The Complete Project Management Office Handbook, Second Edition (ESI International Project Management Series) [Hardcover]

Gerard M. Hill (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1420046802 | ISBN-13: 978-1420046809 | Publication Date: August 22, 2007 | Edition: 2

The Complete Project Management Office Handbook, Second Edition identifies the PMO as the essential business integrator of the people, processes, and tools that manage or influence project performance. This book details how the PMO applies professional project management practices and successfully integrates business interests with project goals— regardless of whether the scope of the PMO is limited to managing a handful of specific projects or expanded to oversee the total practice of project management within the organization.

The book first considers the five stages of PMO capability, each benchmarking a particular level of capability achieved if functions are fully implemented. Each stage is also indicative of the organization’s maturity in project management, with the PMO’s role and responsibilities advancing from project management oversight and control at the lower end of the competency continuum to strategic business alignment at the higher competency stages.

This revised edition then examines 20 function models that can be used to guide the organization through the deliberation and the development of PMO operational capability. These models suggest what project management capability can be realized through comprehensive implementation of each PMO function.

Providing project and business managers with a starting point that enables them to achieve desired results from project management, The Complete Project Management Office Handbook is an important resource for everyone involved in making project management work effectively within the organization. 

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Principal, Hill Consulting Group, Woodbridge, Virginia, USA

Product Details

• Hardcover: 752 pages
• Publisher: Auerbach Publications; 2 edition (August 22, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1420046802
• ISBN-13: 978-1420046809
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #542,534 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The PMO Director's Bible!, January 2, 2008

By 

Pen and Teller (Fremont, Ca United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Project Management Office Handbook, Second Edition (ESI International Project Management Series) (Hardcover)

I rarely ever make book comments; however, because I saw a one star review, I just had to share my two cents.

Let me first start off by saying this is bar-none one of the best project management office books I have ever read. The way the concepts were organized and presented illustrate a solid approach to building a PMO office from scratch to a "center of excellence".

Please note that the book is written for senior project managers, program managers, and PMO directors who need a orchestrated approach to developing a project management office for their organization. It is NOT written for beginner or novice project managers hoping to learn fundamental concepts about project management or project management offices. It is an excellent reference book to keep on your book shelf to help develop and enhance Project Management Office development ideas.

This book has been instrumental in helping me to develop a strategic roadmap to further develop a recently established PMO office in one of the largest software engineering organizations in the world. (look my name up on the Internet )

Key takeaways for me:

1. Well explained PMO maturity model
2. Detailed explanation of each PMO maturity phase and the action items needed to be accomplished in order to move on to higher phases
3. A simplified summary at the end of each chapter for smaller organizations with less resources/capital.
4. Excellent and consistent charts and graphs. Other books are poorly illustrated.

In Summary
I have over 10 years of project management experience in the automotive and software engineering world and this book has proven to be one of the best books on strategic Project Management Office development.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Keep this Handbook "Handy", May 10, 2006

By 

Sue White "PMP, SAP Program Manager" (Washington, DC Metro area) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Complete Project Management Office Handbook (ESI International Project Management Series) (Hardcover)

Hill's book is an excellent overview of the Project Management Office(PMO) stages and functions. It is well-organized and well-written, with each chapter following a consistent format and including a related function model for the topic being discussed.

I particularly liked:

o The PMO Competency Continuum that depicts the five stages in the evolution of a full-blown PMO (i.e.,Center of Excellence), and the functions, advantages and disadvantages associated with each stage

o The table depicting the 20 PMO functions, grouped within his five function categories: Practice Management, Infrastructure Management, Resource Integration, Technical Support and Business Alignment

o Good use of charts, diagrams, bullets, examples, etc.

o Recognition of the PMO's business integration function

Suggestion for future editions: Correlate functions and processes to the Project Management Institute (PMI)'s terminology, phasing, etc.

A good desk reference!

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Reads like a big dictionary..., October 18, 2006

By 

A Project Guy - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Complete Project Management Office Handbook (ESI International Project Management Series) (Hardcover)

Personally, I don't like this book. It reads like a big dictionary... lots of words but nothing tying things together. I found it difficult to find and follow a set of concrete steps to help get a PMO up and running. I understand it is "complete" but it does it at the expense of the "shotgun effect"--throwing a lot of stuff out but not really zeroing in on anything.

I think this book would be great for someone who needed to pick and choose a few specific things and wanted a reference but as a day-to-day book to help with setting up a PMO and figuring out how to get a PMO effort off the ground in a way that ensures success, it misses the mark unfortunately.