The PMI Melbourne Chapter offers a variety of courses based on the PMBOK to help people prepare for their PMI Credential examinations and to enhance their project management skills, knowledge and performance.

 

CAPM Classic (Saturdays): 24 July - 14 August

PMP Intensive: 9 - 13 August

PMP Exam. Preparation Sat Series: 21 August - 21 November

 

The Art and Science of Communicating Effectively: 27 July

'How To' Develop an Effective Schedule: 11 September

 

 

The Project Management Professional (PMP) exam is developed and administered by the Project Management Institute (PMI) to measure and assess an individual's ability to apply project management skills in six different domains. Initiation, planning, execution, monitoring and controlling, closing the project, as well as professional and social responsibility are evaluated. Don't be intimidated! While the material may seem overwhelming, there are a few important factors to consider when preparing to successfully earn your PMP certificate. Experience, understanding of project management principles, developing a solid study plan and reliably sticking to it, as well as practicing exam-taking strategies are essential ingredients for PMP exam success.
 
Secret Ingredient #1: Project Management Experience
 
Perhaps one of the most solid foundations for successful completion of the PMP exam is actual project management experience. Learning on-the-job with specific situations that develop a wide array of project management skills is an excellent way to retain information and far superior to rote memorization or passive reading. PMP test takers with project management experience are able to draw upon a database of information that is relevant and often easier to retrieve due to its personal nature. Recalling the small details of that last-minute project at work that your supervisor needed yesterday makes all of those grueling hours a worthwhile investment.
 
Before applying to take the PMP exam, PMI certification requires at least 4500 hours of experience in project management and 35 hours of documented training. This ensures that test-takers have the required skills to be successful and maintains the credibility of the certification. 
 
Secret Ingredient #2: Understanding of Project Management Principles 
 
Specific principles addressed in the PMP exam include communication, cost management, human resources, integration, procurement, quality, risk, scope, and time management. Each of these topics is covered in A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK® Guide). You must understand them individually and how they work together to ensure overall successful project management. It is essential to use the most current version of the PMBOK® Guide for studying and review.
 
Secret Ingredient #3: Having a solid plan to study for the exam & sticking to it
 
As with all standardized examinations, the PMP covers a wide variety of material in a relatively short period of time. Don't be discouraged! Remember that careful planning and structure are essential to your exam success. It is important to develop a PMP Exam Study Plan to reduce the amount of intimidating material into manageable portions. People often find they work well with a structured exam preparation course that provides focused instruction over a specific timeline. One of the requirements of the PMP examination (35 hours of project management instruction) can be met with an online or in-person class. If you select an online course, ensure the class provides an "end of course assessment" and gives you written certification of participation and completion of required instruction hours.
 
The number ant type of questions on the exam are: initiating the project (11%), planning the project (23%), executing the project (27%), monitoring and controlling the project (21%), closing the project (9%), and professional and social responsibility (9%). Many people often divide up their study time in a similar manner, giving more hours to those topics that are tested more heavily. Others take practice exams and note specific weak areas in their knowledge, choosing to focus more review time on those topics. Your plan of attack will be personal and best suited to your own strengths, weaknesses, and timeline.
 
Most resources recommend spending one to two hours each day for four to eight weeks in preparation. Some people will require more time and others will require less. Work out a schedule with a manageable amount of material to cover each day. Be realistic in how much can be covered in one to two hours so that the schedule can be followed closely and certain areas don't slip, get skipped, or left out completely. Remember that most of us can't afford to neglect our day job during this study period and still have external commitments and responsibilities. Set weekly goals and regularly take practice exams to chart your progress. It's also very important not to forget to take refreshing breaks to do something you enjoy.
 
Secret Ingredient #4: PMP Exam-Taking Strategy
 
The PMP exam is made up of 200 multiple choice questions conducted on a computer at a Prometric testing center during normal business hours from Monday to Saturday. Test-takers are given a 15-minute tutorial and four hours to complete the exam. 25 pre-test questions remain ungraded, as they are used for future exam purposes. Inside the examination center, test takers are provided with rough sheets of paper and pencils. If needed, there are a variety of translation materials available upon request as the exam is only administered in English.
 
Mock questions and simulation exams are available from a variety of test preparation websites. Practice exams help future test-takers become familiar with the style and format of questions and enhance the endurance required for four-hour exams. It is commonly recommended that consistently scoring above 80% on mock exams is a strong indicator of success on the real thing. Gauge your progress on a weekly basis and determine how comfortable you feel with each topic area. Arriving on exam day with confidence means half the battle is already won.
 
Specific tips for test day strategies include sleeping well the night before, eating a healthy breakfast, wearing comfortable clothing, and arriving early. Before beginning the exam, many test-takers like to utilize the provided rough sheet to write out things like formulae, lists of processes with their inputs and outputs, as well as tools and techniques that will be useful throughout the exam. Consider taking two breaks spaced evenly throughout the exam. Don't waste too much time on a single question; mark it for review and move on.
 
Applying these four simple steps thoroughly and intelligently will ensure that the valuable time and money spent on the PMP exam is not wasted. Successful completion of the PMP depends on a test-takers ability to put their project management experience to work, to understand and apply project management principle, to thoroughly prepare with a solid study plan, and to bring everything smoothly together on a stressful exam day. Preparation is the key to reducing stress and guaranteeing success. 
 

© February 2010,  Dr David Hillson PMP HonFAPM
david@risk-doctor.com
 
Projects are risky undertakings. This is because they are usually unique and complex, based on assumptions and constraints, with a range of stakeholders, and dependent on the performance of people. Given these tough challenges, it is not surprising that some projects fail. How are we doing?

The Standish Group have been monitoring project performance since 1994, to see how many projects succeed, how many fail, and how many miss at least one important goal (these projects are called "challenged"). Their first set of data revealed a worrying situation, with only 16% of projects succeeding, 31% being complete failures, and the remaining 53% being challenged. The most recent results are better, but not by much. In 2009 there were 32% successful projects, 24% failures and 44% challenged.

It seems that most projects are continuing to miss the target, either completely or in at least one important aspect. Project management claims to be a profession, with established standards, tools, techniques and methodologies, certification and training courses. Project risk management exists to help us manage the inbuilt uncertainty in projects and maximise the chances of project success. Something is clearly wrong. Why do we miss our project targets so often?

If we consider another situation involving targets, such as shooting or archery, we discover four reasons why a target might be missed.

1. The target is in the wrong place. Sometimes we aim in one direction but when we come to shoot we find that the target is actually somewhere else. Project goals and objectives often change between the pre-project phase and project start. This is especially true if a bid has been prepared for a client, followed by negotiations that introduce changes before the project team start work. If our project plan and budget was based on a different original target then it is not surprising if we miss the new one. The chances of missing are even higher if the target has been moved to a place that is impossible to hit!

2. The target is moving. It is much harder to hit a target that is not fixed. Many projects experience scope creep or volatile requirements as clients and sponsors change their minds over what the project is required to achieve. When the target is moving the chance of hitting it goes down, and if it moves very fast it can be very easy to miss.

3. The shooter loses control of the shot. Sometimes the shooter has perfect aim, pointing directly at the target and knowing exactly how to hit it. But if something happens to distract them or they lose focus, they can still miss. Many projects go astray during execution. Despite robust plans, a competent team and clear leadership, there are many unplanned and unexpected things that can cause the project to lose sight of its objectives. When this happens it is not surprising that the target is missed.

4. The shooter is not good enough. It is of course possible that the person taking the shot lacks the necessary skills to hit the target. Project teams must be competent to perform the challenges set before them. Without the right capabilities and resources, hitting the target is very difficult.

These four problems have different solutions, which are not hard to implement. Requirements analysis should be undertaken to ensure that project objectives are feasible and achievable, so that the target is in the right place. Rigorous and formal change management should be in place to control scope creep and stop the target moving too far or too fast. Effective risk management will help to keep the project focused on its aim and not be distracted by unexpected events or circumstances. And proper training and resource planning should give the project the skills and competence it needs to stay on target.
Not every project failure is the result of inadequate performance by the project team. Sometimes the fault lies outside the project, with misplaced or moving targets. But if we want more successful projects, there are some simple techniques we can use to ensure that we hit the target first time, every time.