Hello, I’m Chloe Wright, Head of PMO at ISUMO, I’m very happy to chat about my diverse role which includes direct Project Management.
I have been working as a project manager in the business technology, network and communications industry for 12 years, 7 of those being here at ISUMO. As the Head of PMO, I am responsible for all aspects of the project lifecycle, from selecting and managing our project management tools, to ensuring that our internal processes are slick and provide the best experience for our clients.
The Projects and Operations function of the business often overlap and I’m grateful to have experience and exposure to both sides. It really helps me understand the bigger picture but ultimately it is in Projects that I’ve found my home and the role fits my skill set well.
How would I describe my function as Project Manager?
A project is any piece of work with a defined start and finish, with a defined goal and identified stakeholders & resources. My role covers both internal and customer-based projects where I am responsible for ensuring that the project is completed on time and to budget, whilst meeting the quality and success criteria outlined during the initial scoping.
For a customer project, the scoping will have included a technical design document, created by one of our Solution Architects; I will work closely with the delivery team throughout the project, but particularly during the planning phase where I will build the project plan based on the design criteria.
So much of the project management is about the people, our teams, the stakeholders and our suppliers. It’s my job to bring everyone together with a common goal, and to make sure that everyone is kept informed throughout the process. Good communication is key and luckily for me, working with people is the part of the role I enjoy the most.
ISUMO offer a number of different technology services designed to meet the specific needs of each individual client. This means that every service offering is bespoke – and so every project is slightly different. It keeps the role challenging and interesting, we are constantly looking at ways to improve, with the business encouraging continual learning and development.
How do I deliver to our clients?
I like to engage with our clients as early as possible, joining pre-sales and design meetings where appropriate, to have the best understanding of the needs of the customer and the desired outcome of the project. This also helps me to start planning resources early and engage with suppliers in advance to avoid delays in any ordering process.
Once we have a signed proposal, we walk through the technical design stage, and break this down into individual tasks for our project plan. Depending on scale, this can be extremely detailed and provide a step by step roadmap for the project.
The project lifecycle can look different from project to project, depending on the particular deliverables and the needs of the client. I have vast experience in several different project management methodologies such as Prince2, Agile and the PMI’s Global Standard. I like to pull out the most appropriate parts from each, tailoring the process so that we have the best chance of success.
For projects with scale, I set up regular weekly contact with our client. It brings accountability on all sides and maintains momentum. I keep our clients updated regularly with a project progress tracker. Our clients have regular contact with me and then ad-hoc communication as they choose.
What do I think makes a good Project Manager?
Ultimately, it’s about open, honest and timely communication. We all bring with us different skills and experience here at ISUMO, but we share one common goal – to do the right thing by the customer. We always want their experience with ISUMO to be positive and we know that our customers rely on and trust us to deliver high quality, secure and reliable services. That starts with the project delivery, so it’s key to have great attention to detail and to be planning and thinking ahead at all times, to ensure that any potential issues or delays are identified early.
Ultimately projects come to an end, and the ongoing maintenance moves to our support teams with our Network Care Plans.
Talk to us about ISUMO’s Services:
Network Care Plans – Our support teams monitor, maintain and support existing networks ensuring they continue to deliver for your business.
Network Design and Upgrades – WAN, LAN and Wi-Fi we build the best connections for your business.
VoIP – Business communication made scalable and available.
Colocation – Cost effective data centre services provide flexible, secure environments.
CLOUD Migration – We’ll deliver your future business with a CLOUD environment. Applications and data, hosted by leading providers.
