Collective Wisdom from the Experts 57
• Supportive. The PMO provides support to team members and project
managers. This may manifest itself as training classes, adjusting templates
and documents to make them work in all departments, or working with a
project manager on staffing or other human resource issues.Project Management Offices are not identical from corporation to corporation
around the world. Each business is at a different developmental stage with its
project management practices. So, the common name of PMO may encom-
pass numerous hybrid responsibilities drawn from the aforementioned list, or
unique ones not mentioned.
The PMO provides guidance in suitable standardized and validated tools,
techniques, and software, thereby reducing problems due to uncertainty and
the growing emphasis on cheaper/better/faster projects. The PMO applies a
standardized methodology where necessary and effective: project identifica-
tion, data collection, analysis, information gathering, distribution, report-
ing, risk management, procurement, quality, and other project management
knowledge areas such as documentation and communications.
The theme of economic success through a PMO model is a hot topic in interna-
tional congresses, seminars, and recently published papers. Academic discus-
sions are prolific, because of a growing need to match university experiences
with actual “real world” practices. The students of today are the developers of
tomorrow.
PMOs are here to stay. If you are currently a software developer, you should
be proactive in opening a dialog with your PMO. Communicate your profes-
sional success stories and the uniqueness of the software development pro-
cess. If you don’t, you are liable to be saddled with methods, documentation
requirements, and procedures that don’t fit your needs. Fast, good, high-quality
software is in everyone’s best interest.