Laura Bernard argues that a PMO charter is a bad idea because it's based on guesswork before business discovery.
Host Laura Bernard argues that creating a formal PMO charter is a counterproductive first step for any project management office. Bernard draws on three decades of experience helping delivery leaders prove their value and secure executive influence. She contends that the conventional wisdom of starting with a charter sets leaders up for failure by creating a false sense of alignment.
Traditional advice instructs leaders to define a mission, vision, objectives, and KPIs before securing executive sign-off. Bernard states this process forces PMOs to guess at business needs without conducting proper stakeholder discovery. She explains that charters often document good intentions instead of diagnosing actual organizational pain points, leading to beautifully crafted but quickly forgotten documents. The host introduces her alternative, the Impact Engine System, which structures PMO development across six distinct stages.
A core insight is that starting with a charter causes PMOs to focus on symptoms rather than root causes, leading to endless "whack-a-mole" administrative work. Bernard emphasizes that real confidence comes from a systematic discovery process involving stakeholder interviews to gather pain points in their own language. She reveals that in her system, creating a business plan—the replacement for a charter—occurs only in the fourth stage, after completing mindset, assessment, and definition work. This approach aims to identify fewer root causes behind many symptoms, allowing for more targeted and impactful solutions.
Bernard asserts that a charter frames the PMO as a temporary project with a defined end, while a business plan positions it as a permanent, value-driving business unit. She claims executives view charters as cost documents but see business plans as vehicles for value. The host advises that even established PMOs can adopt this mindset shift to move from being perceived as an administrative cost center to becoming a strategic "impact engine." The episode is structured as a direct, instructional monologue from an experienced practitioner challenging industry norms.
This episode is ideal for PMO leaders, transformation leads, or anyone tasked with establishing or revitalizing a project delivery function who feels stuck in template-driven processes. Listeners seeking a quick, checklist-based approach to PMO setup or those who strongly believe in the foundational necessity of a charter may find the arguments contrary to their expectations.
