Bacchus JohnsonSenior Project Manager| Matrix ResourcesCharlotte, Nc, United States
Is there real value (or only perceived value in our world) for PM Certification? Who offers classes/training/testing that is of highest value? I am only aware of the Project Management Institute's program. Will having the PMP, etc. on my business card truly open doors? Thanks for any input. Saving Changes...
Would anyone else like to answer this? I feel bad knowing that I have to go into the office tomorrow and tell all my hourly people that they just aren't professionals. If only they had that degree in liberal arts or sociology... Saving Changes...
At most companies in America today, you can not be considered for a 1st level management position without a college degree and at some companies, you are required to have a Masters degree regardless of experience. But don't take my word, simply search on DICE, Monster, Net-Temps and Computerjobs, and see how far you can get without a college degree. Saving Changes...
Senior Advisor to the CEO| PMISterling, Va, United States
Tom,
I think that the point that you are trying to make is that these accomplishments/achievements/whatever are all screens that companies use to narrow their list of candidates. In the current economic environment, that is particularly true. I personally think that's unfortunate. It's expedient and efficient, but a very crude way to judge the quality of a given candidate. So, if you're thinking about doing a lot of job hopping or consulting, it's going to be an issue for you.
My personal experience in the IT market space, both consulting and working in organizations of various sizes, has been that some of the most valuable PMs are those who have grown up in the organization. The classic example is the lead programmer turned project manager whose company has invested in his/her future by paying for PMI (or other) certification. If that person can navigate the difficult transition from staff to management (probably less than half do) their experience and knowledge (which is technical and historical as well as PM-focused) will typically far surpass that of a non-technical college graduate with a PMI certification. The technician, turned PM, will almost always have more respect from their staff and be capable of guiding them more effectively, based on a real understanding of the technical issues involved. They know where there is real slack in the schedule (versus where they just need slack to be), which technical issues are real problems (what to focus on and when the technical team is just looking for an easy out).
I have a great deal of respect for the certification - I believe it's an important standard-setting mechanism for our industry. However, locking people out based on not having a four year degree would exclude a lot of good people from our field.
... just one more opinion. Tom, I understand and respect yours as well. Maybe we’ll drop a link to this discussion into the next newsletter. I’d love to hear more on the subject.
Thanks,
Dave Garrett
CEO, gantthead.com
(Yes, I have a Masters degree. No, I don’t think it’s a big deal.)
Saving Changes...
Anonymous
I think its important to disquinish between being a professional and posessing a certification in a particular vocation. Professionalism is a state of conduct and knowledge applied in accordance to an authoratitive body of knowledge. The certification process in any disclipine is that PROFESSIONS way of acknowledging that an individual has met the minimum requirements of competency to become certified. I am a CPA and I know many CPA's that are far from professionals. I condsider my self as about as competent and professional a project manager as they come but I do not posess a PMP. So even though I have a tremendously successful track record I am not certified nor recognized by that PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION AS A CERTIFIED PM. However, I can still practice and provide project management services. This is because LAW does not recognize a PMP certificate as essential to competency. Yet, it does recognize and require a certification to render opinions on financial statements (CPA) or practice before the BAR (Attorneys). Bottom line, IT and its related VOCATIONS is not held by society to be a profession the requires certification in order to practice. Whether is should or ever will is something only the future knows. College degress, certifications and other designations are good things. In the IT / PM world its results that speak the loudest. Saving Changes...
To Dave Garret: Exactly, you made my point! That is, that degrees and certifications are screens used by gatekeepers to keep the number of candidates for a given job or contract assignment at a manageable level. In reference to technical folks becoming project managers, most fail to make the transition because of lack of people and communication skills, AND failing to recognize that it's about people, organizational alignment, businees value, and solutions, not technology. In short, it's the difference between TOP DOWN vs BOTTOM UP thinking, STRATEGIC vs task orientation. Saving Changes...
"In the IT/PM world its results that speak the loudest." Unfortunately, recruiters and HR folks are pretty clueless when it comes to measuring the value of a candidate based on mere results, so the fallback strategy is degrees and certifications as the 1st cut. 1 year ago, you rarely saw a job posting requiring PMP certification, today, in a down economy, employers are demanding degrees, certifications, and very specific industry experience to boot. Like they say, "he who has the gold, makes the rules"!!! Saving Changes...
Locking people out based on not having a four year degree is a necessary 1st step in making project management a profession that is valued, at least in the IT arena. Why are people so worried about the bottom feeders in this field that only serve to hold back and degrade this profession? Project management, like public education, has the same problem, that is, always bending over backwards to cater to the bottom 2%. Today, there's no excuse for not having a degree given all the educational opportunities available to working adults. I fully support higher, nor lower standards to move this profession forward. Saving Changes...
The bottom line is that obtaing a Degree or Certification prooves that you have taken the time to pass your selected vocation. Does certification proove that you can do the job as a PM in the workplace. Is there workplace assessment? A way of ensuring that a PM can actually do the job is to be assessed performing the job. After assessment has been made in the competency that is being assesed it is recorded in a Competency log Book (CLB) The CLB will provide the PM with the evidence for current and future employers that they can actually do the job. Yes certtification can assist future employers that you have studied and passed a rigorous test, but does it actually test you doing the job. Saving Changes...
Anonymous
This is a topic near and dear to my heart. I have actually spent time getting a Master's in project management, as well as an MBA, with a concentration in telecommunications. I now work for the Internetworking king (take a guess). Anyway, I find it kind of discouraging that some companies (mainly consulting firms), will ask me if I have my PMP, even with my credentials. I forgot to mention that I also have two technical undergraduate degrees. While I was not asked to attain the PMP I knew eventually they would ask so just to keep folks quiet I went and passed the PMP exam. What I can honestly say is that I really do believe PMI should make it mandatory to have a degree to sit for the exam, even though I was disappointed at how easy the exam was. While I think that it was a good refresher, and it is a nice certification to have (I don't look down on it), if I had to do it all over again, I would still go and get my master's in PM as it was by FAR much more involved (in my opinion anyway), the PMP exam. I hope I haven't offended anyone. Saving Changes...
"A college degree is the single criteria that distinguishes a professional from an hourly person. PERIOD!!!" An absolute reliance on a degree is a recipe for failure. It assumes that a person with a degree is without question more worthy of consideration for a position than a person without a degree. This clearly can lead to a decision making body of people lacking in the diversity so necessary to take advantage of the wealth of human intellect. I'd hazard a guess that many if not most of the people whose decisions led us into the current financial chaos based their decisions on the best textbook knowledge, unfettered by the wisdom, ethics and common sense of experience. The PMP certification reflects experience and advocacy of standards and best practices. It acknowledges the value of a degree by reducing the required experience. I'd be reluctant to bet my company on the assumption that people with degrees are professional, and those without are not. Saving Changes...
PMI Team Member
