P3O courses (Portfolio, Programme and Project Offices)

P3O certification

The P3O certification scheme from PeopleCert and AXELOS offers two levels of certification, Foundation and Practitioner.

Our P30 training is designed by subject experts and professional P30 trainers. It gives you the best chance of passing your P30 certification exams and successfully earning your PMO qualifications.

P3O certification is the leading project management office (PMO) certification scheme and is a sign to employers that a candidate has a good knowledge of PMO principles and methods.

P3O Foundation

• Exam: 1-hour, 70 multiple-choice questions.
• Prerequisites: None.
• Suitable for: Candidates working within a P3O model, those who want to learn the terminology and concepts underpinning P3O, and those wanting to pursue higher-level qualifications.
• Duration: 3 days 9:00am-5:00pm.
• Homework: 2-3 hours with 2 hour of reading prior to the course.

What is tested:

• Knowledge and understanding of the P3O models and roles
• Key functions and services of a P3O
• Reasons for establishing a P3O model
• Differences between types of P3O model and how to select the most appropriate model
• Tools and techniques used by a P3O Practitioner.

P3O Practitioner

• Exam: 150 minutes, long-form, objective test questions (based on a case-study).
• Pass mark: 40/80.
• Prerequisites: P3O Foundation certification.
• Suitable for: Candidates working in a management, generic or functional P3O role. Those wanting to work within a P3O model as part of their career path.
• Duration: 1 day 9:00am-5:00pm.
• Homework: 2-3 hours with 2 hour of reading prior to the course.

What is tested:

• How to develop the required business case to obtain approval of a P3O project
• How to identify and build P3O models for use in any given context
• How to adapt the P3O model to suit an organization’s needs
• How to plan the implementation of P3O
• How to use appropriate tools and techniques while advising a P3O model.

P3O guidance

The P3O book ^[1] provides an approach for designing, implementing and operating portfolio, programme and project offices. P3O is based upon best practices, and its authors consulted widely with experts in portfolio, programme and project offices when writing the guidance.

P3O is part of the same suite of global best practice publications by AXELOS. Managing Successful Programmes (MSP) and PRINCE2 are two of the best known.

The adoption of MSP and PRINCE2 globally by organisations has led to the development of centres of excellence and both programme and project offices.

The development of portfolio offices has happened more recently and P3O was developed to provide joined-up thinking for organisations to use when designing their portfolio, programme and project office(s) solutions.

^[1] AXELOS (2013). P3O® Portfolio, Programme and Project Offices. 2nd ed. Norwich: TSO. 224.

Who should get a P30 qualification?

P30 training helps senior managers understand the structure for achieving strategic objectives.

Programme managers will benefit from the consistency P3O brings by standardizing strategies within projects, programmes and portfolios.

Project managers can integrate project management frameworks such as PRINCE2 into a P3O model and deliver consistent outputs across projects.

P3O offers new career paths for working professionals with industry experience as programme management office (PMO) is a natural career progression path for established roles.

P3O FAQs