Defining the PMO Role

Kenneth has 14 years of healthcare experience in government and private industry. Over eight years of experience managing healthcare IT projects, operations, contracts, and personnel. His work experience includes project management, contracts and procurements, data analysis, claims adjudication, business writing, and business process modeling. Kenneth was certified in 2006 as a Project Management Professional.

  Lessons Learned   PMO  

What is the role of the project management office in an organization? Many organizations will have vastly different answers, and multiple variables determine the best response. Still, it is vital that the PMO and the leaders of the organization understand what the role is and how the office fits into the structure of the entire organization. While each company may be different, there are some common characteristics of PMOs that should be considered in order for it to be a useful part of the overall organization.

The Central Repository
A perfect role for the PMO is to be the central repository of project knowledge in the organization. There should be a knowledge base kept of projects executed in the past, processes used by project teams and other information that pertains to how the organization performs in projects.

While the people in the PMO should understand these things, this repository should exist independently of any one person or group of people. There should be a dedicated folder (physical or digital) where this information is kept. As time progresses, the organization—specifically the PMO—should be using this repository to enable projects to succeed where they have failed in the past. Being the central repository of information like this will help the PMO find its foothold in the larger organization.

Best Practices
One very important component …

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