Tag: PMP

Passing the PMP

Note: this is content migrated from a blog I no longer maintain “The Grumpy PM” and was originally posted on March 6, 2009.

I sat today for the PMP and am very pleased that I can report that I have passed it. So, what can I recommend for anyone else who may be planning to take the PMP? Here are a few suggestions, but bear in mind that these are coming from the perspective of an experienced project manager. If you are just out of school, these points may not be as relevant.

  • Have a study plan and stick to it. If you are a PM, you really shouldn’t need to be told this, this should be second nature.
  • Start with a good study guide. I recommend going to a book store and looking at several to see which format works best for you. Then check your local library to see if they have a copy. Save a tree and save some money.
  • Purchase a copy of the PMBOK Guide, or join the PMI since you get an electronic copy free.
  • Speaking of which, you should join the PMI anyways, since the cost of membership pays for itself if you are taking the PMP (Membership is $129, and the discount off the exam is $150 as of this post)
  • Supplement your reading with other learning activities that engage other senses. I used the PMP PrepCast, which I highly recommend, to listen to while driving and hiking, and I also took some CBTs on the areas I was having trouble with (for me that was QA and QC, which we don’t typically deal with as rigorously in IT as in other industries.) The CBTs I took were available thru online training provided by my employer, check with your HR, you might have a similar benefit you aren’t aware of.
  • I also made lots of flash cards, one set focused on the ITTOs for each process, and another set of terms, definitions, formulas, etc.
  • Let’s see, what else? Oh, take as many sample questions and exams as you can. This is an area where I could have done more preparation, but I have never been much for practice exams. However, the PMI has some peculiar ways of asking questions, and taking a lots of pratice exams or questions is a very good way to get an idea as much for how questions will be asked aswhat will be asked.
  • Review. Especially review those topics you studied first – this was an area I had trouble with. I did the worst with the Initiating Process Group, which surprised me because it is one of the most straight forward (I thought), but it was also the first Process Group I started with and so it had actually been a while since I had reviewed it.

I guess that is pretty much it. And that is probably the last I will blog on taking the PMP exam. I am gearing up to join a big eCommerce project, and need to quickly switch gears from the PMI view of the world to the Agile methodology that is being employed on this project. Anyone have good tips or ideas on agile project management, please leave a comment.

PMP Preparation

Note: this is content migrated from a blog I no longer maintain “The Grumpy PM” and was originally posted on MONDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2009

Well I am two weeks out from my PMP test date, and have been struck by a few things in particular as I go thru the PMBOK Guide in detail.

First, it is dry and boring. I guess that is why there are so many prep books and courses out there. I highly recommend either buying one, or for the cost conscious, check one out from your local library. That’s what I did, to include checking out the PMBOK guide. While I did get a free copy with my PMI membership, I just find I can’t study from a PDF document. However, since there is a new PMBOK Guide out I didn’t want to make the purchase of the soon to be obsolete version. The other resource I have discovered is the PMP PrepCast. I found this doing a simple search on iTunes, and what a deal it is for the money! For under $50 you get over 70 podcasts that you can take with you on your commute, on a run, to the gym, beach, back porch, where ever! I have been using this to reinforce the reading I have done on a chapter by chapter basis. The host also gives many test taking tips with each lesson. So, at this point I recommend a prep book of your liking and the PM PrepCast, we’ll see if I pass though.

Second, there is a lot of process and documentation (and hence a lot of work) involved in implementing the processes described. One of my criticisms of the PMBOK Guide is that it encourages the creation of process and documentation bloat over project execution. PMs could spend a significant amount of project budget just trying to implement all the processes. Now, technically, the PMBOK Guide accounts for this in the tailoring concept, whereby the PM is supposed decide which processes to use and which to keep. However, that idea is simply not stressed enough. In my experience, which is just that my experience doing IT project delivery, PMPs tend to overdue it and the project costs the client more in the end than need be, and the decision making cycle is much longer. Disagree?, let me know, as I am heading down the PMP path, I’d love to hear from others regarding their experiences with this.

Lastly, I continue to have a nagging feeling that the PMP is really just a scheme to rake in fees for PDUs. It seems to me that the cost for a lot of PDU-earning activities is high, and that the primary beneficiaries of the PMP is all the consulting and education providers who help PMPs earn and keep their certification. I’ll surely write more on this once I am in the re-certification stage.