Effective planning and a management plan are essential prerequisites for project management and the successful completion of projects. However, teams struggle with these foundational pieces because projects often have varying lengths and unpredictable outcomes, meaning project management techniques need to be redeveloped with every new project. The Office of Research and Economic Development’s Project Management Office (PMO) aims to support these project teams and project objectives by selecting the appropriate project management framework based on the project scope, team, and sponsor.
The project management phases — initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and control, and closeout — closely follow the project life cycle in research administration and can be effectively applied in the management methodologies.
It is crucial – and can be difficult – for an intricate project team to ensure that a large-scale, complex, and translational project is managed effectively and delivers its objectives. Outside of managing compliance, financials, schedules, communications, scopes, and deliverables, the project team also has the responsibility for other project team members who, while accustomed to working independently, may be less familiar with delivering the outputs a project needs – and within a specific deadline.
Utilizing proven project management frameworks and methods, the PMO addresses the challenges of running a multi-year sponsored project and avoids overwhelming project teams through consistency, clarity, collaboration, continuity, and communication. The PMO combines project management knowledge, experience, and proven techniques gained from running various projects across the university system.
And by gathering, compiling, and sharing lessons learned and experiences gained across the institution, the PMO is developing and embedding best practice project management for use in any sponsored project on the campus. Using best practices helps to reduce risks, plan more efficiently, and make good use of existing resources.
