Last week, PMI announced the launch of its new certification for agile project managers. Those who want to get a PMI agile certificate will have to pass a challenging exam to prove they are able to apply agile methodologies on a professional level. PMI will start accepting applications in May 2011. The Institute reports that the new certification was developed by established agile practitioners and is based on reliable ways to assess competence. You can learn more about the new certification and eligibility requirements at www.pmi.org.Other organizations, like the Agile Alliance, have offered their own agile certifications before. But the Project Management Institute, with more than half a million members and credential holders in 185 countries, is definitely the most influential organization in the project management space, so it’s pleasing to see PMI now officially recognizing agile as a significant and undeniable trend in project management.
Indeed, agile project management has come a long way from a novel approach to a mainstream project management methodology. It went beyond its mother field, software development, and is used in an increasingly broader set of industries nowadays. This certainly increases the demand for agile professionals, and employers want to make sure that they are hiring the right person for the job. This is where certifications prove useful.
That said, there are still lots of opponents to the whole idea of agile certification. For example, one of the main arguments for Michael Dubakov, an author at the Edge of Chaos blog, is that there are so many factors influencing the management process that they make any certification impossible. “Your company is special. You have special people on the development team. You have special conditions, rules and other external factors,” writes Michael.
What do you think of the new PMI certification? Will you consider it for yourself or your employees? Please post your thoughts in the comments below.
So, in such a poor job market, why would someone not get a certification? If I have 100 people applying and 10 have certifications, I'll only interview 10 people.
Not to contradict, but rather to dive deeper. How is this "not everywhere" situation different from "traditional" project management certification? There's no silver-bullet technique or methodology. Still, a lot of companies and individuals enjoyed the benefits of PMP/PMBOK/PMI in the past for certain type of projects.
Also, I don't know the official curriculum, but in theory the renewed PMI agile focus might extend the profession to areas not covered by PMBOK/PMI/PMP before, like a typical marketing department. PMI, it seems, is highly driven by certification, so this has a chance of bringing them onto the radar of more agile professionals and bringing more agile professionals onto their radar.
Cheers,
Andrew
The general PMP certification is broadly applicable, but the Agile cert is narrow. I think that PMI's zeal to jump-on-the-bandwagon will ultimately harm them and the profession.
In the post you also highlight the difference between projects and processes. I'm typically not very strict on definitions and titles, because they are descriptors, not the requirements. If you're developing a software product or running a marketing group, you can view work to be done as a combination of projects, or as a continuous process. In either case you need good management skills to drive that work. I always believed that breadth of knowledge gives manager a chance to choose, prior experience increases the chance of making the right choice, and good aptitude to continuous learning helps to course correct.
If I may use a parallel example, the PMP certification coexists with PRINCE2, with slightly different perspectives on the same subject matter. Either of these approaches, properly adopted and applied will get the job done. One is not better than the other
However belated, the recognition of the Agile approach, by the PMI, as a valid and distinct project management method worthy of study and certification, is a laudable.initiative.
The benefits of this development will bring even more credibility, recognition and further access to the Agile method, with its validation by a major professional body, the PMI, whose pedigree is not in doubt.
I commend the PMI's forward thinking and courage to adopt and embrace what could be viewed as a competing body of knowledge to the PMP.
I would like to see the response of the APMG, the body responsible for PRINCE2, to this development.
Here's a bit of a *twist*, and admittedly a new question, but since you're talking certifications...
What does this group think of a certificate, given by a non-profit organization, regarding sustainability in project management. It would involve training on Life Cycle Analysis, Lean Management, and "triple bottom line" thinking in projects.
We've already taken some steps in this direction, starting the International Society for Integrating Sustainability in PM (ISIS-PM) along with colleagues from around the world.
This would be a way to codify some of the rather esoteric concepts about 'green' in project management with some solid training and recognition of that training, to benefit PMs, their projects and enterprises, and - oh, by the way - the Earth.
What do you think?
Rich Maltzman, PMP
http://earthpm.com
PMI research revealed that 68% of the organizations using Agile as one of their project management practices said they would find value in an Agile project management certification for project management practitioners. In addition, 63% of hiring managers would encourage their practitioners to pursue an Agile certification.
While certifications currently in the marketplace tend to focus on one specific framework (e.g. Scrum), the PMI certification is being designed, in collaboration with a broad-based steering team of Agile subject matter experts, to focus on core Agile principles, practices, tools and techniques. Hope this helps further clarify.
Cindy Anderson
Director, Marketing & Communication
PMI
I also agree with @Ola that it's a very important step in recognizing various agile practices as an integral part of project management profession.
The short answer is that of course, there is more opportunity for 'sustainability' planning in a wind-farm project than there is in a new release of payroll software. But there's the catch - the PM will have to work harder and act more as a change agent in the latter; but they also may come up with a "game changer". The PM working in what we call a "green in general" project has to do a better job of holistic, life-cycle thinking to improve the sustainability of the project (and more likely the product of the project). The beauty, though, is that it will likely IMPROVE the project and the product of the project in a whole bunch of tangible and intangible ways.
See our book for more:
http://www.amazon.com/Green-Project-Management-Richard-Maltzman/dp/1439830010
Thanks.
I am the General Manager of APMG-US and I was referred to your comment of March 21 praising PMI for their recognition of Agile and wondering what the response of APMG would be to this. .
First, I would like to clarify your comment, “the PMP certification coexists with PRINCE2, with slightly different perspectives on the same subject matter.” In actuality, PRINCE2 is quite complementary with the PMP. PRINCE2 is a project management methodology whereas the PMBOK is a framework. In other words, PRINCE2 is prescriptive (tells you how to do something), while the PMBOK is descriptive (tells you what to know).
With regards specifically to Agile, I think it is commendable that PMI has recognized the increasing importance of this methodology. There is no question that Agile adoption is growing every day, and to integrate this with the constructs of the PMBOK (which I assume is the case) is absolutely necessary. I am anxious to see the final product when PMI unveils it later this year.
As for APMG, we have had Agile offerings for some time now. For the last 2+ years, we have offered a certification built around the Dynamic Systems Development Method, an Agile project delivery methodology. This was enhanced with our Agile Project Management Qualification, launched last year. APMG’s Agile Project Management Qualification provides the ability to deliver Agile Projects in organizations requiring standards, rigor and visibility around Project Management, while at the same time enabling the fast pace, change and empowerment provided by Agile. You can find out more about the qualification here (http://www.apmg-international.com/home/Qualifications/AgileQuals.asp) and we also have a paper on this subject (http://www.apmg-international.com/nmsruntime/saveasdialog.asp?lID=4375&sID=2752) which shows how Agile and PRINCE2 can work together.
What remains to be seen is whether APMG’s Agile Project Management methodology will occupy the same complementary position to PMI’s Agile that PRINCE2 does with the PMBOK. But as the new PMI Agile Certification requires 21 contact hours of training in Agile Project Management training, PMP’s may want to explore the APMG Agile Project Management certification as a means of fulfilling this requirement.