A Survival Guide for Project Managers, Second Edition

Chapter 11. The Project Management Office

	For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them.
	--ARISTOTLE (384–322 B.C.) from Diogenes Laertius

The concept of a project management office (PMO) is not new; it is an old idea with a new life because of the need to manage projects more efficiently—especially information technology (IT) projects. Although PMOs are useful for managing and supporting other types of projects, IT organizations have struggled to deliver projects on time and within budget more than any others. In the mid-1990s, approximately 80 percent of all IT projects failed, and of those that were restarted, about 50 percent failed. Therefore, the challenge to manage projects more closely has caused a resurgence ...