Managing Successful Programmes for Agile PMO Integration Training Course
| Course code | SD-AP-026 |
|---|---|
| Duration | 5 days |
| Level | Intermediate |
| Category | Agile & PMO |
| Delivery | Classroom or live online |
| Language | English |
| Certificate | Certificate of completion |
Course overview
Programme offices are often asked to govern a portfolio of agile delivery teams using reporting, controls and decision gates designed for sequential projects. The result is predictable: teams experience governance as delay, senior leaders lack a clear view of benefits and dependencies, and the PMO cannot distinguish healthy adaptation from unmanaged scope change. This course addresses that operating gap by applying Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) to programmes delivered through Scrum, Kanban, AgilePM and hybrid methods.
Participants learn how to use MSP’s principles, governance themes and transformational flow without imposing a one-size-fits-all delivery lifecycle. They define a programme vision, blueprint, business case, benefits map, tranche plan and governance structure that accommodate iterative releases. The course shows how an Agile PMO can establish proportionate assurance, integrated dependency management, outcome-focused reporting, release-level planning and escalation routes. Participants practise translating team-level agile evidence—backlogs, sprint goals, flow metrics and release forecasts—into information executives can use to make programme decisions.
The five-day programme combines instructor-led MSP teaching with a running case study of an enterprise change programme involving multiple agile teams and operational stakeholders. Participants work in groups to build an Agile PMO integration pack containing a programme governance model, benefits map, tranche and release plan, dependency board, reporting dashboard and assurance approach. They receive structured feedback against MSP practice and leave with an application plan for adapting the materials to their own programme environment. A certificate of completion is awarded.
This intermediate course is designed for professionals who must connect strategic change governance with adaptive delivery, particularly programme managers, PMO leaders and transformation practitioners working across business, digital and operations functions.
Course objectives
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Apply MSP principles and transformational flow to an agile or hybrid programme lifecycle
- Design a programme governance model that connects Agile PMO controls with empowered delivery teams
- Create a benefits map, blueprint and benefits realisation plan for incremental releases
- Develop tranche plans that align MSP decision points with release planning and product roadmaps
- Build a cross-team dependency board using backlog, milestone and critical-interface data
- Define proportionate assurance, risk escalation and control thresholds for agile delivery environments
- Translate sprint, flow and release metrics into executive programme dashboard reporting
- Produce an Agile PMO integration pack for implementation in a live programme
Benefits of attending
For you
- Gain a practical method for leading programmes where agile teams and corporate governance must coexist
- Build credible evidence for programme manager, PMO manager and transformation leadership roles
- Learn to defend proportionate governance decisions using MSP principles rather than personal preference
- Create executive-ready benefits, dependency and release reporting from agile delivery data
- Leave with reusable templates and an implementation plan for an Agile PMO integration initiative
For your organisation
- Improves alignment between strategic outcomes, programme benefits and iterative product releases
- Reduces governance friction by replacing duplicate status reporting with agreed decision-grade information
- Strengthens oversight of cross-team dependencies, operational readiness and release risks
- Gives executives clearer evidence for tranche funding, reprioritisation and escalation decisions
- Creates a repeatable Agile PMO operating approach that can be applied across transformation programmes
Target competencies
Who should attend
- Programme Managers — who need to govern multi-team transformation while preserving adaptive delivery
- PMO Managers — who must redesign portfolio controls, reporting and assurance for agile initiatives
- Transformation Directors — who need visible benefits, dependencies and decision points across change portfolios
- Senior Project Managers — who are moving from project delivery into MSP-led programme roles
- Agile Delivery Managers — who must connect team-level agile practices to enterprise governance
- Business Change Managers — who need to link operational readiness and benefit adoption to iterative releases
Requirements and prerequisites
Participants should have practical experience of project, programme, PMO or agile delivery work and be comfortable discussing business cases, risks, stakeholders, milestones and delivery reporting. Familiarity with Agile concepts such as product backlogs, sprints, Kanban flow, releases and retrospectives is assumed, along with basic awareness of programme governance. Prior MSP training or an MSP qualification is helpful but not required; the course introduces the relevant MSP concepts before applying them. No specialist software expertise, coding ability, Jira administration experience or formal AgilePM, Scrum or PRINCE2 qualification is required.
Training methodology
The course uses short instructor-led MSP briefings followed by facilitated application to a single enterprise transformation case. Participants work with programme vision statements, benefits maps, product roadmaps, sample Jira data, risk scenarios and executive reporting requirements. Small-group workshops test how MSP governance can be tailored for Scrum, Kanban and hybrid teams without creating unnecessary approval layers. Each day closes with a practical artefact review. On day five, participants consolidate their work into an Agile PMO integration pack and identify actions, sponsors and measures for applying it in their organisation.
Course outline
Day 1: MSP foundations for adaptive programmes
- MSP principles and the programme lifecycle
- Distinguishing projects, programmes, products and portfolios
- Agile delivery models: Scrum, Kanban and hybrid approaches
- The Agile PMO operating model
- Programme vision and strategic alignment statements
- Stakeholder influence and governance expectations
- Tailoring MSP controls to delivery uncertainty
Workshop: Participants assess a transformation case and produce a tailored MSP-to-agile operating model with defined programme roles and decision forums.
Day 2: Benefits, blueprint and business case integration
- MSP benefits management cycle
- Outcome-based benefit profiles and measures
- Benefits maps and causal dependency chains
- Target operating model blueprints
- Incremental capability deployment planning
- Business case assumptions and investment logic
- Linking product outcomes to programme benefits
Workshop: Participants create a benefits map, benefit profiles and a release-to-outcome traceability view for the case programme.
Day 3: Tranches, roadmaps and dependencies
- MSP tranches and decision gates
- Product roadmaps and release planning
- Rolling-wave programme planning
- Cross-team dependency identification techniques
- Dependency boards and critical interfaces
- Resource, capability and operational readiness planning
- Managing scope adaptation within programme tolerances
Workshop: Participants build a tranche and release plan with a dependency board, readiness milestones and escalation thresholds.
Day 4: Governance, assurance and reporting
- Programme board responsibilities and delegated authority
- Agile PMO assurance models
- Risk, issue and assumption management
- Programme controls and tolerance design
- Jira-based delivery evidence and data quality
- Executive dashboards for benefits, flow and forecasts
- Decision logs and exception reporting
Workshop: Participants design a governance calendar and executive dashboard, then respond to a simulated release risk escalation.
Day 5: Implementing the Agile PMO integration model
- Assessing current PMO maturity and constraints
- Selecting MSP artefacts for minimum viable governance
- Transitioning from project controls to programme controls
- Coaching delivery teams on reporting expectations
- Stakeholder engagement and adoption planning
- Measuring governance effectiveness and benefit progress
- Ninety-day Agile PMO implementation roadmap
Workshop: Participants consolidate their artefacts into an Agile PMO integration pack and present a ninety-day implementation roadmap for peer and instructor review.
Tools & standards covered
Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) 5th Edition, AgilePM Handbook, The Scrum Guide, Jira Software
A typical training day
| 08:30 – 10:30 | First session |
| 10:30 – 10:45 | Refreshment break |
| 10:45 – 12:30 | Second session |
| 12:30 – 13:30 | Lunch and networking |
| 13:30 – 15:00 | Third session |
| 15:00 – 15:15 | Refreshment break |
| 15:15 – 16:30 | Workshop and daily review |
Live online deliveries follow the same structure in the East Africa Time zone, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.
What the fee includes
- Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
- Full course workbook and materials
- Exercise files, templates and case studies
- Certificate of completion
- Refreshments and lunch (classroom deliveries)
- Post-course application plan
- Facilitator follow-up on request
- Group rates from five participants
How you can take this course
Classroom
Scheduled sessions in Nairobi, Mombasa, Kigali, Dar es Salaam, Dubai and Cape Town.
Live online
The same facilitator and materials, delivered live for distributed teams and individuals.
In-house
Delivered privately for your team, at your offices or a venue of your choice, tailored to your context. Request a proposal.
Certification
Participants who complete the full five days receive the Skillset Development Certificate of Completion, stating the course title, course code, dates and delivery format — suitable for professional-development records and employer reimbursement.
Frequently asked questions
Upcoming sessions
New dates are being scheduled. Ask us about the next session or an in-house delivery for your team.
Ask about datesGroup of 5+?
Request in-house delivery or group rates →Related courses in Agile & PMO
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