the
project being cancelled (7%), soft benefits not being achieved (7%)
and not reaching profitability goals (10%), all with relatively low
response rates, indicating that while these may be high priorities at
PROFITABILITY A PROJECT IS A PROJECT IS STAKEHOLDERS REVENUE “SOFT” BENEFITS
GOALS WERE CANCELLED DELAYED OR
GROWTH OR (USER FEEDBACK, the business level, they are not reflected at the project level.
NOT ACHIEVED
OVER BUDGET
ARE NOT COST CUTTING
GOALS WERE
IMPROVED EFFICIENCY,
ETC.) HAVE NOT BEEN
SATISFIED WITH NOT ACHIEVED ACHIEVED

THE END RESULT

 This disconnect between the business and the PMO is also highlighted when we look at the reasons for
project failure. We see most (29%) respondents don’t have enough resources to meet project demands.
While this continues to be a challenge for organizations, it supports the requirements to determine
the root cause for these demand gaps. We also see 25% agree projects fail because of scope creep
or unrealistic deadlines. While this is not surprising at the project level, it supports the thought that
projects being defined and measured by their ability to delivery on-time and on-budget and not the
execution of the initiative. In addition, organizations are seeing projects fail because there is no clear
objective or milestone (22%), no executive support (18%), and lack of communication (6%).

22%
No clear objective or milestones to
measure

WHAT IS THE MOST COMMON REASON FOR PROJECT FAILURE?

29%
Not enough resources to meet project
demands

P A G E 1 2
6%
Lack of communication

18%
No executive support

25%
Scope creep or unrealistic deadlines

What do these disconnects mean for the PMO? It echoes the importance of aligning success metrics
with business goals and measuring to those specific metrics. This is a crucial component of collaborating
with executives and setting your PMO up for success by delivering on what the business requires.

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THE MISSING
LINK FOR
PRIORITIZATION

The misalignment seen by organizations isn’t surprising when we look at how PMO leaders are prioritizing their portfolio of projects.
The top way PMO leaders are prioritizing projects in their portfolio is using a basic high, medium, low priority model at 30%. The
next most popular way PMO leaders were prioritizing projects was a sophisticated prioritization method (27%) followed by mostly
executive order (23%) and lastly an unofficial what needs to be done manner (19%). With 42% either relying on executive order or
an impulsive just do what needs to get done model, it’s no surprise organizations aren’t seeing the alignment to business priorities.
P A G E 1 3

However, we do see a positive shift over the last year from 10% to 27% of organizations utilizing a sophisticated prioritization method
with value-based scoring. The data also shows that 70% of those utilizing a sophisticated prioritization method are very well aligned
with business priorities. This is a good reminder that PMO success starts at the beginning with prioritizing the right projects at the
right time utilizing the right and available resources to deliver the desired business outcomes.

HOW ARE YOU PRIORITIZING PROJECTS WITHIN A PORTFOLIO TODAY?

23%

30%
27%

19%

WE HAVE A SOPHISTICATED MOSTLY BY BASIC HIGH, MEDIUM, IN NO OFFICIAL CAPACITY -

PRIORITIZATION METHOD EXECUTIVE ORDER LOW PRIORITY JUST WHAT NEEDS TO
WITH VALUE-BASED GET DONE
SCORING
 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT –
THE GAP WITH DEMAND

While it is not surprising that the vast majority of project practi-

tioners would agree they do not have enough resources to meet
the demand, it is encouraging to see that 100% of exectutives are
recognizing this gap in resource supply similarly to the 82% of port-

81%
folio management leaders who also cite they do not have enough
resources to meet demand. This shows there is at least communi-

19%
cation happening around this challenge for project professionals.

DO YOU HAVE ENOUGH

RESOURCES TO MEET DEMAND? YES NO

P A G E 1 4
Resource availability should be top of mind when prioritizing
your portfolio to ensure a successful outcome delivery.

TECHNOLOGY SUPPORTING PMO SUCCESS

A s we anal yze the infor m ati on p resented , we see o rga n i zat i o n s u t i l i zi n g to o l s to s u p p o r t t h e m a n a ge m ent o f t h e i r port folio of
projects. The mo st p op u l a r tool resp on d ents a re u t i l i zi n g i s p ro j e c t m a n a ge m ent s o f t wa re ( 3 6 %) fo l l owed by 2 6 % st ill ut iliz ing
spre a dsheets/ free tool s . T h ere i s 25% p rojec t p o r t fo l i o m a n a gem e nt s o f t wa re , 1 0 % u t i l i zi n g h o m e- grown system and 3%
citi ng o ther. Thi s i s i nteresti n g a s we i d enti f y th e c h a l l en ge wi t h re s o u rc e m a n a ge m e nt a n d p r i o r i t i zat i o n . T h e i mportance of
central i ze d data a n orga n i zati on ga i n s f rom rea l -tim e i n s i g ht s ava i l a b l e i n a st rate gi c to o l i s n o ted wh en we s ee 2 5% of t hose
usin g sprea dshe ets or a h om eg row n system n ot ver y we l l a l i g n ed o r n o t at a l l a l i gn e d to b u s i n e s s p r i o r i t i es co m p ared to much
lower percenta ge for th os e u ti l i z i n g p rojec t p or tfol i o m a n a ge m e nt a n d p ro j e c t m a n a ge m e nt s o f t wa re .

WHAT ARE YOU CURRENTLY USING TO MANAGE YOUR PROJECT PORTFOLIO?

26% 25% 36% 10% 3%

SPREADSHEETS/ PROJECT MANAGEMENT HOME-GROWN OTHER

PROJECT PORTFOLIO
FREE TOOLS SOFTWARE/TASK SYSTEM
MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C F I R O M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N
 T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C I F O R M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N

PRIORITIZATION
(RE)FOCUSED

This year, we see a positive refocus on prioritization in

organizations with 18% of respondents citing they are very
well aligned with 63% citing they are somewhat aligned. To
round out the respondents, 16% say they are not very well
aligned and only 3% citing they are not aligned at all.

From 2022 to 2023 the focus on alignment to strategic business

priorities has bounced back. In the chart below the refocus
can be seen as the numbers are back or close to where they
were back in 2021 when during the global pandemic every
organization was hyper focused on remaining aligned to the
key initiatives of the business. This positive shift solidifies the
importance for the PMO to be a strategic arm of the business
as we will cover in a section of this report coming up. In
P A G E 1 5

totality, the positive shift is great, but the data still reminds us
there is room for improvement as 82% of respondents are not
very well aligned with strategic business priorities.

HOW WELL ALIGNED ARE YOUR RESOURCES TO THE STRATEGIC

PRIORITIES OF THE BUSINESS?

26% 63%
59%
16% 18%

7% 3% 8% 0%
0%
NOT AT ALL ALIGNED SOMEWHAT ALIGNED VERY WELL ALIGNED PERFECTLY ALIGNED
NOT VERY WELL ALIGNED

2022 2023
 PM-OH NO’S!

In today’s fast paced business environment, it’s crucial

to be able to keep up. The only way organizations are

P A G E 1 6
going to do that is by being able to adapt and commit to
continuous improvement. The PMO is at the center of
ensuring that business can do just that.

However, when asked what’s stopping the PMO from

improving survey respondents cited some important
statistics to highlight. As we look at responses 30% say
no executive support followed by reluctance to give
up legacy functions (25%) and reluctance to commit
WHAT STOPS YOUR PMO FROM
money and energy (24%). Lastly, 21% cite the lack IMPROVING?
of understanding of the need. These are important
statistics that support the key theme of this entire
report. Without executive support and a clearly defined
30%
role for the PMO it’s very hard for the PMO to improve
or gain their seat at the table.
25% 24%
With evolving demands, a successful PMO needs to
be committed to delivering value for the business
21%
and in order to do that it needs a seat at the table.
A PMO won’t get that seat at the table if they don’t
have executive support and there misunderstanding of
the need. Solidify those two things and you’ll be in a
much better position to solidify the PMO as a business
LACK OF RELUCTANCE RELUCTANCE TO
function. UNDERSTANDING TO GIVE UP
NO EXECUTIVE COMMIT MONEY
THE NEED
LEGACY SUPPORT AND ENERGY
FUNCTIONS

T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C F I R O M A
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 T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C I F O R M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N

BRAND YOUR PMO

We asked survey responders to define a successful PMO and got a variety of responses. We were able to align each answer to a particular
theme. As shown below, 41% of responses noted center of excellence for an organization is what makes a successful PMO followed closely by
value (39%). Other themes seen were 16% stating bridging execution and strategy and 4% stating governance.

The findings here tell us that regardless of how a PMO is being measured today, the all-encompassing themes that showcases a successful
PMO are one that focuses on being a center of excellence for their organization and/or focused on delivering value. Notice that none of the
answers we received were actually related to being on-time/on-budget which was the second most popular answer (25%) for how a PMO
is being measured. Positively, the most common answer for PMO measurement was delivering the most valuable projects (30%) showing
alignment improvement with the definition of a successful PMO being focused on value.

Again, anytime we see misalignment here between what success is for a PMO
and how it’s being measured is a red flag. Without alignment at this level,
2 7
P A G E 1 2

organizations are going to see a gap in performance because ultimately the

PMO and the organization are determining success differently.

HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE A SUCCESSFUL PMO?

41%
39%

9%
4%

GOVERNANCE VALUE CENTER OF EXCELLENCE BRIDGE OF EXECUTION

AND STRATEGY
 TOP BUSINESS
INITIATIVES
FOR 2024
Because this report summarizes the trends and challenges for
2024, we wanted to gauge what businesses see as their top
initiative for the year 2024. We asked respondents to share
their insight here and we were able to identify themes in the
responses we received. The top response for business initiatives
this year was technology (37%) followed by 17% saying it was
“unknown”. Respondents also cites themes including business
improvement (15%), growth (13%), transformation 10% and
revenue (8%).

What do these themes tell us? Organizations are prioritizing

implementing technology solutions to increase business
efficiency and drive value. Organizations focused on business
improvement and transformation understand the need for

P A G E 1 8
their organizations to evolve to keep up. The only statistic here
that highlights a slight concern is that 17% don’t know what
those initiatives are, granted when this survey was distributed
it’s possible those initiatives weren’t set in stone, but echoes
the importance of the communication of the key business
initiatives to all stakeholders.

WHAT IS THE BIGGEST INITIATIVE FOR YOUR BUSINESS NEXT YEAR?

15%
13%

37%

8%
17%

10%

GROWTH BUSINESS UNKNOWN TECHNOLOGY TRANSFORMATION REVENUE

IMPROVEMENT

T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C F I R O M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N
 T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C I F O R M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N

BREAKING IT DOWN
This report is based on survey responses representing a range of project professionals primarily at
the PMO/portfolio leader, project manager and executive level. Those that have a formal PMO far
outweigh those that do no, 74% to 10%, with an additional 16% citing they are planning to have a
formal PMO. This survey also incorporate data from individuals of various company sizes, almost half
(48%) in the enterprise space (1,000 employees or more).

68%
74% WITH FORMAL PM
10% WITHOUT PMO | 16% PLANNING TO 17%
8%

48% RESPONSES
7%

FROM ENTERPRISE (1000+) SIZE COMPANIES

P A G E 1 9

EXECUTIVE PMO/ PORTFOLIO PROJECT OTHER

LEADER MANAGER

FEWER THAN 25 EMPLOYEES

7%
The survey covered a range of
26-100 EMPLOYEES
organization sizes from small (less 3%
than 25 employees) up to over 101-300 EMPLOYEES
11%
5,000 employees. We saw the 301-1000 EMPLOYEES
majority of responses come from 31%
larger organizations, with 48% 1001-5000 EMPLOYEES
19%
from organizations with over 1,000 MORE THAN 5,000 EMPLOYEES
employees. 29%

This survey was targeted at PMO members and

represents a large portion of individuals that do
have a formalized PMO within their business. 90%
10% 90% of respondents reveal they have a formalized PMO
or are planning to have a formal PMO within their
organization.
WITHOUT PMO WITH PMO OR
PLANNING TO HAVE
 THE PMO: A BUSINESS FUNCTION
I n 2024, we see a stron g sh i f t of som e stati sti c s s h owca s i n g a n d s o l i d i f yi n g t h e PM O a s a b u s i n es s
f uncti o n. So m e of th ose stati sti cs w i l l b e h i g h l i g hted b el ow, b u t t h e b i g gest s h i f t i s s ee n i n h ow
PMOs are bei ng mea s u red . I n 2022, we s aw on -ti me a n d o n - b u d get a s t h e to p res p o n s e a n d i n 2 0 2 3
the to p re spo nse i s d el i ver i n g th e m ost va l u a b l e p ro j ec t s . T h e stat i st i c s b el ow s u p p o r t t h i s s h i f t o f
val ue del i ve ri ng for th e b u s i n es s .

BUSINESS VISIBILITY AND

ALIGNMENT REPORTING

For those project practitioners that cited project With increased focus on organizational alignment

prioritization as their top challenge, 24% say the most and strategy, the importance of visibility and report-

challenging part is ensuring business alignment, up ing across the entire organization has increased 22%

from 8% in the previous year. This shift is significant to 38% citing integrating project-related data from

as PMOs are identifying that business alignment is systems the PMO does not control. This organizational
visibility is what PMOs depend on to make strategic

P A G E 2 0
increasingly important in delivering value.
business decisions fast.

STATUS INTEGRATED
REPORTING FINANCIAL SYSTEM
The decreasing focus on status reporting correlates to Although financial management isn’t the top challenge
the change of the role of PMOs. Project practitioners for organizations, of those struggling with it, 28% are
cited generating status reports is decreasing from 22% challenged with integrating with existing financial
to 6% this year. This shows PMOs are getting better at system compared to 17% last year. This compliments
providing project updates and the focus on them is de- the increased focus on the organization as a whole and
creasing overall as they are more focused on business gaining access to real-time information of the entire
outcomes. business to drive strategic portfolio management.

T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C F I R O M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N
 T H E P M O O U T L O O K R E P O R T P R E S E N T E D B Y S C I F O R M A
2 0 2 4 E D I T I O N

L O O K I N G F O R W A R D
Over the cou rse of 2023, we s ee a sh i f t towa rd PM O exc el l en c e at a
new l eve l h i g h l i g hted by th e si g n i f i ca nt po s i t i ve t ren d s towa rd t h e ro l e
o f the PMO focu si n g on d r i vi n g va l u e for t h ei r o rga n i zat i o n s . W h i l e
the se i nsig hts a re en cou ra g i n g , s om e key rem i n d ers a re i m p o r ta nt to
co nsi de r in c l u d i n g en s u r i n g strateg i c a l i gn m e nt wi t h t h e b u s i n e s s to s et
yo ur PMO u p for su c ces s i n d r i vi n g th at va l u e a n d b eco m i n g a t r u sted
advi so r o f th e b u s i n es s b e p rovi d i n g p or t fo l i o i n s i g ht s t h at ca n m ove
the ne edl e for wa rd or a l l ow you to a d a pt q u i c ke r a n d m o re st rate gi -
ca l l y to ch a n g i n g b u s i n ess p r i or i ti es. E n s u re yo u r PM O p erc e pt i o n i s
o ne o f val u e a n d exc el l en ce f rom a l l key sta keh o l d e rs – exe c u t i ve s , t h e
busi ness, a n d tea m m em b ers . Wh en ever yo n e i s a l i gn ed o n t h e ro l e
o f the PMO, you ’l l see th e su c ces s you want a n d a c h i eve t h e go a l s t h e
busi ness d esi res a s wel l .
P A G E 2 1
 THE

PMO
OUTLOOK
REPORT

2024 EDITION

ABOUT SCIFORMA
Sciforma is an award-winning provider of portfolio and project management software.
Over 1,000 customers and 200,000 users in all industries around the world use Sciforma
to achieve profitable growth and strategic objectives through more efficient and effective
management of project resources. Sciforma focuses on serving enterprise PMOs within
midsize and large enterprises. It succeeds by providing a flexible platform for managing
multiple project environments including IT, NPD/R&D, professional services and public
sector, and functional scalability to accommodate various maturity levels. The company
differentiates itself by providing the optimal balance of usability and robust functionality,
as well as project team and executive-level portfolio management for organization looking
for a growth path.

C O N TA C T U S

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