Project management without pmp

Project Management without PMP

1

The School of Continuous Improvement

(C) THE SCHOOL OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PROJECT MANAGEMENT WITHOUT PMP

Disclaimer

2(C) THE SCHOOL OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PROJECT

MANAGEMENT WITHOUT PMP

Project Management without PMP is an independent work of the author of this module, C. Vishwanathan. The work doesn’t discredit PMP certification, nor the training institutions that offer PMP training curricula. PMI, the regulatory body for PMP certifications, is an equally creditable body as well.

World over, jobs and vacancies are posted where Project Managers are sought with PMP Certification. The question needs to be asked, “Does a PMP certified guy become a good project manager?” or “Does a manager perform better in his projects after PMP Certification?

This work takes a neutral aspect towards the subject of Project Management and questions the need of doing a PMP to get validated as a good project manager.

The PMP Body of Knowledge



Process Groups

1. Project Initiating2. Project Planning3. Executing4. Monitoring and Controlling5. Closing

Knowledge Areas

1. Project Integration Management2. Project Scope Management3. Project time management4. Project cost management5. Project quality management6. Project HR management7. Project communications management8. Project risk management9. Project procurement management10. Project stakeholders’ management

The 10 Knowledge areas overlap with the 5 process groups and thus studying all of these subjects is vital for an individual to gain technical expertise in the concept of project management.

Is the start-end project management lifecycle tough?



I am not PMP certified and yet I understand that

1. Projects need to be initiated and planned2. Projects need to monitored and controlled for factors3. Projects need to be closed4. Projects have risks5. Communication is critical to stakeholders6. Every project has constraints which are:

a. Qualityb. Cost Schedule

PMP Certification requirements



With the kind of pre-requisites listed here, would you need a certificate to attest your project management credentials?

Assuming an average project runs for 3 full time business months, i.e. approximately 500 hours, completion of 4,500 hours of leading and directing projects mean, 9 full scale projects done.

Seriously do you need a certificate to attest that kind of project credentials?

Reality check – Some questions



I sampled 494 professionals who had taken their PMP examinations and asked them their age when they took the examinations.

From the graph, it can be seen that approximately 66% of the participants took the examination before the age of 30.

Reality check – Some questions



1. The first official title most organizations give to project leaders is “Project Leader/ Project Manager.”

2. Based on my interviews with HR professionals, in an ever-growing company, it would take a minimum of 4 years in the role to promote a Band I employee to reach to the level of a Project Leader.

3. Most individuals start working at the age of 21. The first exposure to leading projects wouldn’t happen before 24-27.

4. As per the certification requirements, it would need at least 4 years to complete 9 projects, calculating full time man hours equivalent.

In a rush to add certifications to their names, people are probably rushing to take PMP exams.

The exam



I don’t have access to live PMP exam questions, but based on a sample test provided by a leading resource, here are some sample questions

The exam




The exam




The exam - Summary



1. The certification tests theoretical understanding of PM concepts and tools.

2. The certification examination has 200 Multiple choice questions, where people are supposed to select the right answer, or the most applicable answer.

3. Few of these questions test the practical understanding of project management of people.

4. The best way of passing the examinations as informed to me by the people who passed the exams is to:

a. Read the PMBOK 2-3 timesb. Take 3-4 practice examinations (Full scale) in a 1-2 month gapc. Assess your areas of opportunities based on resultsd. Re-read the PMBOKe. Attempt the final examination

I don’t see how this certification process described above will churn out effective project managers.

Pre-post impact



Rating Completely disagree

Agree Completely agree

Ability to handle projects more effectively than before PMP

certification

70% 12% 18%

Addition of new project management skills

75% 10% 15%

Impact in workplace by means of extra responsibilities/ promotions.

82% 12% 6%

Impact in job searches (Since 2012) 77% 10% 13%

I did a survey amongst 1,200 PMP certified professionals all over the world. It was an open survey where participants enrolled and completed the survey. All the data has been taken for consideration, with results below:

About 70% professionals who got certified with PMP credentials believed that the PMP certificate was of no practical use to them.

The changing scenario






1. It can be on the basis of the evidence submitted earlier concluded that to be an effective project manager, you don’t need to be PMP certified.

2. Vice versa, PMP Certification will not make you an effective project manager. It will only certify that you are aware of project management fundamentals.

3. Project Management is a highly practical discipline, one that cannot be certified purely on the basis of passing a 200 question Multiple choice question assessment where theoretical understanding is checked up to 80%.

4. If you really have the credentials as mentioned in the requisites for PMP certification, you don’t really need a PMP certification. This will not add value to your CV. The projects you handled and the results will speak up.

If you want to get trained, train to become a Project Manager and not just get a PMP certification.




If you have any questions/ clarifications, please email us at [email protected]

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Project management without pmp