What Managed Service actually is?
Managed Service is a business model in which management of the whole service is provided by a dedicated company and often enhanced by technology solutions. When hearing about Managed Services for the first time, it can be associated with outsourcing, however Managed Services are much more comprehensive and specialised. In contrast to traditional outsourcing, which usually is a low-complexity service on-demand, Managed Services offer more complex and higher-value input..
During the past few years Managed Services have been becoming more and more popular, especially in the IT sector, but they are not exclusively reserved for technology. Currently PwC provides Managed Services in the next areas: Financial Crime, Digital Managed Service, Project and Portfolio Management. Common for this type of relationships between the client and an external provider are - production and maintenance of the software, help desk support, PMO services, HR and payroll, data storage and backup, marketing strategies or supply chain management.
The rise of popularity of Managed Services comes as no surprise, as the benefits of this delivery model are multifold. They can take over parts of clients' operations, or the entire process, including all its elements that are complex, labour-intensive, incremental and dependent on external data. It’s the Managed Services provider who takes on the burden of investing in people, know-how and technology, allowing clients to devote their time, money and attention to their core business.
Considering the fact that Managed Services providers are usually highly experienced in particular business, it additionally allows them to use their know-how and expertise to optimise the processes and their costs.
Managed Service can be compared to a food diet service: you get a list with types of menus, you can pick which types of dishes will be included in your specific package and you receive it on a regular basis to your door within the agreed period of time. Clients don’t have to worry about their own cooking skills or bother themselves with buying groceries, they don’t even need a space for food storage.
Very similarly Portfolio and Project Management Services as Managed Service is a situation, when a client's organisation gets an external service provider of PMO services. Client picks from the catalogue which activities are needed for the particular business and then gets a subscription to the external PMO Team.
Why is using PMO as a Managed Service beneficial?
While using PwC PMO services in the Managed Service model, clients can benefit from the professional support, without worrying about the details. This allows for a quick response in the event of an immediate need for change, without the organising a PMO team inside the company. Providing external services makes it possible to profit from professional expertise, templates and tools based on years of experience gained in various projects and industries.
Within Managed Services, PMO activities are encapsulated and offered in a standardised manner. They offer a practical knowledge base, which ensures successful project delivery. The PMO activities comprise all activities that are necessary to complete achievements of project goals.
With the Managed Service clients can adjust the service to your company needs. It ensures flexibility to your business, as well as to the organisation culture. Based on their particular company’s needs and requirements, clients can choose services from the predefined catalogue. When it comes to project and portfolio management, addressing of ad-hoc queries of a client is also possible, while the main focus for a Project Manager is value they bring to whole processes managed in the organisation. However, large majority of the client's needs are predefined by PwC catalogue which offers clients a complete set of end-to-end services value.
Cost saving is one of the many benefits of using managed services. One of the ways of decreasing costs is having effective resource management and reducing any possible overheads. Tailoring the approach to your organisation through the solution-based approach can ensure smooth project delivery and optimise costs.
Which challenges are related to implementing PMO as Managed Service?
The biggest challenge of introducing Managed Service to the organisation is confidence. Both parties need to trust each other, otherwise instead of successful cooperation, it may end up with unnecessary control, which can prevent delivering the project successfully. What can be helpful in building the trust is collecting opinions and cooperation with well-known players, proved by years of experience and stable reputation. The same criteria work for Managed Services - good reputation, well-trained professionals with expertise in many different fields and knowledge, proven by certificates.
Overall the benefits of Managed Services provided by a right organisation outweigh the risks, therefore it is worth investing in the relation. Properly chosen professionals will understand the client’s need, align the planned changes with the organisational strategy and support projects on every stage. The right company will also concentrate on bringing value through the delivered projects to satisfy the transformational needs. PMO as Managed Service provides complex, long-term solutions in areas that require human judgement, using a structure that tightly integrates with a client's organisation.
PMO as Managed Services model makes it possible to provide project management and PMO expertise and focus on priorities, while the specialists from an external service company are responsible for operational activities. Managed Services is an innovative solution which helps provide high-quality service and ensures the company will benefit from the cooperation.
Due to fast and smooth mobilisation and implementation of our services we are always in the right place at the right time to deliver end-to-end service.
Our PMO specialists have decades of experience of building trust and leading our clients through demanding transformation programmes.
At PwC we offer our clients a versatile and all-encompassing approach, proven by years of professional background and thousands of hours of practice, which can be adjusted to the client’s needs by our team of excellent project management and PMO specialists.
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