Would you like to improve organisation and communication within your teams? A project office is the ideal way to bring structure to a project. As we know, projects are tasks that are tackled through the division of labour. This means that several people are working on a single assignment. Consequently, the importance of good communication becomes even more crucial.
Poor communication is widely recognised as one of the leading causes of project failure, but how can this be counteracted? In the midst of a stressful working day, there is usually not enough time to nurture the social skills of your staff amongst themselves. With so many projects running simultaneously, it is difficult to maintain a clear overview. A project office can address this problem and do more than just strengthen communication amongst your staff.
The Project Office as an Organisational Unit
A project office (also known as a PO, from the English ‘Project Office’) is an organisational unit that oversees a single project and handles the associated administrative tasks. This both supports your project team and takes the pressure off them. Thanks to the PO, the operational team members can focus primarily on the technical implementation of the team’s work. This leads to significant efficiency gains for your company.
The Project Office usually consists of a project manager and a project assistant. They are responsible for maintaining a precise overview of the required resources, such as time or necessary software. This transparent structure makes it easier for you to maintain control over your project – you can intervene at any time should the need arise.
Reasons in favour of this approach
It has been proven that, in companies, cost and time targets are frequently exceeded by a huge margin, or project objectives are not achieved at all. A structured and consistently implemented project management approach can help to overcome this. A project charter (PO) ensures a higher standard of planning even before the project begins, enabling you to maintain an overview of resource planning. This means your team can get started once the bulk of the organisational work has been planned in advance and the project objective is clearly defined. This ensures that sufficient resources are allocated. Potential conflicts and undesirable dependencies can be identified and avoided at an early stage.
The project office can prioritise the tasks at hand in a rational manner by consolidating the available project information. This makes it possible to intervene at any time to steer the project and reallocate the necessary resources accordingly, depending on priority.
Tasks to be carried out
The tasks to be carried out by a project office include advising and supervising the team. This also involves facilitating communication amongst team members. Problems can be discussed with the project manager or the project assistant so that a solution can be found. Those in charge should never lose sight of the project or the individual team members. It is therefore advisable to monitor both progress and communication on a regular basis.
To ensure that the project schedule is adhered to, available resources must be constantly managed and – where necessary – supplemented. This may include software tools required as the project progresses. To simplify recurring project workflows, the PO can, for example, create templates.
Documentation is an extremely important aspect. The more thoroughly the project documentation is maintained, the easier it is for you to keep track of your team and intervene if necessary. This enables you to identify any problems or deviations from the schedule or budget quickly and efficiently, and take appropriate action. It is therefore very important that all information relating to every project is collated to serve as a basis for management decision-making. This achieves the aim of obtaining an objective overview of all projects.
The project office is also responsible for selecting training courses. Project managers and project assistants have a good overview of the individual team members and can therefore easily identify where specific gaps lie for each person. This means that suitable training courses can always be found and organised for every individual project team member. However, it is not only shortcomings that are identified, but also strengths. A Project Office makes it easier to identify particularly talented staff with potential.
By setting up a PO, you therefore achieve a cooperative separation of operational and organisational areas. In its most extreme form, all processes, templates, software and guidelines are provided by the advisory and support project staff. This has a long-term impact on the culture within your organisation, as it makes the way work is carried out increasingly project-oriented.
Benefits
The project office can significantly improve communication amongst your staff. Problems can be quickly identified and resolved – and in some cases, misunderstandings can even be avoided before they arise. As organisational processes are taken care of, more time is available to focus on individual staff members. This leads to increased motivation amongst your staff, which has a positive impact on work efficiency and commitment.
Who isn’t familiar with typical questions such as ‘Do we have any paper clips left?’ or ‘Is the meeting room free right now?’ These questions may seem unimportant. However, if nobody knows the answer to them, this can also lead to delays in teamwork. Both minor and major problems can equally stand in your way and prevent the successful implementation of your project. A project office is responsible for ensuring that these questions do not go unanswered and that all the necessary information is available.
Key factors
The project office collects and manages all key organisational information. However, it is important that all staff involved in the project have access to this information should they need it. It must be clear to everyone involved where to find what they’re looking for.
Are you wondering whether a project office is the right approach for your company? Generally speaking, setting up a project office is worthwhile for larger teams. If more than one person is already involved in managing a project, it is advisable to consider a collaborative separation of organisation and execution. If your company consists mainly of several smaller project teams, setting up a project management office would be the right choice for you.
Project Office and Project Management Office – Differences
The Project Management Office (also known as a PMO) is similar to the project office in terms of its functions. However, there is one fundamental difference: the Project Management Office is an organisational unit which – unlike the PO – operates across multiple projects.
The Project Office is responsible for a single project and is integrated into the organisation. It also coordinates communication within a project. The Project Office (PO) carries out the following organisational tasks:
- Project administration
- Project documentation
- Information management
- Communication management
By comparison, the Project Management Office (PMO) provides support for several projects simultaneously, thereby assisting multiple project managers. It facilitates communication across multiple projects. Unlike the PO, the PMO has slightly different responsibilities:
- Project administration
- Project portfolio and programme management
- Promotion of standards
- Communication management spread across multiple projects
Conclusion
If you notice that time and cost targets are being exceeded within your organisation, it may be worth setting up a project office or a project management office, depending on the size of your team. This will enable you to make processes more efficient and your organisation more structured. The information gathered by the individual offices makes it easier for you to keep track of your staff. This makes it far easier to manage your company.
If you are looking for a suitable office for your project, COLLECTION Business Centres offer team offices in Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Frankfurt, Stuttgart and Vienna. This provides you with the right premises to bring your project to fruition. You can also benefit from our comprehensive office services, which allow you to focus on your day-to-day operations.
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