That Association for Project Management (APM) are the UK body for professional project management. They have 14, 000 members, mostly in the United Kingdom. They are a member association which offer a wide range of development activities including an annual conference, honours and a structure of regional branches, specialist interest groups and publication. The most significant publication of the Body with Knowledge, this acts a reference guide in many organisations. The Body of Knowledge acts as the foundation for some qualifications including:

APM Introductory Certificate (APM IC)

The course is ideal for those people who are new to project management. The idea covers the main topics with a focus on the basic planning and control processes. Some of the more advances and challenging topics, such as earned value management and governance are excluded. The APM IC is a relatively simple one hour 60 multiple choice examination.

APMP

The APMP is ideal for people with 3-4 years experience. This wide ranging training course covers all the main areas of the APM Body of Knowledge. It helps to consolidate understanding if the basics and practice of projects and forms a solid foundation for future development. The assessment is with a three hour written question paper in which the candidates have to complete 10 out of 16 questions. This is akin to the work package manager level D on the International Agile Project Management Certification framework.

APM Teacher (APM PQ)

The APM Practitioner qualification is for managers with 5 years experience who can demonstrate enable you to apply the BoK to non complex projects. You need to be able to demonstrate a good understanding of the Body of Know-how. Assessment is by a 3 day assessment centre using a wide variety of exercise and tests. This is equivalent to that manager of non complex projects (level C) on the IPMA framework.

APM Project Professional

This is a innovative standard that is based on the ability to manage the most complex and challenging situations. It is the precursor the hoped for chartered project managers standard. You must be at the highest level and demonstrate a commitment to professional standards, an archive of CPD, a set of defined competences and a track record of successful delivery. This is equivalent to the manager of sophisticated projects (level B) on the IPMA competence framework.

Precisely what usually makes someone a "good" project manager is their experience, the fact that they have made mistakes together with learnt from them in a real project environment and that they have achieved success in a real project environment. Encounter on a range of projects and, most particularly, on complex projects can never be under-estimated. But neither may well the right sort of academic qualifications and relevant training. A project manager with the right credentials, such as an individual with a PMP Certification, is not necessarily better at leading and directing projects, but the qualification itself can be an indication of how serious that person is to be recognised as a professional. That in itself is an indication of get and determination to succeed which are qualities that are far more likely to contribute to a successful project as well as to a successful job.

Of course, it is true that some organisations actively encourage their employees to become certified, and some even insist upon it. They provide the opportunity, the funding and the time away from the office to achieve this. Some companies even offer wage rises for people who gain the PMP Certification. But there are also many smaller, successful organisations which do not position so much emphasis on these industry-recognised credentials which may be for cultural reasons or simply a lack of training budget. That may, nevertheless be changing as project management moves more towards being recognised as a profession in the way that accountancy and law are with their emphasis on qualifications and continuous professional development.

There are many experienced project managers would you argue that they have proved their worth with academic qualifications and other relevant qualifications over the years of their careers, as well as their extensive experience so why would they be interested in yet more credentials. Well one reason is that will of continuous professional development and another, perhaps more important, reason is the advantage when it comes to enhanced position prospects.

So why is it worth obtaining a PMP certification?

The PMP certification is an indication to a new company that you have the proper amount of relevant experience and training and have a good enough understanding of the PMI Body with Knowledge and more general project management principles to pass the exam. The stringent pre-requisites to the assessment mean that this is not just a paper credential - you can only take the exam if you can demonstrate that you have concerning 3 and 5 years of practical experience running projects.

So the fact that many employers place such a serious amount of weight on this credential is understandable. Many organisations do not even interview people without this name, which may be unfortunate for the many highly successful people who previously did not have the need for this type of credential. For example can be a project manager with a bachelor's degree and a master's degree and 10 years practical experience a less suitable selection than one with only a bachelor's degree and 3 years experience but also a PMP Certification? Some businesses might think so but it would be encouraging to believe that, in a professional world, employers can see beyond confident credentials. Nevertheless, as times change in the project management world so too must project managers.

Therefore , quite simply, project management courses that lead to internationally-recognised credentials such as PMP Certification are worth the effort. People draw attention to your CV and get you in the door for the all-important interview where you can impress a probable employer with your knowledge and previous experience.