Project Managers who aspire to take the PMP exam need to have 35 hours of documented training in the area of project management. However, many believe they must take specialized and expensive courses, and some are not aware that some of the training and education they already have may qualify. Others think they need to acquire a single 35 hour certificate. Here is a survey of the ways PMP aspirants can satisfy the 35 contact hour requirement.

The Requirement
In the Project Management Professional (PMP) Credential Handbook, it states that the candidate must “Document 35 contact hours of project management education.” This requirement applies to all applicants, regardless of degree or project management experience level. So, just what must the candidate do to satisfy those “Contact Hours of Project Management Education”, where at least 35 contact hours of specific instruction addressed learning objectives in project
management?

Documenting Project Management Training and Education
The first step is to document all education hours regardless of when they were accrued. PM education hours for these purposes do not expire and do not need to be within any recent time frame. However, before submitting the application, the course work must already be completed. PMP Prep coursework does qualify, as it is project management oriented, but it would need to occur before the candidate actually submits the application. Note that “one contact hour is equivalent to one actual hour (60 minutes) of training or instruction received”, as per the PMI.

After documenting all hours, PMP candidates need “classify” content of the courses according to the PMBOK knowledge areas, including project quality, project scope, project schedule, project budget, project communications, project risk, project procurement, and project integration management. If all hours add up to 35 or more, the candidate has already satisfied the requirements. In many cases, the candidate will have either no hours or less than 35 hours of PM training, and they will need to fill that gap with additional project management training.

What Qualifies?
These educational requirements can be met by demonstrating the successful completion of courses, workshops, and training sessions offered by one or more of the following types of education providers:

A. PMI Registered Education Providers (R.E.P.s) – Pre-approved courses offered by PMI R.E.P.s. These can be classroom instruction, live instructor-lead training online, or pure online packaged courses that are available 24×7.

B. PMI Component organizations – PMI chapters, specific interest groups, colleges, or the PMI.

C. Employer/company-sponsored programs – as long as content can be logically mapped to the knowledge areas.

D. Training companies or consultants – as long as content can be logically mapped to the knowledge areas.

E. Distance-learning companies, including an end-of-course assessment – can include live instructor-lead training online, or pure online packaged courses that are available 24×7, as long as content can be logically mapped to the knowledge areas.

F. University/college academic and continuing education programs, as long as content can be logically mapped to the knowledge areas.

Note that one hour of classroom instruction equals one contact hour. Non-classroom instruction, such as online training, also must comply with the rule that one hour of classroom instruction equals one contact hour. Project Management podcasts can also satisfy all or a portion of the requirement. The important thing is to be able to provide complete and authoritative documentation of the training and education, such as certificates, tests, syllabus, course descriptions, and transcript to properly support your claim.

Here are some scenarios of what should qualify:

1. Completion of a 15 week university or college course on project management that met for three hours per week would qualify for 45 contact hours.

2. Completion of a university or college course that was approximately 50% on the subject of project management that met for two hours per week for 15 weeks would qualify for 50% x 30 contact hours, or 15 contact hours. The additional 20 contact hours could be earned with an 8 hour REP classroom training, and 12 hours of REP 24×7 online training.

3. Completion of a single REP classroom course or online, 24×7 set of courses that add up to 35 hours or more.

4. Completion of some combination non-REP classroom project management training, live instructor-lead online project management training, online 24×7 project management training courses, or project management podcasts, as long as they are clearly documentable.

What does not satisfy the PMP Educational Requirements?
The following do not satisfy the education requirements:

1. PMI chapter meetings, unless spent conducting a learning activity

2. Self-study (e.g., reading books)

3. Degree program, such as MBA, in its entirety, but many of the classes within the program will apply and must be documented individually

Conclusion
There are many ways to satisfy the PMI requirement of 35 hours of project management training. Any training must be in the areas of project quality, project scope, project schedule, project budget, project communications, project risk, project procurement, and project integration management. The PMI rule is that one hour of training equals one of these contact hours. Applicants must be able to clearly document the training with proper proof. The final authority is the PMI, and the authoritative document is the Project Management Professional (PMP) Credential Handbook, which can be found at http://www.pmi.org/PDF/pdc_pmphandbook.pdf. Applicants should contact the PMI directly with any questions or concerns.

In our life especially for those moving up their career ladder, at some point in time, one will invariably being called upon to lead and manage a  project. Depending upon the nature of the work and  the industry  one is in, the size and magnitude, the intensity and rigor  required of the method of project management  may differ. At the simplest, it may just be the simple identification and definition of the various activities and tasks with assigned roles and responsibilities together with clear timelines and key delivery milestones. At the extreme, it may involve the  full rigor of project management best practices utilizing robust Project Management (PM) methodology  (such as those propounded by PM Institute, US  or PRINCE, UK )and  adoption of the various automated tools (eg Microsoft Office Project, complete with recruitment of fully qualified full time project manager or director to manage the complex process.

While one can avail himself to the variety of tools available in the market, does this guarantee project success.   Detailed information on  many PM Methodology tools is widely and freely available to all. Yet I must say that the mere adoption of such tools does not guarantee the project will be completed and implemented successfully.  There have been far too many major projects that have gone wrong, unable to be salvaged. You can read many in the News.

What then is successful and how does one define that the project is considered completed and successful.   Is  completion of a  project say done  within budget and within timeline, consider success. I believe many would say so, after all, to the business, the  project is implemented and to the supplier, he gets paid for the work done. Is this the sole criterion to determine success.  What if the projects are completed, but never being used or worst still being shelved after a short while and ended up a white elephant. How do we account for the investment in this?   The work done and delivered, irrespective of whether the project is used and serving its intended  purpose. Ultimately, irrespective of which perspective you look at, if the project is completed on time and within budget, and adding value to the organization and indirectly also value to the society, then it is successful.

In the course of my career, I have undertaken numerous projects from small to major ones involving tens of millions and more particularly in the technology industry.  While the key criteria to gauge the success or failure is determined by the order of the Management at that point in time, I must say that it is a very fine line largely dependent on the immediate stakeholders and users who stand to gain or lose by the project.  And it is usually this group of people who determine the fate of the project, which may well be managed very properly and professionally. How qualified and knowledgeable is this group of stakeholders, I can only say appalling in most times, due to tendency to delegate to lower level staff.

I think the key requirements to ensuring successful projects are easily identified and obtained. Requirements such as getting right personnel, adequate time, adequate budget and so on,  and with that, the assigned project manager to adopt a methodology.  But despite the availability of such information and so-called tips and tricks or best practices, many projects still fail, and I mean real big projects.   And maybe  a professionally certified Project Manager will by no means guarantee the success.  Perhaps a higher probability of success, but never a guarantee. 

Here, I do not intend to delve into the key planning activities that a good PM tools will provide.  Picking and standardizing one good, not necessary the most expensive and most elaborate one to suit your industry, organization and project is important for training, awareness and continuity of usage and support along the way. For continuity within the organization,  there must be control on standards and not left to individual to pick his own due to familiarity.  So the key consideration is like having the right people, the right tools and the  right costs.

However, there are few focus points that I would like to emphasize that requires constant check and re-evaluation to ensure the success.

a)      Select the Project Manager –  At the start of the project, the assignment of the Project manager is critical. This is not a position that is offer to someone that happens to be available, with time to spent, or maybe  senior enough. Blending this together with one that has good background knowledge of the business and industry as well as being able to see a  holistic view is key.  One  that is handpicked by Project Sponsor for political purpose  and  although is willing to listen, to support and be advised by him is bound to fail as the Project Manager is ultimately the key person who shoulders the full accountabilities..

So if there is a need, one needs to hire one from outside the organization on contract basis, to be free from internal politics.

b)      The Plan – Suffice to say, in any project, to be successful, it must be planned out first. As the saying goes, anything that is not planned is doomed to failure. So a typical plan as outlined  in decent project management methodology such as the PMBok of PMI from the US,  or PRINCE from UK will adequately identify and require the plan to include activities encompassing aspects such as  Integration, Scope, Time, Cost, Quality, Human Resources, Communication, Risks, and Procurement.  Due consideration must be given to each aspects to have adequate resources, time, cost and not just to suit top-down directives.

Planning must be done on participative basis with assistance from all stakeholders. Eventually, this has to be reviewed, confirmed and sign-off, and periodically used to monitor progress.

c)      Define the Scope –  The project manager can played a key role here to maintain what I call a fair and reasonable scope. While all stakeholders are involved and  given time to define the scope and requirements, someone must be able to control the stakeholders to prevent runaway scoping. Firstly, unreasonable requirements such as requiring the project to provide the ideal leads to doom. One can talk about the ideal, but will never get started as they will be caught in analysis/paralysis syndrome causing repeated changes and delays.  I say the PM plays a key role here to signal showstopper as to align perception of everybody, to avoid unreasonable expectations  from this start point to avoid the need to raise issues at the final stage, if not arrested at this point.   The final document must be reviewed  and eventual sign-of by all key personnel.  Mind you, this document will be the reference, when old stakeholders leave the organisation and new one replacing them will see no need to continue with the project and create problems to kill the project. Sometimes, I wonder, is the  project undertaken for the person or for the organization. If it is for the later, why would new stakeholders so eager to kill of the project.

d)      Regular and periodical review of Plan against status – There must be factual reporting, no trade-off, with sincere and  concern for inactions.   Here the PM’s  job knowledge and confidence is  very critical as it will call for the questioning of the various stakeholders roles/responsibilities and inadequate effort and  performance in partaking this project. The challenge is how to expose all such deficiencies and yet maintain a working team.

We are sometimes governed by own internal politics where the project sponsor knowledge and trust of his Project Manager is important. Ultimately, the project will  be guided by and advise arising from his knowledge or perhaps the lack of it.  Solid real life experiences and foundations as an all rounder will place the PM in good stead to make a project successful.  One must be able to call a spade a spade without tradeoff.  The PM ability to see a holistic view and identify hotspots and to raise them at an early stage, is important, to ensure and keep everybody’s perception in tune.

e)      Decision Making – Many a time, I find that too much of discretion is given to the business or users and not the supporting function. But they only have the  view of their own functional areas. I always use the example of being efficient for the Department but inefficient for the organization as a whole.  Of course, every Department will take care of their own interest, but when this goes against the company as a whole, the PM  must be able to spot it and escalate for a “force” decision. How often we see the loudest voice rules, and the organization suffers?

f)        Over demanding business/Users – When there is one over demanding  person who occupy key position, but lacking the knowledge, the project is doomed to fail.  Imagine what happen when there is indecisiveness or frequent change of decision can have on a project.  While proper sign-off of  the Scope Document may signify completion of the process and time-line as a formality, there is no guarantee of quality and completion, if the so-called key personnel has the overall say of acceptance and eventual payment.  A weak PM would have succumb to such threat only to live with the problem that comes up when there is repeated delay after delay at later stage.  A good PM needs to manage this, enforce strict change management and  yet maintain the working relationship at all level.

g)      Maintaining and  keeping tabs of progress of all related activities. – As in doing up the Plan, the Project Manager must include all activities to have a dashboard of all the activities. Several  times, I have come across Plans that are handled by a supplier, but did not capture the Activities and Progress of those handled by the buyer company.  For example, the supplier could be involved in the supply of  a computer system solution. So the plan only capture the part on completion of the system, while the part on getting ready the computer room, getting the necessary statutory approval, User Training etc are not capture.  While such activities maybe undertaken by the buyer company and remains the responsibilities and accountabilities of the buyer organisation,  nevertheless,  a good PM would have capture such key milestones to track progress at high level. While it may be the fault of another party not fulfilling their part, it is the lack of full visibility of all key activities that cause projects to slip and then argument starts to follow.

Different people view success differently. It is hard to say whether a project is eventually successful. Many projects are completed and in use, but is the project delivering good value.  Like I said, this is a fine line. Who eventually do we listen to whether the project meets the needs.  After all , a truly successful project is one where the project is embarked to do effective things in an efficient way.  Equally possible is when someone in power, in position embarks on an project based upon ineffective strategies and premises, but yet can be completed efficiently and therefore perceived as successful.

The point here is not the knowledge about project management, the industry, but the subtle qualities of the person put in charge, to lead the project and apply such qualities  against the respective activities and tasks to fruition.

Many Project Managers believe that to enjoy total project management success, you need to manage projects using a formal project management methodology. They say it helps give you direction, it saves you time and it improves the quality of your deliverables. But does it?

Most good managers use a methodology of sorts, whether it be written on post-it notes stuck to their screen, documented in a stack of procedures on their desk, or included in software that they have bought. Regardless of the type of methodology used, there is one common theme – that it typically helps them to manage projects and therefore improve their project success.

What is a Methodology? A methodology is “a set of methods, processes and practices that are repeatedly carried out to deliver projects”. The key concept is that you repeat the same steps for every project you undertake, and by doing that, you will gain efficiencies in your approach.

What is a Standard? So what is the difference between a methodology and a standard? A standard is “a collection of knowledge areas that are generally accepted as best practice in the industry”.

Standards give you industry guidance, whereas methodologies give you practical processes for managing projects. Standards are not methodologies, and vice versa. The two most popular standards are PMBOK and Prince2.

What should be included?

When you buy a project methodology, it should give you:

• A core set of processes to follow for delivering projects;
• A set of templates to help you build deliverables quickly;
• A suite of case studies to help you learn from past projects;
• An option for customizing the methodology provided;
• The ability to import your existing processes into it.

MPMM is one of the few methodologies that provides all of these features

What will it not do?

A Methodology is not a silver bullet. It will not fix projects by itself or guarantee success. It is fair to say that no methodology “out-of-the-box” will be 100% applicable to every type of project. So you will need to customise any methodology you purchase to ensure that it perfectly fits your project management environment.

Why use a Methodology?

While a methodology is not a silver bullet for projects, it should help you by giving you a clear process for managing projects. After you have customised it to perfectly fit your environment, your methodology should tell your team what has to be completed to deliver your project, how it should be done, in which order and by when.

Using a methodology you can:

• Create a project roadmap;
• Monitor time, cost and quality;
• Control change and scope;
• Minimise risks and issues;
• Manage staff and suppliers.

Of course, you will need to use the elements of the methodology that are most suitable to each project you undertake. For instance, when managing smaller projects, you will only want to apply lightweight processes to your project. When managing large projects, you should apply the heavyweight processes to monitor and control every element of your project in depth.

But if you can manage every project you undertake in the same way, then you will gain efficiencies with your approach, work smarter and reduce your stress. You will also give your team a clear understanding of what you expect from them and boost your chances of success.

If you want a methodology to help improve the way you manage projects, you are likely to want:

• A core set of processes to follow for delivering projects;
• A set of templates to help you build deliverables quickly;
• A suite of case studies to help you learn from past projects;
• An option for customising the methodology provided;
• The ability to import your existing processes into it.

You can discover more about project management methodologies at www.llewellyn-group.com

If you are thinking about using a project management consulting company to assist your organization with implementing a Project Management Office (PMO), there are a couple of important factors that you should consider when choosing the right firm.

According to PMAlliance, Inc., an Atlanta, Georgia-based project management consulting company, implementing a PMO can present significant challenges.  For that reason, a phased approach to PMO implementation is not only crucial but also a distinguishing characteristic of successful project management consulting firms.  Experienced project management consultants know that a phased approach: (1) helps to overcome resistance to change, (2) allows for lessons learned in early phases to be incorporated in systems installed in later phases and (3) establishes a solid foundation of available project-level data prior to rolling-up enterprise-level information. 

Second, successful project management consultants also know that, when it comes to designing a PMO, there is no such thing as a “universal solution.”  To be effective, a PMO must be tailored to your organization’s project types, management/staff capabilities, and organizational culture.  A phased approach to implementation allows the necessary time (in the initial phases) to gather first-hand information about project characteristics, personnel, and cultural nuances so that the delivered solution can be tailored appropriately.

The Four Phases of Project Management Implementation

I.  Initiation Phase: Throughout the Initiation Phase, project management consultants use pilot projects to build process momentum, overcome natural resistance to change, and gain first-hand knowledge of your organization.  This goal of this phase is to successfully mobilize your organization, remediate any current at-risk projects, and set the stage for the next two Installation phases.  During this phase, the project management methodology is introduced and software training is conducted; but only for those individuals who will be specifically associated with pilot project teams.  Also, a plan for the Project-Level Installation phase is developed and key tools are created that will be utilized during the remaining Installation phases.

II. Project-Level Installation Phase: The second phase utilizes information gathered from pilot projects in the Initiation phase to roll-out structured project planning and control processes for all remaining projects, as well as to formally establish the Project Management Office.  This phase can include the creation of PMO job descriptions, formal guidelines for project planning/control, a project web site, and a web-based activity update system – basically the necessary infrastructure to support the consistent, successful application of project management techniques by the PMO.  Project Management Training is also rolled-out to the entire organization during the Project-Level Installation Phase.  By the conclusion of this phase, the nucleus of a Project management Office is in-place, all project team members have been trained, and the project management consultants are ready to begin transitioning from their role of supporting project team requirements to supporting the PMO staff.

III. Enterprise-Level Installation Phase:  During the Enterprise-Level Installation phase, tools are implemented that are focused on managing an organization’s entire portfolio of projects.  Examples of these tools include; enterprise performance metrics, a management “dashboard” to gain summary-level visibility to project status, and project scheduling based on limited resources and project priority (enterprise resource leveling).   The intent of these types of tools is to (1) provide management with timely and accurate information about the status of the all the projects being undertaken by the organization and (2) support business decision-making that impacts the successful completion of projects such as: changes to staffing, funding, project prioritization, and workload.

During the Enterprise-Level Installation Phase, the Project Management Office staff has already begun to assume some of the day-to-day responsibilities for developing and maintaining ongoing project plans.  In doing so, the PMO staff is able to free-up the project management consulting firm to focus on the design and implementation of the enterprise-level tools.  By the end of this phase, all responsibility for developing and updating individual project plans have been transitioned from the Project Management Consultants to the PMO staff.

IV. Maintenance Phase: The final phase marks the important transition of the Project Management Office from the project management consultants back to the organization.  In addition to supporting the day-to-day responsibilities for planning and controlling individual projects, the PMO staff will now become the focal point for providing the enterprise-level information and analysis required by management. 

At this point in the project management implementation process, the organization has been well trained, numerous success stories have been created and communicated, virtually all projects have well-developed project plans, and there is widespread support for investing in a formal project planning and control process.  Also, the Project Management Office infrastructure is in place, the PMO staff has been trained, and management has necessary visibility to the key project portfolio-level information. 

Successful completion of this phase creates long-term continuity by implementing the necessary policies and incentives to permanently inculcate project management into the culture of the organization.  Ideally, formal project planning and control processes will become recognized as a required core competency and an essential function within the organization.

Deliverables to Expect From Your Project Management Consulting Company

Phase 1 – Initiation Phase

• Initial communication(s) to management and assistance in the identification of pilot projects
• Project Management methodology and software training for identified pilot team members
• Project plans and formal control processes in place for all identified pilot projects
• A library of project “templates” for use during the Installation phases
• Standardized project coding structures and project-level report formats
• Finalized requirements and a plan for the Project-Level Installation phase

Phase II – Project-Level Installation Phase

• Network-based, structured project plans and formal control process for all targeted projects
• Rollout of PM/software training to all project leaders and team members
• Training and mentoring of PMO personnel
• Implementation of the initial PMO infrastructure
• Finalized requirements and a plan for the Enterprise-Level Implementation phase

Phase III – Enterprise-Level Installation Phase

• Implementation of the enterprise-level PMO infrastructure
• Turnover to PMO staff of the day-to-day responsibility for developing and maintaining individual project plans
• Finalized requirements and a plan for the Maintenance phase

Phase IV – Maintenance Phase

• Turnover to Project Management Office staff the responsibility for supporting all of the project management requirements of the organization
• Recommendations to management for policies and incentives required to permanently establish project management as a core competency and essential function

Conclusion

Without a doubt, the design of a Project Management Office must be tailored to the specific needs of its organization in order to be effective.  A universal “cookie cutter” approach does not recognize differences in project types, management, or staff capabilities. As a result, standardized solutions tend to have a low probability of success.  A phased approach not only maximizes the effectiveness of the project management consulting firm, but also of the organizations that they serve.  It allows time in the initial phases to gather crucial, first-hand information, overcomes resistance to change, and leads to a well defined and successful Project Management Office at the end.

About Thomas P. Stevens, PMP and PMAlliance, Inc. – Thomas P. Stevens, PMP is the President and found of PMAlliance, Inc. and holds a master’s degree in Business with a focus on Decision Science and is a registered PMP (Project Management Professional).  PMAlliance is an international project management consulting firm that helps Fortune 1000 companies improve the execution of their mission-critical projects.  For the second consecutive year, Inc. magazine has ranked PMAlliance Inc. among the fastest growing Project Management Consulting companies in the United States. Through its Duration-Driven® methodology, PMAlliance enables its clients to successfully complete their most important projects—on time, within budget and to the intended level of quality. Please visit their website at www.pm-alliance.com