Project Management Professional Certification
The question of project management professional certification is one which comes up time and again. Most people undertaking project management professional certification do so because they think it will help their career. So, if you are a project manager already and want to increase your professional standing, is seeking professional qualifications a good thing?
By becoming a certified project manager, you will be showing prospective employers that you have attained a certain level of knowledge in your professional area that is recognised by industry and fellow project managers alike.
A CV indicating project management certification is going to be placed higher on the pile than a similar CV not containing a recognised project management qualification.
In addition, advertised project management jobs in the UK tend to specify a requirement for project management certification. In the last 6 months of 2005, more than 60% of all project management job advertisements specified PRINCE2® project management certification as a key skill.
What kind of project management professional certification is there?
There are essentially three choices when considering professional project management certification. In the UK, the most popular certification is PRINCE2 administered by the APM Group Limited. More recently, the Association for Project Management in the UK has begun offering a range of professional qualifications. In the USA and Canada, qualifications from the Project Management Institute (PMI®) are more popular.
PRINCE2
In the UK, this is the main project management certificate. PRINCE2 was developed in the UK as a government standard for managing I.T. projects. It has now become a de facto standard for project management across many industries in the UK. It is also widely used across Australia and Europe. Recently, PRINCE2 project manager certification has become a popular route to professional advancement for project managers in the UK.
The huge recent popularity of PRINCE2 can be seen by the fact that during 2006 the APM Group have opened offices in the USA, Japan, India and China in order to market PRINCE2 in those countries. As a consequence, PRINCE2 is poised to become the de-facto international standard for project management across the globe. The United Nations Development Programme has adopted PRINCE2 and is currently rolling out PRINCE2 training and support to countries around the world.
PRINCE2 has two qualification levels: Foundation and Practitioner. PRINCE2 Foundation confirms that you understand what PRINCE2 is. The higher PRINCE2 Practitioner level indicates that you understand how PRINCE2 can be applied. Both levels are exam based and require no prior experience of project management although passing the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam could prove to be difficult if you don't have any prior knowledge or experience of project management.
PRINCE2 Foundation
The Foundation examination consists of a one hour multiple choice exam and approximately 97% of candidates pass this exam.
PRINCE2 Practitioner
The Practitioner level is an open book 3 hour exam meaning that candidates can use their PRINCE2 manuals during the exam. Practitioner candidates must have passed the Foundation exam prior to sitting the Practitioner exam. This is a three hour open book examination i.e. candidates are allowed to refer to the PRINCE2 manual during the examination. Candidates must answer questions from 9 out of 11 syllabus areas. Each area is worth 40 marks making a total of 360 (9 x 40) marks available. Candidates must score at least 180 marks in order to gain certification.
Existing project managers or people wanting to move into project management should consider taking the Practitioner exam. Project administrators, team leaders and support staff might consider taking the Foundation exam.
APM Qualifications
The Association for Project Management (APM) is the largest independent professional body of its kind in Europe. The APM has over 13,500 individual and 300 corporate members throughout the UK and abroad.
The APM offer 4 levels of certification. In all these are aligned with the International Project Management Association's 4 level Certification Program.
APM Introductory Certificate in Project Management
The entry level APM Introductory Certificate in Project Management has been designed for people looking to start a career in project management or those wanting to understand the principles of project management. The APM has worked with the UK Government's Department for Education and Skills to develop this certificate. No prior knowledge or experience is required for this certificate. This Certificate requires a one hour multiple choice exam.
APMP
The next level APMP is a qualification for people who've been working in project management for up to 2 years and need to understand project management to achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness. This qualification involves two exam papers: a one hour multiple-choice exam and an essay-based paper.
APMP assesses the candidate's knowledge in all areas of project management, from strategic and commercial implications, to the technical, organisational, and people management skills required to participate effectively within a project team. The syllabus for this certificate is based upon the APM Body of Knowledge.
APM Practitioner Qualification
This qualification is for people with three to five years experience in managing non-complex projects. Candidates must demonstrate their ability to manage non-complex projects or run a key control function of a large-scale project. In addition, candidates must be able to satisfy one of the following: either
- have passed the APMP Qualification; or
- can demonstrate good familiarity with the APM Body of Knowledge and have passed an equivalent qualification such as PMP, ISEB Certificate in Project Management, Open University Project Management Module M865; or
- can demonstrate they have a good foundation knowledge of project management, supported by evidence of relevant continuing professional development (CPD).
CPM: Certificated Project Manager
Certification assesses a candidate's competence and ability to effectively manage significant projects or programmes of change. Candidates must have gained extensive experience in project management throughout their career and ideally will have managed several projects from start to finish. Candidates will require experience of the complete project lifecycle, possibly across more than one project.
Candidates must demonstrate their capability of managing complex projects which have:
- Involved several companies and/or organisational units
- Involved several different disciplines e.g. technical, business, financial
- Been comprised of interrelated sub-projects or work packages
- Required applying the recognized project management competencies incorporated in the APM Body of Knowledge.
Assessment is through a self-assessment form, a project report and through an interview with a panel of assessors. The assessors will be looking to see evidence of personal qualities such as professional attitude, leadership skills, independent judgment and also evidence of project management understanding and practice through appropriate use of tools, techniques and methodologies.
Project Management Institute (PMI)
The most popular project management professional certificate in the USA and Canada is governed by the Project Management Institute (PMI). The PMI offers two levels of certification.
Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)
The CAPM is an entry-level qualification designed for members of project teams and new project managers. The CAPM demonstrates a clear knowledge of project management processes and terminology. The qualification is exam based comprising of a 3 hours multiple choice examination. CAPM also requires 1,500 hours of work on a project team.
Project Management Professional (PMP) certificate
The PMI offers an exam based Project Management Professional (PMP) certificate which tests candidates understanding of the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK). The exam is a 4 hours multiple choice exam. In addition, candidates must qualify by having a minimum amount of project management experience. The experience requires is: 7,500 hours in a position of responsibility leading and directing specific tasks and 60 months of project management experience.
PRINCE2 is a Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce. "PMI" is a service and trademark of the Project Management Institute, Inc. which is registered in the United States and other nations. "PMP" and the PMP logo are certification marks of the Project Management Institute which are registered in the United States and other nations. "PMBOK" is a trademark of the Project Management Institute, Inc. which is registered in the United States and other nations. CAPM is a certification mark of the Project Management Institute.
The author
This article was written by Simon Buehring. Simon is a project manager and trainer with extensive experience of working within the IT industry in the UK and overseas. He has worked for a range of FTSE 100 companies and public sector corporations. Simon is a PRINCE2™ Approved Trainer and PRINCE2™ Practitioner. He is available to deliver project management training and PRINCE2 training for your company. He can be contacted via KnowledgeTrain website.
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