Dimension 2

Project Management Education

When people commonly think about improving their organization's project management capabilities, they mean education and training in concepts and approaches. It is a critical consideration. The more formal education, the better.

The globally largest project management organization is the Project Management Institute (PMI), which publishes a number of professional standards. The most well-known of them is the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK). Another organization is the International Project Management Association (IPMA).

On a high level, the following are key questions to evaluate the level of formal education.

Level of Certification of Project Managers.
PMI offers certifications for project managers, like the Project Management Professionals (PMP) or the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM). The IPMA offers a multi-level certification program as well, starting with the Certified Project Management Associate.

Training of Project Team Members.
Formal training of project team members increases their chances to perform more in line with sound project management principles. Benefits include a common understanding of terminology, concepts of project management, and how ones work relates to the rest of the organization and its strategic goals. Ideally, such training is consistent across an organization, but any education will be helpful.

Formality of Training Independent of Software.
Often, the main source of project management education is training in the use of project management software applications. However, it is important that project team members understand them to be mere tools. Having project management training independent of application helps to understand and apply concepts in different situations - and often leads to a better use of the software itself.

A more detailed analysis will render more information about where an organization stands, and what its priorities should be to improve its project management maturity through better education. Just learning the PMBOK and getting standard PMI certification does increase an organization's maturity. There is a difference between competency and knowledge, which is why a theoretical understanding of the contents of the PMBOK is not sufficient. The PMI acknowledges that. People and general management skills need to be considered as well.

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