Knowledge Management Activities Across the PMO Continuum

The "project knowledge management" function along the PMO competency continuum is represented by increased capability to collect and share project management information and knowledge and a greater efficiency to accomplish it thanks to the introduction of on-line knowledge management application tools. Moreover, the PMO competency continuum reflects a progressively broader scope of project management information and knowledge access to entities outside the project management environment. In particular, the more developed PMO levels extend project management information and knowledge for sharing and integration into business operations of the relevant organization. There is also the potential for extending knowledge management system access, on a selective basis, to external project participants such as customers, vendors, and contractors.

Table 4.1 presents an overview of the range of prescribed PMO knowledge management activities according to each level in the PMO competency continuum.

Table 4.1: Range of Project Knowledge Management Activities across the PMO Continuum

Project Office	Basic PMO	Standard PMO	Advanced PMO	Center of Excellence
Uses established project knowledge management tools to prepare and manage project plans, reports, and documents and to collaborate on project team performance	Introduces essential project information management capability Develops project management reporting and collaboration procedures Provides tools for managing project information Creates methods for compiling and using project postmortem information and feedback	Introduces tools and practices for managing project knowledge Installs a project management methodology tool Builds a project management information system (PMIS) Constructs a project document archive and reference library having on-line research and access features	Expands knowledge management tool functionality for business use Develops Web-based project team knowledge spaces Implements a Web-based project team collaboration tool Installs an on-line project portfolio management tool Introduces an on-line executive dashboard	Analyzes capability of project knowledge management system Examines business value and benefits of project knowledge management Recommends advanced tools and knowledge management capabilities

The project office applies the information and knowledge management tools and practices that are available for use in the project management environment. In the absence of a higher level PMO, the project office will collaborate its needs with key project participants to establish a common approach for reporting project progress and status, as well as to identify a preferred tool to facilitate reporting.

Mid-range PMO levels of the continuum have the responsibility of introducing on-line project information and knowledge management practices, ideally supported by on-line tools and applications. A prominent PMO effort at this level is "building" a project management information system (PMIS) that allows the PMO to achieve an effective project management information and knowledge management capability. In addition, there is increased focus on knowledge management as the preferred solution for practices and tools.

The center of excellence participates in this effort in an advisory role to the project management environment and possibly lower level PMOs, as well as to the business environment. It furthers the functional effort by focusing on the implementation of advanced knowledge management tools and their interconnectivity for greater efficiency of communication and collaboration within the project management environment.

This PMO model promotes the timely transition from information system management to the expanded project management communication and collaboration capability found in the context of the emerging knowledge management discipline.