338: What Role Do PMOs Play in Delivering Value? with Trevor Nelson

December 14, 2025·1 hr 2 min·5 clips

Trevor reveals that if leaders go around your PMO, you're a net negative to the organization.

This episode of the PMO Strategies Podcast explores the concept of delivering value in project management. Host Laura Bernard is joined by guest Trevor Nelson, a seasoned project leader known for challenging conventional, process-focused thinking. They examine the shifting definition of project success and the practical role of project offices. The conversation critiques the traditional focus on the triple constraint—time, cost, and scope—as the sole measure of project management success. Trevor Nelson references PMI's newer definition, where project success is when the delivered value equals or exceeds the effort and expense. They argue that leadership and various stakeholders each have unique, often competing, definitions of value. A core topic is the necessity of defining "value" upfront by asking why a project is being undertaken, not just what is being delivered. Laura Bernard suggests three guiding questions: what are we doing, why are we doing it, and what does success look like. The discussion covers scenarios where value is intangible or long-term, such as in healthcare or humanitarian aid projects. Trevor notes that for consumer products, the end customer's perception ultimately determines value and profitability, even if internal sponsors set the metrics. A key insight is that projects are merely a vehicle to a desired outcome, which leadership often views as a necessary barrier. Trevor states that leadership will often relax traditional constraints if they believe the core desired outcome will be achieved. He emphasizes that if sponsors cannot articulate what success looks like, the project is almost guaranteed to fail from their perspective. The hosts position this ambiguity as a golden opportunity for PMOs and project managers to facilitate strategic conversations and earn a seat at the leadership table. They suggest that by helping leaders define value and success criteria, project professionals transition from being process administrators to strategic navigators. The tone is conversational and direct, blending practical advice with a critique of industry standards. The style is educational, aimed at prompting listeners to rethink their approach to project leadership. This episode is ideal for project managers, PMO leaders, and transformation professionals seeking to align their work more closely with strategic business outcomes. Listeners who prefer strict adherence to traditional project management frameworks and standards might find the challenges to conventional wisdom less appealing.

As heard by us

Value lands best when intent and success are defined before the work starts.

PMO Strategies stays with a familiar project-management problem: value means different things to different stakeholders. Laura Bernard keeps the focus on the gap between calling work valuable and defining that value up front, with clear attention to intent, success, and…

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Why you'd press play

You need a clearer way to define value on your projects.

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