Know the Differences between PMP and PMI_ACP

The basics of project management rely on the five phases of any Project- Initiation, Planning, Execution, Control and Closing. However, real-life projects are hardly in a state of harmony with the theory they work around. Each industry has distinct difficulties and diverse set of resources to ease them. Each team structure is different for the kind of results expected and every professional way needs distinct project challenges to obtain what it needs to secure.

All that really matters is, project management can be approached in three different ways based on the factors mentioned above.

PMP® and PMI-ACP® are all certification for project managers. What is more important to understand here is that these certifications are not competing with one another for creating the best project manager. These certifications are fundamentally not related and should be picked by a competitor after having a clear comprehension of what each of them offers. As a rule, these certifications complement one another and if pursued together, can enlarge your scope as a project manager. Project management technique, methodology and approach are form under which, the differences between the two certifications can be best understood.

Project Management Methodology

The edge on which these two certifications work in the business industry is of project management methodologies.

In basic terms, project management methodology is a model which organizations follow for the design, planning, implementation and fulfillment of project objectives. It relies upon the industry or business domains in respect to what project methodology should be adopted for a specific project.

PMP® & ACP®:

PMP® follows a knowledge-based way to deal with projects including 10 knowledge zones. Based on a comprehensive understanding of the knowledge zones, one needs to take the right choices and drive the project to its logical result. The emphasis here is on what you should know as a project manager and after that take decisions based on the knowledge experience pool

Project Management approach

Project management approach is the framework for handling the different elements of a project and accomplishing successful project completion.

PMP®: Under this approach, the project is completed in a consecutive way. Scope, time and cost are three elements that are finished even before the beginning of the project. However, the customer does not have the freedom to adjust these elements over the span of the project

PMI-ACP®: This methodology has an open scope. The agile approach characterizes the time and the expense of the project, yet the scope of the project has a greater amount of a result after detailed reviews and inputs from team members at each phase of the project. Iterative steps can be taken to upgrade the scope of the project. Basically, change is a necessary part of this approach.

Industry/Geography wise importance of certifications

Since we have built up clear contrasts between the two certifications, let us find the industry specific or geographical eminence of these two certifications.

PMP® is required over every single major industry ranging from IT and telecom, automobile, banking, consulting, healthcare, HR, aerospace, defense and construction industry among others. PMP® certification is majorly perceived across India, USA, Canada, Middle East, South East Asia and Australia.

PMI-ACP® was developed in 1989 and although rapidly developing, it is still at an early stage. A 2010 review by Forrester states that agile is massively going standard. A total of 35% of surveyed organizations portrayed their essential development method as agile. PMI-ACP® is over all recognized across the globe.

Certification exam details and how to tackle it

These certifications have differences in their exam formats and prerequisites.

Prerequisites

PMP® exam requires the candidate to have no less than three years of valid experience and 35 contact hours that can be achieved through classroom training or through virtual training with a Registered Education Provider (REP).

PMI-ACP® requires the candidate to have least of two years of experience and compulsory 1500 hours of agile project management experience. Note that regardless of the possibility that the candidate is the junior most member of an agile project management team, that experience would still be valid

Exam format

Being well acquainted and familiar with the exam format is the initial step to cracking it.

PMP® certification depends on PMBOK® guide yet is not limited to it. 30-35% of the inquiries assess the general skills of the candidate and might not be essential covered in the PMBOK® guide. In a span of four hours, the candidate will need to answer 200 multiple choice questions. There is no predefined passing percentage for this exam and the results depend on psychometric analysis. An effective preparation cycle of 8-10 weeks is sufficient to be well prepared for the PMP® exam.

For PMI-ACP®, there is a list of reference material which, when covered well by the candidate, can help him/her sail through the exam successfully and effectively. In three hours, the candidate will have to answer 120 multiple choice questions. Like the PMP® certification, even PMI-ACP® certification does not have a disclosed passing percentage and the results are based on psychometric analysis.

The author is associated with http://www.graspskills.com. Graspskills provides Online and Classroom training for Pmp, Pmi-Acp,Csm, Cspo,Agile and Scrum,MS Project 2013,Business Case Writing, Fpa and more."