Experiences in Building and Leading a PMO: Best Practices in a Centralized Program Management Office

The creation and implementation of a Program Management Office (PMO) is one of the most challenging roles a leader can undertake. To succeed, you need a thorough and workable understanding of project management, targeted leadership strategies and business communication, while also coordinating with team members, stakeholders, and executives alike.

Karen M. Marks M. Ed, understands the process well. During her thirty-five years in the corporate world, she developed a thriving, cohesive PMO within the medical-device and pharmaceutical industries. In her new book, Experiences in Building and Leading a PMO, she passes on the insights she gained from leading one of the largest PMOs ever to serve a corporate environment.

Marks shares the tools and processes vital to PMO success, including

• securing the support of high-level management,
• facing the challenges of prioritization,
• assuming a leadership role,
• handling internal politics, and
• working towards continuous improvement.

Personal experiences and anecdotes—good and bad—demonstrate the many opportunities and obstacles faced by PMO project managers and offer insights for how to handle such moments.

A centralized Program Management Office adds cohesiveness and efficiency to any corporate environment. Discover the road to PMO success, trail blazed by one of the best in the business.

Karen M. Marks brings over thirty-five years’ experience in the telecommunications, medical device, and pharmaceutical industries to her new book, Experiences in Building and Leading a PMO.

Educated at Muhlenberg College, Pennsylvania, and Penn State University, Marks holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources Management, a Master’s Certification in Project Management from Steven’s Institute of Technology, New Jersey, and a Six Sigma Back Belt Certification from Villanova University, Pennsylvania.

Marks is married, lives in Nevada, and has two children and two granddaughters.