Project management offices grow more essential during recession

Project management offices grow more essential during recession
By Kristen Caretta, Associate Editor
27 Jan 2009 | SearchCIO-Midmarket.com

Project management offices (PMOs) are becoming more critical to the midmarket during the recession, as they offer important IT governance in making sure all IT projects are aligned with corporate goals while also cutting out waste

Though often created during booming economic times to focus resources and priorities on the most strategic projects, PMOs are no luxury in tight economic times, interviews with midmarket CIOs indicate. Today, project management offices are uniquely positioned to cut projects that have spiraled out of control and identify those critical to meeting changing business needs and increasing business efficiency. They have even staved off IT layoffs.

At extreme sports goods maker Sole Technologies Inc., the PMO "actually has a stronger role now: analyzing and making sure we're doing the proper work in the most cost-effective way and separating the nice-to-haves from the need-to-haves," said George Bock, vice president of IT at the Lake Forest, Calif.-based company.

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Thanks to Angela Mickley for sharing this with me. I currently faciliate a Central Ohio PMO LeadersForum and have found that "smart" companies continue to invest in the PMO concept to make sure that they "do the right things" not just "do things right"

Peace out,

Ben