PMOs – do you have one? Do you need one?
March 5, 2015Project management offices
Project management offices (PMOs) are a central hub of project expertise and resources within an organisation. The trend for offices has emerged in organisations that are project oriented and that strive to develop an internal project management expertise. The PMO is sometimes referred to as a project office, central project office (CPO), or project support office (PSO). It may also be referred to as a ‘program office’, or ‘program management office’.
PMOs for large projects
PMOs may be developed for large, complex projects, where a group of technical, business and management personnel are assigned full time to a project or a group of related projects (a program) to support project managers. The group may include internal staff and external consultants or collaborators. The actual location is often referred to as the ‘war room’. Its function is to facilitate the effective administrative and stakeholder management of the project or program.
PMOs for multiple projects and programs
Multiple project PMOs refers to the entity within an organisation, consisting of full time staff, to provide a focus and centre of excellence for organisational project management activities. These offices are responsible for the management of a number of projects, whether related (a program) or not (a portfolio). Technically, a portfolio based office should be called a ‘project portfolio office’.
Project portfolio offices
Project portfolio offices, sometimes referred to as the enterprise/corporate project management office or organisation portfolio office, exist to ensure projects align to organisational strategy, and remain aligned throughout their lifecycles. They focus on the project selection process, risk management and ensuring consistency in stakeholder management.
Functions of PMOs
The PMO:
- garners sponsorship support from senior management
- provides project management training and mentoring
- assists in establishing roles and responsibilities
- is responsible for consistent and repeatable processes
- directs reporting and tracking
- facilitates project and post-project reviews
- manages documenting processes and archives lessons learned.
The benefits to the project manger are:
- expert guidance and mentoring
- established process guidelines and templates
- assistance with WBS, project schedule, cost estimation and budgeting
- tracking and analysis of data
- sharing of costs
- monitoring and control of project progress.
PMOs structures, styles and objectives
Ultimately, a PMO’s structure and styles depends on:
- the area of project management application – engineering/construction, administration, new product development, new technology, etc; and
- the type of industry – low or high-tech.
The goals and objectives of a PMO are determined by the organisation’s project management maturity.
Project Advantage offers a wide range of project management short courses and consulting Melbourne-wide and in other capital cities and regional centres across Australia.