IPMA PMO cheat sheet

PMO leadership spans three levels: strategic (portfolio governance), tactical (programme alignment), operational (project delivery support); each requires distinct competences.

The IPMA PMO role is defined by its service portfolio, not by its position on the org chart; authority derives from mandate and perceived value.

A PMO's mandate must be codified in a charter that specifies decision rights, escalation thresholds, and reporting obligations.

PMO maturity models (e.g., PMO Value Ring, Gartner PMO maturity) assess value delivery, not process compliance alone.

Stakeholder mapping for a PMO uses power/interest grid plus attitude (supporter, neutral, blocker) to plan engagement.

PMO governance interfaces: portfolio board (investment decisions), change control board (scope), audit (compliance), and delivery teams (support).

A PMO leader's span of control includes methodology ownership, tooling, assurance, resource capacity, and benefits tracking.

Escalation rules must define triggers (e.g., variance >10% on cost or schedule) and the decision authority at each threshold.

PMO performance is measured by portfolio delivery success rate, benefits realization, and stakeholder satisfaction, not by document volume.

IPMA ICB® v4.0 defines 28 competence elements in three ranges: Perspective (5), People (10), and Practice (13).

Perspective competences: strategy, governance, compliance, power and interest, culture and values.

People competences include self-reflection, personal integrity, communication, leadership, teamwork, conflict, negotiation, results orientation, and resourcefulness.

Practice competences cover design, requirements, scope, time, organisation, quality, finance, resources, procurement, stakeholders, change, risk, and benefits.

Each competence element has defined key indicators and proficiency levels (e.g., 0–5 scale) used for assessment.

A programme manages related projects to achieve benefits not obtainable from managing them individually; it is temporary and benefit-driven.

A portfolio is the collection of projects, programmes, and operations aligned to strategic objectives; it is ongoing and investment-driven.

Project success is measured by output (scope, time, cost, quality) and outcome (benefits, stakeholder satisfaction); ICB emphasizes both.

The ICB® competence baseline is generic and applicable across sectors; certification assesses competence via experience, exam, and in some cases interview.

IPMA OCB® defines organisational competences in three groups: governance, management, and organisational alignment.

Governance competences include organisational strategy, leadership, values, and compliance with external regulations.

Management competences cover organisational design, process management, resource management, and performance management.

Organisational alignment competences include stakeholder management, change management, and knowledge management.

OCB® emphasizes that project success depends on the organisation's ability to integrate projects into strategy and operations.

Key OCB® elements: project management policy, project portfolio management, project programme management, and project management office.

P3M3 (Portfolio, Programme, Project Management Maturity Model) is often used alongside OCB® to assess organisational maturity.

Organisational competence includes the ability to learn from projects (lessons learned) and to embed change into business-as-usual.

OCB® is assessed at the organisational level, not individual; it complements ICB® individual competences.

The IPMA Project Excellence Baseline (PEB®) is a model for assessing project excellence, analogous to EFQM but project-specific.

PEB® has two main parts: People and Purpose (enablers) and Processes and Results (results), with 1000 points total.

The PEB® assessment uses RADAR logic (Results, Approach, Deployment, Assessment, Review) for scoring.

Key criteria include leadership, people, strategy, partnerships, processes, customer results, people results, society results, and key results.

Project excellence is judged by the project's ability to deliver benefits to stakeholders, not just outputs.

The IPMA Project Excellence Award uses PEB® to assess projects; applicants submit a self-assessment and undergo site visits.

PEB® emphasizes continuous improvement and learning, with feedback loops from results to enablers.

Scoring in PEB® uses a points system; the maximum is 1000 points, with enablers and results each weighted.

PEB® is aligned with the IPMA ICB® and OCB® but focuses on the project as a temporary organisation.