Evaluating project management office adoption for value-oriented governance in large-scale construction projects

Although Project Management Offices (PMOs) are increasingly recognized as mechanisms for improving coordination, governance, and organizational value realization across projects, empirical understanding of their adoption in the construction sector remains limited. Existing studies have largely emphasized PMO typologies and maturity levels, offering little quantitative evidence on how internal organizational capabilities and external environmental factors jointly influence adoption outcomes and value-oriented governance through effective PMO adoption. Addressing this gap, this study develops and validates a multi-factor structural model to evaluate PMO adoption (PMOA) in large-scale construction settings. Using the Haramain Expansion Project in Saudi Arabia as an empirical case, data were collected from 60 professionals across government, semi-government, and private organizations. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to assess relationships among four latent constructs including Knowledge and Awareness (KAF), Implementation Excellence (IEF), Change Management (CMF) and External and Risk Management (ERMF). The model exhibited strong reliability and predictive accuracy, explaining 97.6% of the variance in PMOA (R² = 0.976). Implementation Excellence (β = 0.366) and Change Management (β = 0.349) emerged as the strongest determinants, followed by ERMF (β = 0.271) and KAF (β = 0.250). These findings provide the first empirical validation of a multi-dimensional PMO adoption framework in the Middle Eastern construction context, advancing understanding of how capability integration, risk preparedness, and governance mechanisms collectively support sustained organizational value and resilience in complex infrastructure environments.