The Mystical PMO (and all its variants)

This isn't really an informative article on any sort, I was just amused by the latest variation of title I came across for a clients Project Management Office (PMO). We know that a PMO can be many things depending on organizational maturity, strategic needs, complexity of projects, and several other factors, and we know that its name should reflect what it does. So I have gone ahead and made a list of all the variants I have come across in my career with a short explanation of each - what have I missed?

Project Management Office (PMO)

• Functions: Focuses on project-level activities, providing support to project managers through methodologies, tools, best practices, and governance processes. It ensures projects are executed consistently and successfully according to organizational standards.

Programme Management Office (also PMO, just to confuse use)

• Functions: Supports program-level activities, overseeing the management of multiple interrelated projects that collectively aim to achieve strategic business objectives. It focuses on resource allocation, change management, and benefits realization across these projects.

Portfolio Management Office (also PMO, just to confuse us a little more)

• Functions: Operates at a strategic level, managing a portfolio of projects and programs to ensure they align with the organizational strategy and objectives. It prioritizes projects and programs based on strategic value, oversees resource allocation, and monitors overall performance.

Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO)

• Functions: An organization-wide PMO that aligns project, program, and portfolio activities directly with the strategic goals of the entire organization. It provides governance, standardizes practices across all departments, and ensures projects deliver value to the business.

Project Support Office (PSO)

• Functions: Provides administrative and support services to project managers and teams. This includes documentation support, project tracking, and reporting services to facilitate effective project execution.

Project Delivery Office (PDO)

• Functions: Concentrates on the delivery aspects of projects, ensuring that projects are completed on time, within budget, and to the required quality standards. It may provide expertise in project management methodologies, tools, and techniques to improve project execution.

Investment Management Office (IMO)

• Functions: Focuses on ensuring that investments in projects and programs are aligned with business goals and deliver the expected return on investment. It involves portfolio selection, capital allocation, financial management, and benefits tracking.

Value Management Office (VMO)

• Functions: Specializes in maximizing the value delivered through projects and programs. It emphasizes benefits realization, value optimization, and ensuring that projects contribute to the overall business value. It involves close monitoring of project outcomes against expected business benefits.

Center of Excellence (CoE)

• Functions: Acts as a repository of, and advocate for, best practices, knowledge, and expertise in project management and related areas. A CoE typically focuses on standardizing methodologies, offering training and certification programs, and implementing tools and technologies across the organization to elevate overall competency and performance in project management.

Strategy Realization Office (SRO)

• Functions: Focuses on translating strategic objectives into actionable projects and programs, ensuring that the organization's strategic goals are effectively realized through its project portfolio. The SRO oversees the alignment of projects with strategic objectives, tracks the achievement of strategic milestones, and ensures that projects deliver the intended strategic outcomes.

Project Office (PO)

• Functions: A variant that might be more narrowly focused than a traditional PMO, typically dedicated to supporting the execution of specific projects rather than providing organization-wide governance or methodologies. It offers project management tools, resources, and administrative support to specific projects or project teams.

Change Management Office (CMO)

• Functions: Specializes in overseeing change management strategies and processes across projects and programs. It focuses on preparing, supporting, and helping individuals, teams, and organizations in making organizational change. The CMO works closely with project teams to ensure that change is effectively managed and that the organization can adapt to new processes, technologies, and strategies.

Quality Management Office (QMO)

• Functions: Dedicated to ensuring that projects and programs adhere to the highest quality standards. The QMO develops quality policies, standards, and procedures, conducts quality audits, and implements continuous improvement processes to enhance the quality of deliverables and overall project outcomes.

Innovation Management Office (IMO)

• Functions: Focuses on fostering innovation within the organization through projects and programs. It supports the ideation, development, and implementation of innovative solutions and technologies, ensuring that projects contribute to the organization's innovation objectives.

Knowledge Management Office (KMO)

• Functions: Concentrates on capturing, developing, sharing, and effectively using organizational knowledge in project management and beyond. It aims to leverage organizational knowledge as a strategic asset, facilitating knowledge sharing and learning across projects and programs.

Contract Management Office (CMO)

• Functions: Has a primary focus on negotiating work contracts for the organisation and then overseeing the delivery of the work associated with the contract.

So, did I get them all? What other ones have you come across?