Hi Project Management Practitioners
lets talk about PMO, i assume some organization just think PMO its business/ organization trends - Its True?
Please share about your experience .. Saving Changes...
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Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
As all things inside a company a business unit is created to locate an amount of functions/methods which are needed to implement the company strategy. Those functions/methods (project/program/portfolio in this case) can be located into a new physical business unit (it can be called "PMO") or can be distributed along other existing business unit. So, the key point is deciding if the functions/process must exists as a component of the company strategy. After that, to create or not create a new physical business unit is the same than you create any other business unit inside the company. Saving Changes...
Adela TataruSenior Project Manager| Self EmployedVancouver, British Columbia, Canada
No, I would not say that it is a trend to have a PMO. I think Sergio did a beautiful explanation in his post above.
However, I do agree that a lot of companies create a PMO structure without actually understanding why and to which purpose, thinking that this is an answer to problems they have identified and end up having project admins instead of an actual business unit with a strategic purpose. Saving Changes...
Just to add a bit of context, within a PMO there may be some specific roles or job functions that are better centralized than distributed.
In addition to the PM skill-set, there are often specialized tools and processes. Software like MS Project and Primavera are expensive, and require expertise to use efficiently. Having a core set of users can save licensing costs and improve efficiency. Change management may involve both specialized process knowledge, and involve limited information such as vendor cost data.
If you think about it, that's why we have functional based organizations to begin with. Rather than everyone being an expert in everything, people focus on a specialty area which is leveraged across a broader organization.
Like anything, how much functional vs. project alignment depends on the business and circumstances. The same question could be applied to Finance, Marketing, and Legal departments. Is it just a trend that they usually have their own central organization, or is it core competency and business rationale? Saving Changes...
