The Big Time

Joy and happiness filled my heart upon receiving a paperback copy of PMI 50^th Anniversary Commemorative Book as a Thank You Gift from PMI. What an amazing gift to kick-off the year. It means a lot to me because I was part of those first 50 years of growth. 

From cover to cover, the book looks amazing and is very obvious that there was lots of thought put into it. It includes all the story from the day PMI started and with the limited no. of princted copies, this will be a great souvenir to keep forever. 

Being part of PMI and this great community for many years, I estabished a strong sense of ownership and commitment towards the profession, PMI, the Community and it's members. I enjoy volunteering and giving back to the profession and as the famous Elizabeth Andrew say: 

"Volunteers don't necessarily habe the time, they just have the heart."

Giving back to the Profession and Comunity is a noble thing to do and what motivates me most is seeing the people around me succeed.

Looking forward to be part of PMI during the next 50 years and contribute to their growth and success.

I wish you all a fantastic 2020 full of happiness, health, wealth and success ! 

During a conversation with a friend last week as we were working on a private project, he threw a joke that I should create a Certifcations Wall of Fame given that I earned lots of valuable certifications over the years. The joke turned into a serious conversation and thinking about it later, I concluded it would actually be a good idea so I decided to turn the joke into reality.

As I look at all those badges all consolidated in one view, I feel so proud of those accomplishments. I can’t even express how much each and every one of those journeys added value and helped me grow both personally and professionally. 

It took lots of dedication, commitment and hard work to build this concrete wall and guess what, I am ready for the next one. When there is a Will, there is a Way !

I am proud to share that I passed the Professional Scrum Product Owner II Certification exam and glad to add this certification to my Scrm Backpack: 

As usual, I would like to share some tips that may benefit future aspirants: 

Preparation 

1- Follow the same steps (Combined) for PSM I, SPS , PSPO I

2- Follow the PSPO II Learning Path - Lots of valuable information there in the blogs and articles. 

3- Do the open assessments on scrum.org website such as Scrum Open, Product Owner Open, Scrum Measurement Open & Open Nexus.

4- Scrum (A Pocket Guide) by Gunther Verheyen is a highly recomended reference.

5- Read the Evidence-Based Management Guide in details. 

Exam

1- Exam is 1 Hour and consists of 40 Multiple Choice / Multiple Answer Questions. 

2- Passing grade is 85%. 

3- The tests your experience and knowledge beyond any guide. It is a very tough exam  so you need to have experience and know Scrum in depth. 

4- Most questions are scenario based or require in depth analysis. 

5- I found this exam comparable to the PSM II Exam in terms of diifficulty so one should be well prepared. 

Knowledge

During this journey, I learned a lot about: 

1. Evidence-Based Management 
2. Business stratergy
3. DiSC Model 
4. Product Vision
5. Product Value

Good Luck to all New Aspirants ! 

First Professional Development Achievement in 2019 - and it's just the start !

I am re-writing this blog because I made a spontaneous decision right after obtaining my AgilePM Foundation certificate to sit for the Practitioners Level exam and I passed the exam so I thought of sharing my experience in one combined blog hoping that it will help others who are thinking about sitting for the exam.

My spontaneous decision probably stemmed from confidence in my experience and Agile knowledge. 

My interest in the DSDM Framework came from the fact that it works best alongside the traditional approach in construction projects because it is a complete framework that looks at the whole lifecycle of the project rather than just the iterative development part. The combination of both under Traditional-DSDM Hybrid Model works very well ! 

Those certifications are offered by the Agile Business Consortium and the exam is administered by APMG International. The DSDM AgilePM handbook is very well detailed and written in a very comprehensive manner.  

AgilePM Foundation Exam

• Purely Knowledge-based 
• Closed book
• Online proctored exam.
• You get 50 Multiple Choice questions that you have to complete within a 40 Min time frame
• Exam Fees are around $260 USD
• References: DSDM Handbook 2014 & APMG Sample Exam

AgilePM Practitioner Exam

• Purely scenario-based 
• Open book but you are only allowed to use the DSDM Handbook
• Online proctored exam.
• You get 80 Multiple Choice questions that you have to complete within a 2 Hrs 40 Min:
  • The exam is unique as you get a full project scenario on the first page that you will use to answer all 80 questions.
  • Questions are divided into 4 Sections, with 20 Questions per section.
  • Each section tests you understanding and experience in the application of certain parts of Agile & DSDM. 
  • In each section, they add more events to the original scenario so it builds up.  
• The exam was tough. It is comparable in difficulty to PMI exams. 
• Exam Fees are around $380 USD
• References: DSDM Handbook 2014 & APMG Sample Exam

The practitioners exam is a good example of an online, open book, proctored test that tests your knowledge & experience beyond any handbook. I did not even need or have time to open the handbook because to answer every question you have to tie many loose ends from different chapters and sections to resolve a problem or handle an issue so even though you are allowed to use the book, do not take the exam lightly or count on the fact that it is an open book. 

General Facts

A few facts about this journey: 

• It was my first experience doing a proctored test from home and it was a great experience - Less pressure for sure. 
• The exams were pricey but definitely worth it. It is a very reputable certification. 
• Upon passing any exams offered by the Agile Business Consortium, you will receive one year free membership but it is limited once per person per lifetime. 
• I did not buy the exams directly from APMG. Instead, I bought a training (Which covers the exam fees) from Cupe International. Great organization and great customer service. 
• I can't disclose any exam details for confidentiality reasons but funny enough, the project scenario I got in the exam was a Construction Project and my expertise is in the construction industry. I am not sure if it was intentional but either way, I thought it is a funny coincidence to disclose. 

Good Luck to all New Aspirants !