Best In-Demand Project Management Certifications

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Project management is a methodology for planning and assembling an organization’s resources to bring a specific set of tasks, processes, or events to successful completion. Project management certification is a proof that an individual’s abilities to oversee, guide, and control projects are rock solid. Certification signals that the holder has demonstrated knowledge and experience in an objectively measured process of study and examination.

Many types of management professionals oversee projects. For most, their capacities were learned in formal education and on the job experience. Project management certification applies standards to the field of project management. Certification occurs when a neutral organization assesses, tests, and certifies an individual in order to attest to their level of knowledge and experience.

Certified professionals must verify training, education, and experience and pass specific exams. Employers can expect certified professionals to be familiar with the standard language, terms, and processes for project management. Project management professionals have skills and tools that translate into many settings and they are able to guide many types of projects to successful outcomes.

Certification can help employers make selection decisions when they are looking to hire or promote employees. When combined with a record of experience, project management certificate holders are much more likely than others to gain project management positions.

Project management courses teach the basics of managing teams, plans, budgets, tasks, and goes further to provide specific types of hands-on experience. Project management education will teach students to control the scope and pace of a project, the resources committed to achievement, and the time management required to complete the project on time.

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Top Project Management Certifications

Project management certifications demonstrate a level of knowledge and capability in the field, which is important to many industries and organizations. Planning can mean little without sound execution, and project management focuses on moving projects forward on time, and within the resources available.

Project management has evolved from traditional patterns of planning and following that plan carefully with little deviation to the more dynamic and responsive agile styles appropriate to the modern age.

Project management applies to a wide range of settings and solutions such as the completion of construction projects, complex culture changes in corporate settings, and technology-based solutions management. Traditional project management used phases of project development to indicate the appropriate steps. Initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closing.

Agile Certified Practitioner (ACP)

Agile Certified Practitioners have the skill and knowledge needed to manage Agile projects. Agile methodology is the modern method for project management, as distinguished from waterfall or traditional types of planning and management.

Agile uses incremental development to accommodate requirements and solutions that evolve over the course of the project. It produces adaptive planning, development over a timeline, and delivery scaled to the changing needs of the project. Agile technology is widely known for being flexible and responsive to change. Prerequisites are eight months of Agile experience, 21 hours of training, and readings and studies in Agile technology.

Certified Project Director

The CPD is a high-level certification designed for senior and experienced project managers. The certification helps experienced project managers demonstrate their ability to work on complex projects and multiple projects at the same time. The certification training coursework equips graduates to manage complex projects or programs and students focus on advanced topics like risk management, quality management, and budgeting.

The CPD requires a training course and passing the CPD exam. The educational prerequisites are a bachelor’s degree, master’s degree, or higher. You’ll also need to pass a Professional in Project Management certification or equivalent exam (the PMP, PRINCE2Practitioner, or CPM).

Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)

The Certified Associate in Project Management is an excellent entry-level certification. It is ideal for new project managers that need to demonstrate and expand expertise in project management and there are no specific prerequisites for the CAPM. The minimum educational level is a high school diploma or equivalent and exam preparation requires 23 hours of project management education.

The CAPM certificate requires that candidates earn a passing score on the CAPM exam. The preparatory education consists of courses like Foundations of Project Management, Project Initiation, and Project Execution. Students should also know the fundamentals of agile project management and the Scrum Framework. Students may complete preparation with a capstone project in a real-world setting. The CAPM exam is three hours long and consists of about 150 questions covering the role and scope of project management.

Certified Project Management Practitioner (CPMP)

Offered by the International Council of E-Commerce Consultants (EC-Council), the CPMP certification equips graduates to learn through hands-on experience with strong tools and techniques for real-time project management. The EC-Council is a large organization that specializes in certifications for E-business and information security professionals.

The CPMP is designed for new project managers seeking to gain skills through experience and study. The course teach efficient methods of managing complex projects and the program guides students to develop managerial leadership, management skills, and advanced tools. The organizational focus of the EC-Council is to focus on cyber-terrorism and information security.

Certified Project Manager (CPM)

Offered by the International American Academy of Project Management (IAAPM), the CPM is a mid-level certification. It is ideal for students seeking to develop capacity in business analysis, project or program management, and portfolio management. The CPM is a level above the MPM or an entry-level graduate certificate. The IAAPM classifies the CPM as an equivalent to the PMI PMP certificate.

The CPM equips graduates to work in a wide range of business, commercial, and industrial settings. Graduates gain enhanced communication, human resources management, and quality management skills. The program provides excellent training for applications in IT, finance, and systems and process integration.

Certified ScrumMaster (CSM)

The CSM is a widely recognized agile project management certification. Offered by the Scrum Alliance, this certification demonstrates the ability to manage projects in a wide range of environments that use agile methodologies.

Students will gain important exposure to various methods and principles through a required two-day training course. After the course, students must get a passing grade on a thirty-five question, multiple-choice test. The passing score is 68%, with freedom to re-take the exam an additional two times. Graduates must maintain good standing with payment of fees to the organization to maintain their certification.

CompTIA Project+ Certification

Comp TIA+ certification is a type of project management aimed at business professionals. This entry-level certification, which educators designed for students with one year or less of project management experience, is meant to equip students to manage small to medium sized projects.

A large segment of the business world consists of small to medium sized businesses with relatively simple project management needs. Project+ provides multiple methodologies for project management within this range. Graduates will understand basic project elements, constraints, tools, and documentation. Comp TIA project+ emphasizes communications with teams and stakeholders.

Master Project Manager (MPM)

The Master Project Manager certification, offered by the American Academy of Project Management (AAPM), is an entry-level certification. The program equips graduates to manage business projects with substantial technical components. It is ideal for IT professionals that work within or lead project management teams. Professionals with technical backgrounds can use the MPM to expand their roles and repertoire of team management tools.

The MPM is a two-year certification that requires biennial recertification. Students can qualify for the MPM exam with three years of experience in project management, a master’s degree, or an equivalent level of demonstrated knowledge and experience.

Professional in Project Management (PPM)

The PPM is a mid-level certification offered by the Global Association for Quality Management (GAQM). The goals of the PPM program are risk management, crisis management, and team leadership, and the course content has project management training modules. For example, students will complete modules in planning, execution, project controls, and project completion or close out. Students will gain skills in scheduling, project performance measures, and approaches to leadership.

The prerequisites are a demonstrable level of prior experience in project management and completion of a required E-course. Students should possess experience in project management and a strong concept of E-commerce.

Project Management in IT Security (PMITS)

The PMITS is a training course and certification in the E-business field. The program equips students to manage IT security projects and the EC-council offers specialized training and education for security project managers. The goals of the PMITS are designed to support the needs of experts in IT security. The EC-council was formed in the aftermath if the 9/11 terror attacks and was purposed to improve security professionalism on the national security level.

The PMITS is not an entry-level certification and the required educational background must have a focus on security. The program requires a minimum of two years of high-level experience in the field of information technology security. Graduates will have a process for analyzing outcomes in their security projects including plans, legal standards, and corporate IT security.

Project Management Professional (PMP)

This high-level certification offered by the Project Management Institute is an excellent credential for demonstrating project management competency. The PMP equips graduates to manage the essential constraints of project management: time, cost, and scope.

The PMP is widely accepted and regarded as a standard of excellence in project management though it does not focus on specific fields like information security. Rather, it is an effective demonstration of overall or broad project management skills and competencies.

Understanding Project Management Certifications

Companies and organizations around the globe are awakening to the benefits of project management. Companies that use project management professionals report cost savings and greater efficiency. Completing projects on time and within budget contributes to a positive bottom line. For example, PMP certification is an industry standard; the knowledge and skills demonstrated by the certification are transferable across trades, roles, and organizational divides. The demand for Project Management Professional capabilities is growing, and employers will need to meet their talent needs by actively recruiting certified and experienced Project Management Professionals.

The below listed economic sectors are leaders in utilization of project management.

Industry, Construction, and Manufacturing
Information Technology, Information Services, and Publishing
E-Commerce, Finance, and Insurance
Management Consulting and Professional Services

Employees benefit from project management education and training. Many public, private, and non-profit roles benefit from project management certifications. Information technology professionals can add value by certifications that focus on cyber security, such as the CSM and PMITS. Administrators, business analysts, and data analysts can create new career paths through the PMP certification. Portfolio managers, program managers, and directors of project management hold typical corporate roles that utilize project management professional certifications.

Professionals with project management certifications earn more than their counterparts without certificates.

The list below describes typical course topics for PMP certification:

Project management concepts and terminology
Project scope, procurement, and management tools
Project costs and risk management
Change controls and tools
Stakeholder communication
Quality management
Closing processes

As the field of project management evolves, organizations discover new uses for the capabilities of project professionals. Complexity is a driving force behind expansion of the roles of project managers.

Top Professional Project Management Certifications