External recruiting costs includes all spending on talent acquisition contractors, staffing agencies, job posting sites, or other external service providers that help you fill open positions.

Internal Recruiting costs include spending on maintaining your HR function, legal, as well as everything you spend during the hiring process—such as job ads, hiring events, HR and management interviews, pre-employment assessments, background checks, and other administrative activities.

Hiring Bonuses are one time cash incentives to new employees or referring existing employee recruiting program payouts.

New employee onboarding activity costs include IT setup time and costs, personal paperwork and administrative time, new employee workshop or training, workspace setup and costs, productivity loss for first 4 weeks.

Soft costs include indirect expenses, such as initial loss of productivity when a new team member arrives and management time spent on employee orientation and training.

Portfolio level processes and workflows consists of all development and documentation costs associated with creating and gaining agreement on the methods, frameworks, activities, and tasks that are performed in support of the project portfolio. Example of portfolio processes include the intake process, demand management activities, portfolio governance framework, change control, project complexity sizing guide, resource conflict resolution, meeting facilitation, etc.

Project level processes and workflows consists of all development and documentation costs associated with creating and gaining agreement on the methods, frameworks, activities, and tasks that are used to manage projects within the organization. Example of project processes include the schedule management, budget management, Green-Yellow-Red project indicator thresholds, risk management, decision management, facilitation and meeting mechanics, quality reviews, project roles and responsibilities (RACI), backlog management, project owner responsibilities, project funding models, project change control, etc. These processes and workflows should be flexible and scaleable to work with any PPMO project

PPMO tool evaluation and selection is critical. The tool selected will have a significant effect the future cost, performance, and efficiency of a large number of key people in the organization. The evaluation should include all the costs associated with fully understanding the problem statement, gathering the complete requirements and determining the correct fit for current and future PPMO, project manager, and portfolio governance board needs. The resulting analysis and recommendation should include a detailed weighted requirements list, business driver breakdown, decision matrix, and ROI calculation for all compared software tools and packages.

Portfolio dashboard and reporting costs include the cost to design, code, test, and launch the dashboards and reports. The dashboard and reports are responsible for maintaining realtime, accurate, and transparent communication about the project portfolio which aids in the alignment of projects to strategic company goals. Requirements gathering and iterative design efforts can represent a significant cost to produce the accurate result.

Portfolio Templates, Forms, and Automation Scripts costs include designing, coding, testing and launching the portfolio level templates required to ensure successful project portfolio management. The list of templates should include: intake forms, priority models, demand management, change control, portfolio summary, resource utilization, KPI capture, archive, etc. This cost should also include all automation scripts associated with the various templates including backup. Requirements gathering and design efforts can easily be under estimated to fulfill this development activity.

Project Level Dashboard(s) and Reporting costs to design, code, test, and launch project level real time dashboards and reports. These items should build to support the portfolio level information and provide drill down details that transparently communicate as much detail about the individual project as the viewer desires without overwhelming stakeholders. Requirements gathering and design should include integration with the portfolio dashboard and other data sources. The project level dashboard should provide the required consistency and flexibility to be used across all projects within the portfolio.

Project Templates, Forms, and Automation Scripts costs include designing, coding, testing and launching the project level templates required to ensure successful project portfolio management. The list of templates should include: project charter, schedule, budget, scope sheet, risks-assumptions-issues-decisions (RAID) log, communication plan, contact list, frequently asked questions (FAQ) sheet, document repository, lessons learned, start up and close out checklists, etc. This cost should also include all automation scripts associated with the various templates including backup. Requirements gathering, design, coding, and testing efforts for a complete set of integrated templates, forms and scripts that will scale can easily be under estimated to fulfill this development activity.

Initial PPMO Tool Setup and Software Configuration involves all the engineering, security and infrastructure costs required to install the software or service (SaaS) to ensure the tool meets all single sign-on, identity management, connectivity, speed, security, and interface requirements.

Training development includes all the costs associated with creating the training programs used by the PPMO to instruct project managers and key stakeholders. The training should cover all aspects of using and understanding the PPMO processes, workflows, dashboards, templates, and tools. Training is a critical part of increasing cultural adoption of the PPMO and maximizing its value.

Initial PM and Stakeholder Training costs include the instructors time and any individuals assigned to assist or record the training as well as the time of all PMs and Stakeholders attending the training. By the end of the initial training program most staff members involved in projects will have attended the training. In the case of multiple sites include travel costs.

Expected annual salary of the PPMO leader. A PPMO Leader is responsible for establishing and implementing project management processes, standards, and methodologies to ensure the successful execution of projects, programs, and portfolios. Key responsibilities include leading a team of project managers, providing strategic guidance and support, managing project budgets and resources, fostering collaboration among stakeholders, and optimizing project management tools and systems. Skills required include strong background in project management, leadership skills, a proven track record of delivering complex projects on time and within budget, and the ability to drive continuous improvement initiatives within the PPMO.

Average annual salary of project managers hired to work within the PPMO department. PPMO Project Managers are responsible for planning, coordinating, and managing projects from initiation to completion, ensuring alignment with organizational goals, timelines, and budgetary constraints. Key responsibilities include defining project scope, objectives, and deliverables, developing detailed project plans, allocating resources, tracking progress, and mitigating risks. Project managers have a strong background in project management methodologies, excellent communication and leadership skills, the ability to collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, and a track record of delivering projects on time and within budget. When calculating an average salary include the cost of contractor and FTE project managers.

The number of project managers that will participate in running projects within the PPMO’s portfolio responsibility. The count should include FTE and contract PMs.

Average annual salary of project coordinators hired to work within the PPMO department. The PPMO Project Coordinator will work closely with project managers and stakeholders to facilitate project planning, scheduling, and tracking activities. Key responsibilities include maintaining project documentation, organizing meetings and workshops, tracking project milestones and deliverables, assisting with resource allocation, and communicating project updates to relevant stakeholders. Project coordinators have strong organizational and multitasking skills, a keen eye for detail, proficiency in project management tools, and the ability to collaborate effectively in a fast-paced environment.

The number of project coordinators that support projects within the PPMO’s portfolio responsibility. The count should include FTE and contract PMs.

Includes the cost of on-line and/or collage courses designed to improve leadership, communication, or other project management, competencies. May include project management certification prep courses. Consider the average course and training cost per PPMO staff member.

Cost of attending a project management industry conference to gain understanding of current best practices and develop professional networks. Include travel. Conference attendance is most beneficial to PPMO leaders.

Association dues includes the average cost of each individual joining a local or national industry or project management association to develop skills and build personal and professional networks.

Books and materials includes the average cost of reimbursing each staff member the purchase of professional materials intended to build skills and competencies.

Educational administration and support is the average cost per PPMO staff member and includes the time and costs associated with arranging and reimbursing employees for continuing education and training. Include the time of managers, accounting, and human resources for review and approvals.

Annual PPMO software tool licensing costs includes all SaaS, software, template, and third party components. Include additional costs for office productivity and collaboration tools.

Technical administration and support includes all the time and costs associated with identifying, debugging, fixing, and testing end-user needs associated with the PPMO tools. End users includes project managers and stakeholder. This includes time spent by power users supporting others users' questions and needs.

Changes to templates includes the time and cost associated with adding, changing, or deleting templates from the standard project and portfolio set. It also includes adjusting those artifacts being used on in-process projects. These changes may be the result of lessons learned, tool changes, regulations, or other business drivers.

Changes to automations includes the time and cost associated with adding, changing, or deleting automation scripts for the standard project and portfolio set. It also includes adjusting automations in those artifacts being used on in-process projects. These requirement changes may be the result of lessons learned, tool changes, regulations, or other business drivers.

Changes to dashboards includes the time and cost associated with adding, changing, or deleting dashboards for the standard project and portfolio set. It also includes adjusting dashboards in use on in-process projects. These requirement changes may be the result of lessons learned, tool changes, regulations, or other business drivers.

Changes to processes, workflows, and documentation includes the time and cost associated with adding, changing, or deleting how work is performed for standard projects and portfolio items. These requirement changes may be the result of lessons learned, tool or system changes, regulations, or other business drivers. The work also includes incorporating changes into affected non-PPMO items and updating training materials, and communications.

Changes to KPI management includes the time and cost associated with adding, changing, or deleting how data is measured, evaluated, and presented in evaluation of project and portfolio performance. These changes may be the result of lessons learned, tool or system changes, regulations, or other business drivers. The work also includes incorporating changes into affected non-PPMO items and updating training materials, and communications.