Building and Elevating PMOs: From Award-Winning Excellence to Mega-Project Readiness
Details:
May 10, 2025
10:30 AM to 1 PM
2.5 PDUs available for PMI Certificate Holders
Members/Students: $15
Non-Members: $20
Zoom details to be sent after registration is complete!
Presentation Description:
Building a high-performing PMO requires strategy, alignment, and adaptability. In this session, we’ll explore two distinct yet connected journeys in PMO development. Joe will share how Ontario Power Generation (OPG) transformed its PMO into an award-winning center of excellence, driving strategic value and operational success. Vijay will then discuss his experience in building a PMO from the ground up to support a large-scale mega-project while ensuring alignment with OPG’s Enterprise PMO (EPMO). Attendees will gain insights into key success factors, challenges, and best practices for both optimizing an established PMO and launching a new one for complex projects. Whether you're refining an existing PMO or starting fresh, this session will provide actionable takeaways to help you drive PMO maturity and impact.
Learning Objectives:
1) Understanding the key strategies and success factors behind transforming an existing PMO into an award-winning center of excellence.
2) Learn how to build a PMO from the ground up to support a mega-project while ensuring alignment with an EPMO.
3) Explore challenges and lessons learned from both optimizing an established PMO and launching a new one.
4) Identify best practices for driving PMO maturity, strategic value, and operational success.
Speaker Bios:
Joe Campa, PMP, PMI-PMOCP, PMI-SCP, PMI-PBA, PMI-RMP
Sr. Manager, Strategic Excellence Office, Ontario Power Generation
Joe Campa is a seasoned PMO leader with 20+ years in project management and controls, specializing in program and portfolio management. He played a key role in establishing a world-class PMO that won the 2023 America’s PMO of the Year Award.
A dedicated advocate for the profession, Joe has served on PMI boards, contributed to certification development, and developed content for the PMI Risk and PMO practice guides. He judges the PMI PMO Global Awards, serves as Community Engagement Lead for the PMO North America Hub, and represents his organization on PMI’s Global Executive Council. A sought-after speaker, he shares insights on PMOs, risk, and career growth at global industry events.
Vijay Santhanam, PMP
Director, Pickering Refurbishment and Projects PMO, Ontario Power Generation
Vijay Santhanam is a seasoned Project Management professional with over 20 years of experience in Project Management, Project Controls, and Work Management. He began his career at Bruce Power, contributing to the Unit 1 & 2 Restart Program, and has since held various technical, management, and leadership roles, primarily within the energy sector. Vijay’s expertise spans complex project planning, cost integration, estimating, risk management, and more. He has played a key role in establishing PMOs for major programs, including the OPG Refurbishment Programs and the Darlington Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Program. Vijay exemplifies leadership in his current role as Director of the Project Management Office (PMO) and Work Management at OPG, overseeing large-scale projects such as the Pickering Refurbishment (Units 5-8), Safe Storage of Units 1-4, and Decommissioning. He has developed and implemented governance standards for cost and schedule integration across the enterprise. Vijay is a strong advocate for stakeholder management and PMO practices, prioritizing relationship-building and trust to ensure project success.
