Supplementary Reading for PMP/CAPM Aspirants

To assist learners in my CAPM and PMP Exam Prep classes, below are links and instructions to retrieve documentation from PMI which should be of interest when thinking about your study plan. Prep well, and good luck with your exam!

For PMP aspirants

Exam Content Outline (ECO): download from pmi.org –> “Certifications” tab –> “Project Management Professional (PMP)” link, then scroll down. Or, simply click here.

Certifications Handbook: download from pmi.org –> “Certifications” tab –> “Project Management Professional (PMP)” link –> “PMI Certifications Handbook”. Or, simply click here.

Reference list: visit http://www.pmi.org/certifications/project-management-pmp/earn-the-pmp/pmp-exam-preparation/pmp-reference-list

For CAPM aspirants

2023 Exam Content Outline (ECO): download from pmi.org –> “Certifications” tab –> “Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)” link –> [Learn More]. Or, simply click here.

CAPM Handbook: download from pmi.org –> “Certifications” tab –> “Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)” link –> “Know how to prepare for the CAPM Exam” link. Or, simply click here.

Pilot reference list: visit http://www.pmi.org/certifications/certified-associate-capm/capm-exam-updates –> “Reference Study Guide” link. Or, simply click here.

Note

The above information and links are valid at the time of writing. Please explore or traipse through PMI’s website (pmi.org), which changes from time to time without notice, for the latest information and updates.

PRINCE2 Agile Candidate/Exam Syllabi

These are the URLs to download the syllabi. Mark up your PRINCE2 Agile manual/textbook with the sections, figures and tables referenced in each syllabus so that you may focus your exam prep on what is within scope.

Foundation exam: http://www.axelos.com/certifications/propath/prince2-agile-project-management/prince2-agile-foundation

Practitioner exam: http://www.axelos.com/certifications/propath/prince2-agile-project-management/prince2-agile-practitioner

After passing your exams, you ought to read the entire manual and endeavour to gain mastery of this excellent Agile project management method.

All the best, and good luck for your exams!

Guidance on Taking PeopleCert Online Proctored Exams

PeopleCert, the exam institute, has published guidelines for candidates to peruse and prepare themselves, and their devices, in order to smoothly take online proctored exams:

Windows: http://www.peoplecert.org//Exams-PeopleCert-Online-Proctoring-windows

MacOS: http://www.peoplecert.org//Exams-PeopleCert-Online-Proctoring-mac

Additionally, PeopleCert has provided FAQs: http://www.peoplecert.org/help-and-support/FAQ#46C0C64406834A64B285C9685EC5F171

In the FAQs web page, note that there are a number of tabs on the left hand side. Click on each tab and carefully read the answers provided.

For many of us, in order to cope with information overload, we may have become accustomed to skimming over emails and documents. However, when preparing to take an exam, it is not the right time to speed read or skim over details. Peruse the above guidelines and FAQs carefully so as not to be unpleasantly surprised just before your exam begins when you realize with a sinking heart that something is amiss or you haven’t done something beforehand.

Wishing you all the best for your exams!

PRINCE2 (6th Ed) Candidate/Exam Syllabi

These are the URLs to download the syllabi. Mark up your Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2 manual/textbook with the sections, figures and tables referenced in each syllabus so that you may focus your exam prep on what is within scope.

Foundation exam: https://www.axelos.com/certifications/propath/prince2-project-management/prince2-foundation

Practitioner exam: https://www.axelos.com/certifications/propath/prince2-project-management/prince2-practitioner

After passing your exams, you ought to read the entire manual and endeavour to gain mastery of this excellent project management method.

All the best, and good luck for your exams!

Featured in DDLS corporate promotional video

As a contract or associate trainer, I work with multiple training partners. One of them is DDLS. It is a reputable, established training provider which I have a long relationship with.

In December, I arrived at DDLS’ Melbourne office to conduct a training demo to staff there when I was informed by the branch manager to expect a videographer to show up and film my session for inclusion in the company’s promo video.

I feature throughout the clip starting from 9 seconds in.

Actually, this is the second time I have been included in a training partner’s corporate video (the first was when I was based in Singapore). Must be doing something right for training companies to want to use me as an exemplar of a quality trainer.

I hope lending my image to DDLS will lead to greater prosperity and better things for both of us.

If I could be of service to your organization, feel welcome to get in touch through my LinkedIn profile. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Thanks for visiting.

What next after becoming AgilePM Practitioner certified?

Congratulations on attaining your AgilePM Practitioner credential!  Hopefully, you have been enthused by the organizational, team and personal mindset change you became aware of during your course.

And now, the rubber hits the road!  You are back in your office, you have a project to run, and you wish to manage it using AgilePM.

It is useful to begin with visualization, a technique to depict a future state clearly so that one may take actions to bring the visualized state closer and closer to reality.  When the current state eventually matches the desired state, you have realized the future!

Whilst browsing through the Agile Business Consortium website, I came across a sample Synopsis for a DSDM AgilePF Project (for all intents and purposes, AgilePF is AgilePM).  A synopsis for an AgilePM project is required to be submitted as part of one’s application to the Agile Business Consortium to be an Agile Project Professional.

It struck me that if you were to write a paper on your AgilePM project after you have managed it for several months and it reads somewhat like the sample synopsis, you could be well on your way to successfully implementing the Agile mindset change you first learned during your course.

In that situation, you would be in good stead to apply for the Agile Project Professional credential, the next level of certification after AgilePM Practitioner.

The above-mentioned sample synopsis is downloadable from the Agile Project Professional certification web page.

When implementing AgilePM, remember to use common sense and be pragmatic, the foundation of the methodology.  Adopting AgilePM is not about strictly following the AgilePM processes and practices documented in the handbook.  Bear clearly in mind this value statement in the Agile Manifesto: “Individuals and interactions over processes and tools”.  Be agile and not do Agile is the idea here.

Good luck with your attitudinal change, your career development and attaining your next credential!

ITIL 2011 Foundation exam applicant’s resources

Congratulations on deciding to study for your ITIL 2011 Foundation exam!  Even if you have not already made that decision (it’s not an easy one to make), you are welcome to browse.

I list several resources that should be very helpful in your exam preparation:

1. An Introductory Overview of ITIL 2011

Published by TSO, this guide describes the key principles of IT service management
and provides a high-level overview of each of the core publications and associated lifecycle phases within ITIL:
■ ITIL Service Strategy
■ ITIL Service Design
■ ITIL Service Transition
■ ITIL Service Operation
■ ITIL Continual Service Improvement.

2. ITIL 2011 glossary

The glossary defines terms and abbreviations used in ITIL literature.  Before taking your exam, it is useful to read the glossary of ITIL terms at least once.

3. ITIL 2011 Foundation exam syllabus

Visit this Axelos webpage.  Click on the “ITIL Foundation Syllabus” link in the Key Rsources panel to download the syllabus.

4. ITIL Foundation mobile app from Axelos

This is what Axelos says about the app: “The earlier version of the app was mostly mock exam content and – while it was useful – it only provided the basics of practice and mock exams.  The new version includes a study area that brings together lots of useful resources into one place.  Terminology, for example, is a key part of the ITIL 2011 Foundation exam so now you can search and browse in an interactive glossary.”

5. ITIL Foundation Handbook

This Handbook (3rd Edition, 2012) is designed as a study aid for students and is a handy portable reference source for managers, practitioners, vendors and consultants.  It is published in association with itSMF UK.  Its ISBN is: 9780113313495.

You may buy it singly or in packs of 10.

 

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Good luck with your studies!  I opine that it is better to over prepare for an exam than to under prepare (may lead to an undesirable result).  Don’t you think so, too?  Godspeed!

 

Understanding patterns of team maturity for improvement

Mani, a member of the Agile and Lean Software Development group in LinkedIn posed the query: “Can you please let me understand how and on what criterias (sic) team maturity can be measured so that team can understand how their pattern is interns (sic) of improvement“.

I reproduce my responses below:

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Levels of maturity are observable. For example, a group of toddlers’ behaviour is different from that of a group of teenagers. There have been studies on team behaviour, a well-known one being Tuckman’s Model of Team Development. In this model, there are five stages of development that a team progresses through: forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. In the performing stage, team members are most productive.
There is a lot of literature on the observable behaviours at each stage (for e.g. https://salvos.org.au/scribe/sites/2020/files/Resources/Transitions/HANDOUT_-_Tuckmans_Team_Development_Model.pdf) and the recommended actions a leader/manager of that team may take to facilitate the team’s development to high performance (the performing stage).

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Adding to my comment above, you may find this article useful: https://www.scrumalliance.org/community/articles/2014/july/maturity-assessment-model-for-scrum-teams

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Why you should co-locate team members

People who are part of a project should, ideally, sit together.  To build an effective team, the project manager should co-locate his/her team members from different floors or buildings and bring them together.  This article on osmotic communication will further your understanding as to why you should seat your team members within earshot of each other.

The evolution of PRINCE2 by the author of the original PRINCE2 manual

An interesting recount on the development of PRINCE2 by Colin Bentley.