In many articles, podcasts, interviews, and videos, I’ve given the same answer to the question ‘Should I get this or that Project Management certification?’ My answer is always ‘it depends’. You need to treat it like any other project and create a business case.
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Business Case for Professional Certification
I am going to assume you know the basics of how to build a project proposal, business, case, or investment appraisal. If you don’t, I’ll put some helpful links in the description.
We’ll look at what you need to include in your PM Certification Business Case.
But first, let’s be clear on three things:
1. This needs to be a Business Case, not a Project Proposal
That is, write it as if you don’t know what the answer is. If you write a project proposal that shows why the certification is a good thing, then you lose all objectivity!
However, if you decide, from your objective business case, that it is the right thing for you, then by all means create a Project Proposal, to convince your employer to give you time of or, better yet, funding, to support you.
2. You need to consider options
A good business case compares multiple options. In this case, you would need to include at least two alternate certification options and one ‘do nothing’ option of not pursuing certification.
3. Investment appraisal
Applying for, taking, and maintaining a certification costs money. And, sometimes, it is a lot of money. So, part of your business case must run the numbers. An Investment Appraisal looks at the purely financial aspects: the financial costs and the financial benefits.
PMI Analysis for your Certification Business Case
Now, since your Certification Business Case is a document you are creating for your benefit, with you as the decision-maker, you won’t need an executive summary or a load of smart formatting. I recommend you write the main part as a PMI analysis. Not PMI the Project Management Institute, but PMI for Plus, Minus, and Interesting.
But, before that, identify the options you will consider and research each one carefully. Now, for each option
Draw two columns for Pros and Cons, labelled ‘Plus’ ‘-and ‘Minus’. And below them, rule of a section below both, labelled ‘Interesting’. These are ideas that are neither positive nor negative (or maybe a bit of both).
In the Plus column
- Goals and benefits for the certification – what you can gain.
- Drivers – compelling reasons why you should or must achieve it.
- Opportunities the certification might open up.
In the Minus column
- Disadvantages of going for the certification.
- Risks that might arise.
In the Interesting Box
- Note anything that occurs to you about taking or achieving the certification, which does not fit neatly into the binary Plus-Minus divide.
Investment Appraisal
Next, carry out an Investment Appraisal for each option.
Start with a budget for all the one-off costs
These include mandatory study materials, registration fees, and any training courses or exam simulators you know you will need or want.
Include a separate section for discretionary costs, like extra study aids that you are not sure whether you will need – this will give you a measure of contingency.
Now look at the costs of maintaining the certification. You may want to do this on a year-by-year basis.
Then focus on the benefits
Start with any one-off financial gain you can expect – like a promised promotion or salary bump. Then add in any possible financial benefit, like a promotion or salary hike that is not promised. This is an opportunity.
Then look at the ongoing financial benefits from this and from possible job shopping.
Qn: Over what term should you assess the financial costs and benefits in your investment appraisal?
I would say a good minimum period can be the duration up to and including any renewal of your certification (although some do not need renewal). Another approach is to run it up to the time when you would be eligible and ready to consider pursuing the next tier of certification, like CAPM to PMP, PFQ to PMQ, PMQ to PPQ, PSM I to PSM II to PSM III, or maybe IPMA Level D to C to B to A.
If neither of these approaches seems right then 3 to 5 years sounds reasonable to me.
Combine the costs and benefits to complete your cost-benefit analysis
Keep it simple. You don’t need anything sophisticated like a discounted cash flow. Just add up the benefits and subtract all the costs. Start with what is certain, and then repeat for a number of scenarios based on possible costs and gains.
This will tell you enough to know which option is best or, if two are very close, that you need to consider other factors or give the situation more thought.
To close…
Whatever the outcome of your evaluation, four things:
- Remember that all learning has value. You may not end up covering the financial cost, but learning for a certification exam will benefit your professional practice.
- On the other hand, you don’t need to take a certification to learn the content of its syllabus. It can be a great professional Development process to download an exam syllabus and study the material for yourself in books or online.
- If you do decide to prepare for a certification, OnlinePMCourses has a huge amount of material that can help you – both paid and free – on our website and on this YouTube channel.
- And finally, if you do decide to prepare for a certification, GOOD LUCK!
Recommended Articles and Videos to Help with Certification and Qualifications in General
Carefully curated recommendations for you:
- Project Management Qualification: Should you go for a PM Certification?
- The Project Management Certification question: Discussion with Dawn Mahan | Video
- Certification for Project Managers – 5 Tips | Video
Recommended Articles and Videos to Help with Specific Certifications and Qualifications
Carefully curated recommendations for you:
- PMI Certification Options: Is One Right for You?
- What is a Project Management Professional (What is the PMP)? | Video
- What is CAPM? PMI’s Certified Associate in Project Management | Video
- What’s the Difference between PMP and CAPM? | Video
- PMP or CAPM? What You Need to Know about the Differences
- Introduction to the PMP Certification (Project Management Professional) with Cornelius Fichtner
- New PMP Certification Exam: Discussion with Markus Kopko | Video
- How to Pass Your PMP Exam [Project Management Professional] | Video
- 2021 PMP Exam: For Candidates – All the Facts You Need to Know
- Top 10 Things to Know about the CAPM | Video
- Don’t Risk Being Left Behind: Understand the July 2023 Changes to the CAPM Exam Now!
- PMI-RMP: All you Need to Know about PMI’s Risk Management Certification
- PMI-RMP: PMI’s Risk Management Professional Certification – with Harry Hall
- What is PMI-ACP? PMI’s Chief Certification for Agile Project Management
- What is the PMI-ACP? The Agile Certified Professional | Video
- What is PRINCE2? | Video
- An Introduction to PRINCE2 with Frank Turley, ‘the PRINCE2 Guy’ | Video
- Top 10 Things to Know about Managing Successful Projects with PRINCE2
- PRINCE2 7th Edition: The Top 10 Changes You Need to Know
- PMP or PRINCE2? How to Choose the Better Certification for You
- What’s the Difference between PMP & PRINCE2? | Video
- PRINCE2 Certification: Everything You Need to Know
- What is PRINCE2 Agile? …and Does it Make Sense? | Video
- Agile Certification: Your Guide to the Large Array of Agile Qualifications
- Introduction to Agile Scrum Project Management – with Alexis Allen | Video
- CSM vs PSM: What are they and How do they Compare?
What Kit does a Project Manager Need?
I asked Project Managers in a couple of forums what material things you need to have, to do your job as a Project Manager. They responded magnificently. I compiled their answers into a Kit list. I added my own.
Check out the Kit a Project Manager needs
Note that the links are affiliated.
Learn Still More
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For more of our videos in themed collections, join our Free Academy of Project Management.
