The Program Management Office: Establishing, Managing and Growing the Value of a PMO

The role of project management in the modern organization has grown significantly. The effective management of project portfolios that include numerous short-terms projects, large multi-project programs or both has become a growing challenge for industry, government and other institutions. Many organizations have identified a need to formalize the practice of project management and develop centers of coordination and excellence for project management. The Program Management Office is a guide to satisfying this need for improved coordination, standardization, optimization, and management of the practice of project management. It addresses the strategic and practical aspects of establishing and managing the program management office (PMO) including how to create a clear and compelling business case for the PMO and sell the business case to management, how to design, structure, and implement a PMO, and how to clearly demonstrate the value provided by the PMO once operational. The text also addresses a number of common challenges that management, PMO implementation teams, and PMO staff often struggle with as they develop, implement, and manage a PMO.

The early chapters of this book provide step by step instructions to those interested in implementing and managing an effective PMO. The later chapters provide practical guidance to those who already work in a functioning PMO on how to improve PMO performance as well as its value to the organization. The author proposes that the PMO serve three primary missions — standards, consulting and knowledge. He discusses these three domains in detail and provides an understanding of why each is important as well as how the PMO can best serve each of these missions to maximize value to the organization. The Program Management Office: Establishing, Managing and Growing the Value of a PMO is an outstanding guide for those interested in starting a PMO or in growing the value of an existing PMO. It is also an ideal text for project management course instruction on the subject of PMOs.

Key Features:

• Introduces essential concepts, models, and fundamental roles of the PMO for those exploring the idea of starting a PMO to more effectively manage their organization’s project management processes and project portfolio
• Delineates the key processes involved in establishing a PMO, including selecting a PMO leader, setting organizational structure, gaining executive support, and defining the PMO charter
• Features the PMO “90-Day Plan” which provides readers with a set of steps to help get their PMO effort up and running quickly and provides guidance on how to effectively manage a PMO after it is established
• Covers developing, managing, and growing organizational standards and portfolio management processes; project consulting, mentoring and actively managing projects; and education, training and development of a project knowledgebase as the three primary missions of the PMO

About the Author

Craig J. Letavec currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the PMI Program Management Office (PMO) Specific Interest Group. He is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and earned his Master of Science degree in Project Management from George Washington University. Craig has been actively involved in information technology project management for the majority of his professional career. He has held a variety of information technology and project management positions with organizations including Siemens Business Services, Hewlett-Packard and Procter & Gamble. In addition to the practice of project management, Craig actively teaches future project managers and business professionals as an adjunct faculty member in the MBA Project Management program at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, and often speaks to project management audiences on topics such as PMO development and management, managing project change, organizational project management maturity, and quantitative risk management.