Application of the PM² Methodology in the Project Management of the Portuguese Project Management Observatory Creation – Initiating Phase

The Portuguese Project Management Association (APOGEP) launched in September 2020 the project of implementation of the Portuguese Project Management Observatory (PPMO), a non-profit organization with a focus on the status and evolution of project management in Portugal. The project is being managed using the PM² methodology, developed by the European Commission (EC) that has been available, since 2016, free of charge to the general public. The methodology has few scientific references, so this project was used to contribute to filling this gap. The methodology incorporates best practices from other bodies of knowledge, can be easily applied and allows for customization. The initiating phase has been completed and the details of its implementation are focused on in this paper. The client involvement from an early stage was crucial and it was necessary to use more artefacts than those mentioned for this phase. Therefore, this paper presents the tailoring of the PM² methodology to the PPMO project, for the initiating phase.