Management
Issue No. 61 - October/November 2011
Does a PMO offer value for money?
by Lisa Twyford
Project Management Offices come in a wide variety of forms, purposes and names, such as: support offices, project governance teams, strategic project offices, project planning offices or maybe a name that has nothing to do with projects! The only certainty when talking about PMOs is that no two are the same.
In the business world there is a lack of consensus as to the value of a PMO; this is because businesses have difficulty assessing what it does and the form it takes.
Four most common types of PMOs exist (1):
1. The Enforcer – The primary purpose of this PMO is governance and control. This PMO is usually charged with establishing processes, policies and methodology of project management within the organisation. A key aim is to obtain value through consistent project management policies (2). A regular activity of this PMO is project audits (or ‘Health Checks’) and monitoring for compliance with policy. They will usually report to management and executives about the status of projects.
2. The Educator – The purpose of this PMO is education and the promotion of project management. This type of PMO provides advice, support to project managers by building the competency or skills required in the organisation to manage projects. These PMOs may also have a mentor program to coach and develop project skills. This is a passive and supporting role.
3. The Skilled Expert – provides project skills across the organisation. Every project needs skilled resources which are sometimes difficult to find. The ‘skilled expert’ PMO has a set of professional project staff the business can draw upon. This definition extends to a Project Support Office which is set up to provide ...
