Teague Hopkins

Mindful Product Management

Building a Successful Partnership Between Product and PMO

In the tech industry, team dynamics are critical to strategic success. Drawing from Marty Cagan’s insights on the shift from project to product teams, many companies recognize the importance of this transformation—a transition the best Project Management Offices (PMOs) have embraced and are actively improving.

The Challenge with Project Teams

Cagan highlights the significant drawbacks of project teams: they form to deliver specific projects and then disperse. This constant cycle of forming and re-forming introduces significant overhead, and often, teams don’t remain together long enough to reach their full performance potential. It also leads to a lack of deep domain knowledge and ownership, as teams don’t stay with the product long enough to see its evolution. Great PMOs, in partnership with product teams, work to overcome these challenges, but there may be a better model.

The Strength of Product Teams

Product teams are committed for the long run, deeply involved from inception through to lifecycle management. This continuous involvement fosters a robust understanding of the product and its market, cultivating a sense of ownership and dedication. PMOs support this by ensuring that teams have what they need to succeed over the long term and by facilitating coordination between product teams.

Illustration showing the shift from project to product teams in a tech environment. On the left, individuals walk away from a table with scattered documents, representing a disbanded project team. On the right, a cohesive product team collaboratively works around a table, with a flowchart on the wall indicating ongoing involvement and Agile methodology. The setting is minimalist, emphasizing team dynamics and roles.

Agile as a Tool for Empowerment

In the best organizations, agile is adopted not merely as a methodology but as a mindset of continuous improvement that promotes empowerment. Unlike rigid applications of Agile seen in some frameworks like SAFe, this use of Agile encourages flexibility and rapid iteration. Great PMOs champion these principles, facilitating rather than dictating the Agile process. The balance between guidance and autonomy is constantly being refined, ensuring each team can customize their approach to best fit their product portfolio.

PMOs’ Role in Supporting Product Teams

The mission of PMOs extends beyond overseeing projects—it’s about genuinely empowering teams. Here’s how they can actively support product teams’ efforts:

  • Strategic Alignment: Committed to ensuring all product and project initiatives align with long-term business goals.
  • Resource Orchestration: Managing resources to ensure that product teams have what they need to execute their visions effectively
  • Cross-functional Coordination: Facilitating collaboration across departments, supporting the smooth execution of complex projects. The aim is to reduce silos between departments while acting as a bridge when silos are unavoidable.
  • Insight and Analytics: Providing actionable insights and data, which are essential for informed decision-making. Enhancing the timeliness and accuracy of these insights is an ongoing goal.
  • Continuous Improvement: Fostering a culture of feedback and iterative improvement, constantly aiding teams in refining their products and processes. Combining facilitation with the development of mechanisms that capture and implement feedback more effectively.

A Real and Evolving Partnership

As PMOs continue to grow and evolve, their role as partners to product teams becomes ever more crucial. This partnership, based on a mutual understanding of goals and methodologies, fosters a productive environment where strategic alignment and empowerment are prioritized. Continuous refinement is the key to making sure product teams are supported in innovating and delivering outstanding products that meet customers’ needs.