Six Reasons for a PMO

1.    Consistent Methodology – The bane of many organizations is when departments and groups develop home-grown and non-consistent ways of completing projects. Some processes may work beautifully, some may work terribly; the point being that none are consistent with each other or across the organization. A common project management methodology is needed and PMO allows the company to speak the same language and follow consistent processes.
2.    Economies of Scale – It’s not uncommon for a company to have numerous time-sheets or project management applications, each with its own financial cost for implementation and training personnel. A PMO implements affordable and sustainable enterprise-wide solutions.
3.    Objective Opinions – Departments running their own projects can sometimes be compared to a fox watching a hen-house. Project sponsors may be looking for the current status of a project, but a departmental project manager may stretch the truth just a bit so that their department is viewed in favorable light. A PMO provides an unbiased and objective opinion regarding the status of a project. This is invaluable to project stakeholders and executives.
4.    Perpetual Improvement – A PMO is always on the lookout for new and better ways to get things done. They have the benefit of aggregating lessons learned from previous projects and the missive of implementing those best practices across the organization. Additionally, there are countless opportunities for project managers to continue their education and bring new-found knowledge to their companies.
5.    Transcends Departments – “Why can’t we all just get along?” is a common refrain in many corporate environments. One department may go head to head with another department over unrealistic demands or unreasonable timelines. A PMO can mediate their heated conversations and keep everyone focused on the bigger picture. Members of the PMO can facilitate sessions between departments for the purpose of identifying root cause and coming up with alternatives.
6.    Reduces Cost – Benefits of a PMO as described above are all realized at the bottom line as unnecessary tangible expenses are uncovered, such as paying for multiple versions of the same software. Such are removed from the income statement. Real savings derived from resources being able to do their work faster will appear as net income. The value of everyone getting along better is Priceless !

The Enterprise Social Network

Yammer is revolutionizing internal corporate communications by bringing together all of a company’s employees inside a private and secure enterprise social network. Although Yammer is as easy to use as consumer products like Facebook or Twitter, its enterprise-grade software is built from the ground up to drive business objectives. Enables users to communicate, collaborate, and share more easily and efficiently than ever before. It reduces the need for meetings, increases communication across silos, surfaces pockets of expertise and connects remote workers.

Sign up and start using Yammer in less than 60 seconds. All you need is a company email address.

Key Features:

• Enterprise Microblogging - Start a conversation, read posts, and actively collaborate with your coworkers in real-time.
• Direct Messaging - Create a private dialog with one or multiple co-workers.
• Files, Links, and Images - Upload and share documents with co-workers, groups, or your entire company.
• Groups - Create and join private or public groups and collaborate in small teams within your network.
• Communities - Create communities for working with partners who are outside of your network .
• Profiles - Upload a picture and fill in your expertise, past work experience and contact information to become discoverable across your organization.
• Company Directory - Use Yammer to connect with employees in other departments.
• Knowledge Base - Each conversation is archived and fully searchable so you can find what you need from your company's knowledge base.
• Administrative Tools - Keep your Yammer network running smoothly with a suite of admin features built to increase control.
• Security - Message privately and securely in the cloud. Your security is Yammer's top priority.
• Topics - Tag content and messages in your network to make content easy to organize and discover.
• Applications - Install third-party applications into Yammer to increase the functionality of your network.
• Mobile - Connect to your network anywhere, any time. Download free iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and Windows Mobile applications.