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• The May 2012 discount coupon on The PM StudyCoach (recorded).
• Our recommended study material: Head First PMP: A Learner's Companion to Passing the Project Management Professional Exam by: Jennifer Greene PSE
• Featured Article of the Week: Which PMI Credential is Right for me?
• Featured Video: Release and impact of The PMBOK Guide 5th Edition in 2012
• PMP Exam Sample Question and Answer.
• PMP Exam Tip: The Project Management Plan
• Last but not least we also included an absolutely fabulous lessons learned from Lindsay Pineda, PMP that shows how dedication and the right tools will get you certified.
  

Until Next Time,
Cornelius Fichtner, PMP
President, OSP International LLC

is now open. Sign up today and let Kevin Reilly, PMP be your coach and guide you in your studies towards PMP Exam success.

• Tier 1: First 5 students to register: $599.00
  
• Tier 2: Next 5 students to register: $624.00
  
• Tier 3: Next 5 students to register: $649.00

• ...you want to prepare for the PMP Exam using self-study
• ...you can commit to 90 minutes of studying every day
• ...you want access to two coaches helping you in weekly coaching sessions
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Until Next Time,
Kevin Reilly, PMP Head Coach	Cornelius Fichtner, PMP President, OSP International LLC

The Head First PMP: A Learners Companion to Passing the Project Management Professional Exam (Disclosure: Compensated Affiliate) offers a fresh perspective on preparing for the PMP Exam certification. Not the typical, dry PMP preparation book, this one explains the current principles and certification objectives in The PMBOK Guide, 4th Edition in a clever and entertaining way.

Instead of simply loading yourself with heavy words and formulas to memorize, Head First PMP works with the brain by using a very engaging, visually rich format:  mental games, stories, questions, answers and graphics. The author uses the latest research in neurobiology, cognitive science, and learning theory to simplify the difficult four-hour PMP exam. The multi-sensory approach makes it very easy for you to retain the information that you need for the exam.

Your benefits are:

• Pass the certification exam with flying colors. It has a strategy on the underlying concepts that make The PMBOK Guide principles more manageable to understand.
• Learn everything you need to know for the exam.  It has one hundred percent coverage of the latest principles and certification objectives in The PMBOK Guide, 4th Edition.
• Test yourself thoroughly and effectively. It has hundreds of practice questions and exam strategies that will gauge your readiness to take the exam.
• Explore the material through puzzles, games, problems, and exercises that make learning easy and entertaining. It has all these fun and witty methods designed for you not to get bored!

• Karen Payne, PMP
  
• Sathye Gomathy, PMP (Shown in image on right)
• David Lyon, PMP
• Kevin Whiteside, PMP
  
• Chuck Ruzin, PMP

Have you passed your exam as well? Then let us know by either writing your PMP Exam Lessons Learned or simply write to examtips@pm-prepcast.com

one for you? Well, then here I am to help you find an answer.

PMI has a global presence with members in over 170 countries. It is the largest association dedicated to project management in the world. PMI is actively engaged in setting professional standards for project mangers which helps them set themselves apart from the rest of the crowd. PMI credentials greatly enhance your employability.

PMI certifications give you the most sought after appreciation and visibility within your organization. It is an important investment for your career because the certificate may increase your job stability, expand your earning potential and provide a competitive stand in the job market.

To be eligible for any PMI credential, you must meet certain educational and project management experience requirements. They are different for each credential and are spelled out in detail in the Credential Handbooks. You'll find a link to each of the 5 handbooks on the PMI website www.pmi.org under "Career Development > About PMI's Credentials".

Go ahead... take a look at one or two of these handbooks. You will soon realize that there is one question that isn't answered in there. The question is "Where do I want to be in 5 years from today?" So instead of immediately reading up on the credentials you may first want to find out where your passion in project management lies, select the appropriate career path and then set your eyes on the appropriate credential.

Here is a PMI credential overview including highlights of the eligibility requirements. Please refer to the individual Credential Handbook for the complete requirements:

Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)®

If you are a junior project management practitioner and have demonstrated your skills as a project team member then the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) is the best option. You will get the fundamental knowledge of processes and terminology that will help you effectively manage projects. For the CAPM certification all you need is a high school diploma and either 1,500 hrs of professional experience on a project team or 23 hours of project management training.

PMI Scheduling Professional (PMI-SP)®

If your role involves developing and working on the project schedule then PMI Scheduling Professional is appropriate for you. Your knowledge and expertise in developing and maintaining the project schedule will be enhanced with the PMI Scheduling Professional. If you hold a bachelor's degree then you will need a minimum of 3500 hrs of project scheduling. With high school diploma you will require a minimum of 5000 hrs of work experience in project scheduling.

PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP)®

If you demonstrate knowledge and skills in the risk management of a project then PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP) will suit you best. With a PMI-RMP credential you will develop an expertise in identifying project risks and in mitigating threats and capitalizing on the opportunities.  If you have a bachelor's degree then you will need 3000 hrs of work experience in project risk management, but with a high school diploma 4500 hrs are mandatory.

Project Management Professional (PMP)®

If you perform your project management duties under general supervision, lead the team and direct all project tasks then you should go for the Project Management Professional (PMP) credential. You will develop an in-depth understanding and skills to lead and direct project teams to deliver results within the constraints of budget, time and scope. The certification requires 3 years of professional experience with at least 4500 hours spent leading and directing project tasks. With a high school diploma five years of professional experience is required with at least 7500 hours spent in leading and directing project tasks.

Currently, the PMP Exam is the most sought after project management credential in the world.

Program Management Professional (PgMP)®

Do you handle multiple projects directed towards a strategic business objective? Do you manage programs that contain complex activities that span functions, organizations, geographic regions and cultures? In that case the Program Management Professional (PgMP) is the credential that you should opt for. It will help you gain an insight of multiple projects aligned with organizational objectives.

The eligibility criteria for the PgMP credential is a bachelor's degree with 4 years of project and program management experience. If you hold a high school diploma then you will need four years of project management experience along with 7 years of program management experience.

PMI credentials often lead to career opportunities and advancement. You will be recognized as a competent professional in project management processes for which you will be deeply appreciated by your employers. PMI serves as an unbiased endorsement of your project management knowledge and experience at a global level. 

Once you earn a PMI credential (other than CAPM), you also need to fulfill the requirements of the Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program. You need to participate in professional development activities on a regular basis to adhere to the CCR program.

So, go ahead and become a certified CAPM, PMI-RMP, PMI-SP, PMP or PgMP. It is a step ahead towards enhancing your career and increasing your professional growth. Put yourself in the limelight and maximize your earning potential without any further delay!

A.) They are always present in Organizational Process Assets.

B.) They provide a starting point for WBS creation.

C.) They may help determine the appropriate level of detail required.

D.) They enhance cross-project WBS consistency.

[On a side note: In many organizations the term "project management plan" and "project schedule" are often used interchangeably. If this is the case in your organization, then please make sure that you understand that for the PMP Exam, these are two distinctly different documents. We will discuss the project schedule in next week's tip.]

The PMBOK Guide 4th Edition also defines Develop Project Management Plan as the process of documenting the actions necessary to define, prepare, integrate, and coordinate all subsidiary plans. The project management plan defines how the project is executed, monitored and controlled, and closed. The project management plan content will vary depending upon the application area and complexity of the project. The project management plan is developed through a series of integrated processes until project closure. This process results in a project management plan that is progressively elaborated by updates and controlled and approved through the Perform Integrated Change Control process.

* Scope Management

* Schedule Management

* Financial Management

* Quality Management

* Resource Management

* Communications management

* Project Change Management

* Risk Management

* Procurement Management

It is good practice and mostly required by large consulting and professional project management firms, to have a formally agreed and version controlled project management plan approved in the early stages of the project, and applied throughout the project. Project planning is part of project management, which relates to the use of schedules such as Gantt charts to plan and subsequently report progress within the project environment.

Get a full load of the definition and examples of the Develop Project Management Plan process in the Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide (PMBOK Guide) Fourth Edition, 4.2 to 4.2.3

Explanation: WBS Templates can be found in Organizational Process Assets but we cannot say they will always be available.

Reference: PMI Practice Standard for WBS 2nd Edition, page 29

Whew! It's over...I passed on the first try.

I relied pretty heavily on those that had already passed their exams for tips so I wanted to pay it forward and hopefully do the same for someone else.

I took a certificate program with my organization that gave me some good background into the formal practices of project management so I already had a copy of the PMBOK and I've been in project management for the last 4 years. That did help some but DO NOT rely on current or past project management experience alone to pass this test!!! It is MUCH harder than that and you will not have the information you need to successfully pass it if you rely on experience alone.

I submitted all of my paperwork and was not audited. After I got the "clearance" to schedule the exam, I did so. Cornelius is right; it really is a motivator for studying. I also told everyone around me, including my boss, that I was studying for the exam and would pass it on the first try. My friends, family, and coworkers would ask how studying was going and they all had the date marked in their calendars. I also had a mentor in a coworker who had taken the exam in August and was a HUGE help. If you have a resource such as that, please use it. It was very helpful (she didn't give me any inside information in terms of exam content, just how to remain calm during the exam and what it was like).

Study Time:
3 ½ months total- I started in mid-January and took the exam at the end of April.

Study Materials:

PMP: How to Pass On Your First Try (Andy Crowe)- I really liked this book. I read it in tandem with the PM PrepCast and really felt like it helped me further understand the information that Cornelius was presenting. It also was a great interpreter for the PMBOK itself.

PM PrepCast - This was amazing!! I listened while at work, took some notes, but mostly just tried to absorb the information Cornelius was presenting. Thank you for developing such a great tool!! It was extremely helpful.

PMBOK - Ugh, okay so this is just one that you'll have to "get through". It's not a fun read but combined with Andy Crowe's book and the PM PrepCast, it's easier to understand. I read through this 3 times. The first was mainly skimming, the second was a much more detailed read and the third was going back to read my highlighted sections and notes I'd made while doing the second pass through.

PM PrepCast Exam Simulator - I took a bunch of quizzes and took 2 - 4 hour practice exams. This was probably one of the main reasons I passed the actual exam. The quizzes and exams are very close to what you'll find on the actual test. They aren't the same, but it's the closest out of all practice questions you'll find out there. The wording of each question is what I found the most helpful to get used to. I took probably close to 2500 questions (including the two practice exams) and I began doing this about a month out from the exam.

Brain Dump Sheet - DO THIS!! Okay, so I didn't really use it but maybe twice to glance at during the actual exam but it really helped me to memorize the formulas and important info. I did this literally every day, in the morning before any other studying, for about the last 3 weeks prior to taking the exam.

I spent about three and a half months studying and I hit it pretty hard all the way through. I'd say that for the first month, I was averaging about 8-10 hours a week and then by the second month, I was up to more like 15-20 hours a week. The last month of the exam, I was spending about 20-25 hours a week studying, reading, and taking quizzes/exams. I was very lucky to have a boss that let me study on my down time at work which gave me the ability to balance studying, working and my personal life with my family.

Many of the questions were regarding quality, procurement, and risk. Not too many calculations at all, maybe 10 questions total. I also had about 10 ITTO questions so not that many but it's still important to understand the process overall and how one output is another's input, etc. I actually didn't find the questions to be too wordy but some were asked in a very confusing way. My advice here is to take the time to read the question, twice if you have to.

I didn't memorize all the ITTOs; there's really no need. You do need to understand the overall processes and how they all work together to create the overall cycle.

As far as the actual exam, mine was at 12:30 so I had time that morning to relax a bit, have a good breakfast, do some minimal review and then head out. Please, please take the day of the test off and the day before is helpful as well. I took a total of 3 days off and I am really glad I did. I also scheduled my exam for a Friday so I'd have the weekend to relax. Don't study too much the day before or the day of the exam. Your brain needs time to rest. I had a hard time with this concept but, I did it anyway and it worked. My brain was ready to think by the time I got in there. , I was assigned a number when I got to the testing center, and then was signed in. I took a couple of deep breaths and then did my Brain Dump sheet. Once that was done, I did the tutorial and then started the exam. It took about 3 hours to get through it all. I took a 5 minute break about halfway through. I ran to the restroom and got some water and then went back into the exam room. I marked a lot of questions, especially in the beginning when I was really nervous so I went back and reviewed all of the marked questions. I only changed a few answers because I have found that my first gut instinct was right on a lot of the practice exams/quizzes I took so I learned to trust it.

I hit the submit button, up came the white screen, up popped the survey. I completed the survey (9 questions but OMG does it feel like FORVER!!) and then hit "submit". Another white screen came up and then I saw the words...Congratulations! I had to cover my mouth to make sure I didn't make any noise. Ha ha.

This is a hard exam...no doubt about it but with lots of practice, practice, practice...you'll get used to the way the questions are worded and become more confident in your ability to not only answer the questions but also trust your gut on those that you're unsure of.
Good luck!!!

New PMP,
Lyndsay

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