Title: Functions of project management offices and the satisfaction of project personnel in new product development

Authors: Sanderson César Macêdo Barbalho

Addresses: Technology Centre, Production Engineering Department, Campus Darcy Ribeiro, University of Brasília, Brasília, Federal District, 70910-900, Brazil

Abstract: The adoption of best practices in project management depends on the existence of an infrastructure for supporting project managers and teams. Companies have created project management offices (PMOs) for that purpose. This research presents an investigation carried out in the final stages of an action research for implementing a PMO to support a new product development (NPD) process in a high-tech company. The purpose was to investigate how PMO functions affect project teams' satisfaction and vice versa. We conducted interviews with project team members and triangulated data from them with direct observation and document analysis data. Results suggest that in NPD projects, 'logistic support' activities such as prototype-parts planning and control can help PMOs to reduce tensions in the project's work climate, because they bring PMO personnel to the value-added chain of the project. The outcomes also suggest, as a managerial implication, that structuring PMO functions by consulting project teams and trying to support their value-added chain delivers both project performance and team satisfaction.

Keywords: project management; high-technology industries; new product development; NPD; project management office; PMO.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBIR.2022.121732

International Journal of Business Innovation and Research, 2022 Vol.27 No.3, pp.281 - 296

Published online: 24 Mar 2022 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article