PHOTOGRAMMETRIC ENGINEERING & REMOTE SENSING
November 2017
731
P
roject
M
anagement
In the Geospatial Community
By Raquel Charrois PMP, CP, CMS | VP
In recent years the idea of a project management office
(PMO) has been gaining traction in the geospatial industry.
Where there were once standalone project managers (if at
all) there are now PMO’s that serve to consolidate the project
management efforts and discipline into a unified group
that applies a unified approach to the managing of all the
individual projects under the umbrella of what is known as
a project portfolio.
As your organization’s project management evolves you should
keep in mind the idea of a PMO. The challenge is recognizing
when the best time for such a change might be. As with all
process change related items the ideal circumstance is to
identify, develop and implement them immediately before
they are required so that the moment they are needed, voila,
there they are.
The PMBOK
®
describes the project management office as
an organizational structure that standardizes the proj-
ect-related governance process and facilitates the sharing
of resources, methodologies, tools, and techniques. The
PMO ultimately unites the approaches that are utilized
within the project management group. This is true of
process related items as well as more esoteric items such
as applying company philosophies and standards to project
management activities.
A PMO fundamentally consolidates the organizations projects
into one portfolio and manages them from that perspective.
The individual at the helm of the PMO ensures that the infor-
mation from the organizations governance, relating to projects,
are known, transparent and applied consistently. This way,
the effect to all projects are considered when addressing the
needs of an individual one. The organizations goals and
objectives are combined and the impact to the entire portfolio is
considered. This, as opposed to an individual project manager
making a myopic decision that may not take into account the
larger picture. The PMO balances the needs of the company
and the needs of the customer.
The Project Management Professional (PMP)
®
and the geospatial profession—The project
management office (PMO)
PMO Office Pros
●
Unifies process and outcomes.
In general, if your organization struggles to have
repeatable approaches to challenging project situations,
finds that different project managers have different
philosophies about their handling, and have noticed that
project managers often have vastly different approaches
and outcomes to the same hurdles it would likely benefit
from a PMO.
●
Standardizes the project related governance and
ideas of the organization.
Ensures that the larger ideas and considerations of the
organization are known and considered in all project
related actions.
●
Manages the projects from a portfolio level.
Ensures that the health of all the projects via the portfolio
are maintained versus having a single advocate for each
project
●
Single point of contact.
The individual in charge of the PMO is the single point
of contact for process and idea changes that are to be
applicable to all the projects and project managers.
PMO Office Cons
●
Can be burdensome if handled incorrectly.
As with most things, if incorrectly implemented the result
is simply more work without the benefits of a great PMO.
●
May slow things down.
If poorly handled a PMO can unnecessarily slow down
a project.
There are many indicators that an organization would benefit
from a PMO, below are three key ones to note.
Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing
Vol. 83, No. 11, November 2017, pp. 731–732.
0099-1112/17/731–732
© 2017 American Society for Photogrammetry
and Remote Sensing
doi: 10.14358/PERS.83.10.731
