Description

As companies begin to recognize the favorable effect that project management has on profitability, emphasis
is placed upon achieving professionalism in project management using the project office concept.
The concept of a project office (PO) or project management office (PMO) could very well be the most important
project management activity in this decade. With this recognition of importance comes strategic
planning for both project management and the project office. Maturity and excellence in project management
does not occur simply by using project management over a prolonged period of time. Rather, it comes
through strategic planning for both project management and the project office.
General strategic planning involves the determination of where you wish to be in the future and then
how you plan to get there. For project office strategic planning, it is often easier to decide which activities
should be under the control of the project office than determining how or when to do it. For each activity
placed under the auspices of the project office, there may appear pockets of resistance that initially view
removing this activity from their functional area as a threat to their power and authority.