Project Management

Hello everybody in the house. Please, i need an assistance, i just want to undergo a training on PMP. I really need somebody to assist me pertaining to Manuals and the likes- this goes to the certified or already a member in the house. please i look forward to any help. I am currently serving in Abia State. Thanks fo r your genuinely assistance!

Kolapo Oduwole

hello all,

I have being following this thread for some time now and i need to clarify some facts about the PMP exam and project management in general.

1. It is not only REP that can provide PMP exam training as a pre-requisite for attaining the 35hours  training required for the exam. nolaodus is not correct. please see the pmp handbook page 6. for the criteria for satisfying the education requirement.
  One more point to note is that for you to become an REP you must have provided project management training for at least one year and pmp exam related courses must be taught by PMPs ( see REP Criteria handbook). this deductively means that  whatever training programme you want to attend check the status of the faculties ( you can easily get this from the pmi website).to ensure that they are certified PMPs

you can download all these free.from the pmi website. www.pmi.org.


2 . it un ethical to sell the PMBOK. ordinarily as soon as you pay for membership you have access to the PMI online library were you can read other standards and textbooks ( this was the only library i used for my PMP Exam).

3. you don't write the PMP exam in embassies. I did mine in a prometric centre by name touche at Abagbon close V/I. this centre also have an office at Abuja. this is far better than arranging a paper base exam. it is more convenient and you can re-schedule it .

4. it very easy to pay for the exam and membership through any master card  ( i used an intercontinental  master card for my exam and membership why i recently used a GTB master card for my 2007 membership due). registering online is faster. just follow the instruction with the click of the mouse you are a PMI member and then depending on your numbers of years experience going for the PMP or  CAPM EXAM  and you become a member of the three golg letters that rule the world .


Ulohomuno Eze Afieroho. MBA PMP

kaypinchi,
that is the next challenge after the pmp exam, for me i aready have comfortable 30 pdus. i have two published articles .
one in projects & profit magazine--- i don't know if they will accept it as a refereed jornal article thou it pass through a blind review process. if they do that is 30 PDU if not guarantee 15 PDUs

the second one was published on ESI newsletter  one of the leading project management and business analysis firm in the world. that is certain 15 PDUs for sure,  thou it also went through a peer review process. i have not registered them yet. i hope to do so soonest.

i will write them a letter to clarify the staus of these two and if they accept them for category 2A then that means i have gotten 60PDUs which is what i need to remain a PMP for the next cycle.

we really need a forum to network not the PMI Lagos chapter stuff that refuse to be realistic and robust in accepting members ideas.


do you write we can co-author article together. that will be nice most intellectual journals love co-author articles more that single author onces it shows the team work stuff.

thanks

Hi all,

I need some information regarding the PMP exam.
One of my friends is about to apply and not going through it the traditional way.
first of all he's just finished service and been working for about 6-8months in a major multinational.
The guy has registered for the PMP exam using some project experience he got in school. He's a Civil Engr and included some work he did with companies while in school. He was also an executive of his Unis chapter of an International student body so he included work he did htere as well. As a matter of fact he was Director in charge of Projects in that body.

So he's using his ecperience form school+NYSC+d little he's gotten from his present company.

2nd thing is he's not going to a REP for training, he's citing most of the training he got in school. Some specific courses some of which include PM courses as sufficient training in PM.

Do u guys think he can make it through the audit before taking the exam?
More importantly if he makes it through that audit will he be able to maintain the certification or run d risk of being stripped of it sometime later on after taking the test due to subsequent audits??

Please let me know what u guys think because i want to take this route myself if it will work. because we have very similar academic and extra-curricular backgrounds.

MUST PM WORK EXPERIENCE BE IN A COMPANY OR WILL INTL ORGS WORK JUST AS WELL??

thanks guys

Hi Guys
   Please I'm a young graduate of statistician. Could this PMP and PMI be of any  benefits to me. I need someone to enlighten me on it. Cos i'm in need of a good work.
Thanks Cheers

Dear all,

what is project management all about? it is about translating an organisation strategy into reality. it is the bridge between strategy and performance in any organisation, world wide high performing organisation are investing on developing their organisation project management capabilities. the implication to project managers is that the profession is still emerging and  is only fit for those who are delibrate and patient in growing with an eye on ethics and professionalism.

this morning i read an article in the harvard business review- it state that " the journey to superior performance is neither for the faint of heart nor for the impatient. the development of genius expertise requires struggle, sacrifice and honour, often painfull self-assessment. there are no short-cuts. it will take you at least a decade to achieve expertise, and you will need to invest that time wisely by engaging in delibrate practice- practice that focuses on tasks beyound your current level of competence and comfort"


To all aspiring PMPs - what do you want? the PMP certification or to be a project management professional? if it is the PMP i think you are only trying to be more employable but if it is the later you are trying to become an expert.


project management is a profession just like accounting, civil engineering and medicine etc. it is not an additional certification like CCNA, CCNP etc. do you want to be a subject matter expert PM or a professional PM.


I am a civil engineer by training ( thou i have an MBA)  but i have look forward always to be PM right from school so i go for an MBA rather than continuing with my engineering even thou i made distinction. when i start to work even till date i have being managing project that relate to civil engineering but recently i decide to let the world to konow that i am not a civil engineer but a PM and guess i invest my time reading and learning more about PM rather that engineering and it has so pay that i once attend an interview as a PM in a multinational company. and guess what why the panel is waiting for management approval of the recruitment a panelist recommend me for one of their subsidairy  to be their project manager for new product development far from my subject matter area.

I have also being offered a job to be a PM in an IT company that help clients carry out what they call system intergration. ( why because they read one of my article and they discovered that i have passion for PM hence i can learn it fast )thou i did not take these offers because i have a delibrate plan and the pay stuff but they re assured me that if it is PMP i am looking for i will be disappointed but if it is to be a project management professional i need to delibrately practice this profession, i need to be patient ,and above all be ethical.


bodija and all aspiring PMPs you need to fulfill requirement. short cut are paths that lead you faster to a place but without the experience attach to the normal path.

motorist that normal take the short cut around TBS to VI ( I mean that military one way) don't have the opportunity of seeing the NITEL office and the TBS. you may not understand this until you are new in lagos like me . I only recently saw these two places when the military start enforcing the one way rule.

i hope i have communicated. quiet long, i love writing because i love it.

thanks

muchmoney
many many thanks you've cleared issues in my head to a large degree. I think i'll just pass on the exam for now, although i'll likelytake the Prince2 foundation exam in the interim (this is because i'll b in the UK for studies for next yr and it might help). You're quite right about having a qualification and not being able to back it up adequately, there's always also the possibility of running into someone that's a stickler for the rules guiding the certification.

Althoughi should say that i think we've actually had project management comparable to those that will want to take the PMP exam after about 3yrs work experience (because most of em haven't had experience specific to PM). However, we might as well just take our time and not rush things too much. There are definitely NO sustainable short cuts in life

Ulohomuno, thanks for your comments as well. One needs to decide the driving force behind taking the exam.
Gr8 thread guys, I SALUTE UNA and look forward to joining the ranks soon

ulohomuno,
i like your contribution,please i will need your email address,i will go for the training at the end of the month.i want to ask you some questions.My email id is kunle_ola2000@yahoo.com

hello kashif, please i will appreciate if u can help me with your Project management materials (prince and pmp). Hoping to hear from u soon. thanks!

Iyke.

na wa o

@kashif
please also forward to me the prince2 manual to
udokasy@yahoo.com
Thanks.

ekorick,

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND PROCUREMENT

First I don’t understand your first question but I guess this explanation below will throw more light on the procurement process as it relates to project management in the true life scenario.
Procurement is the process to acquire the product or service needed for a project. Basically the project procurement process involves- preparation of contract statement of work/specification, vendor pre-qualification, RFPs/RFQ, vendor selection, contract administration and closure. Contract administration is all about vendor management- measuring performance, vendor relationship management etc.

In a projectised environment the procurement process is fully under the project management team, but in reality this is not the case. In an outsourced driven  global economy the supply chain management is as strategic as project management hence in other to established strategic alliance with vendors/suppliers organisation usually creates a business process unit to managed vendors. These are call. Supply chain dept., logistics dept. or Vendor management office (VMO) depending on the organization. Therefore what the project management team really does during the procurement process is to prepare the statement of work/specification, liaison with the VMO to select vendors, and evaluate vendor performance/monitoring of payment as agreed. And contract administration and closure.

[/b]
A blanket PO is an order a customer/company/client makes with a supplier/vendor which contains multiple delivery date scheduled over a period of time. Sometimes it is done with a pre-determined price.
You normally used a Blanket PO when there is a re-occurring need for an expandable good/service. For example let say a telecom company is rolling out 250 BTS site across the nation in a year. They decide to issue a PO to mikano to supply and installed 250 generators according to there roll-out scheduled. This will have the following advantage to the telecom company.
1.   Eliminate the time to produce POs for each site generator
2.   Reduce the cost of warehousing
3.   If the price is pre-determined is serving as a hedge against price increase.


[b]Contract laws
I am not an authority in this area but from my project management experience and training the whole essence of signing a contract in project is to ensure that both parties respect the rules of the game. As soon as a PO is signed and received by the vendor a contract has been established and it become legally bindering on both parties to obey the agreement except both parties mutually agreed to waiver a part of the contract.

A Contract agreement in project management should normally comes with the following;
•   The project schedule- which should be prepared by the vendor and approved by the client
•   Contract statement of works/specifications
•   A PO stating the payment terms
•   Bill of material/Bill of quantities
•   A performance clause stating the penalty for any delay.
•   How dispute arising from the contract shall be settled- by litigation or arbitration.
Please note that these points vary according to the industry and organization and service being rendered. my background is construction projects.

Generally the client dictates the terms of contract, therefore as a PM my advice is that you should asked for enough time to digest the content of the contract before you sign or advice your management to sign. Once a contract document is signed and the contractual parties are eligible to enter a contractual agreement (i.e. they are not minors or insane at the time of signing the agreement) the document become a legal document and the terms must be respected to the latter.

Job spec. of a contract officer[center][/center]
I will try and explain a bit perhaps this may help you understand this question. In projects-both the vendor and the client administer the contract- this is to ensure that both parties meets their contractual obligation and that their own legal right are protected. This is simply in small project. But on large and complex projects with multiple vendors and critical participating stakeholders like Oil & Gas project, Telecom roll-out projects, even estate development a key aspect of such project becomes managing the interface among various vendors especially if you are the client. Because of its legal and relationship nature most organization treat contract administration as an administrative function separate from the core project function and as such employ a contract officer to take care of this administrative function. What is obtain in practice is that thou the contract officer  may be in the project team he normally reports to his departmental head. For example in my organization the legal dept. takes care of all contract administrative duties like preparing the contract doc. RFP, Confirm APG, Performance bond etc, but for any complex and large project a staff is dedicated to that project. He attends meeting but he is not actually reporting to the PM. I hope these can help you to understand your question.

Hello everyone,

Just to let you know that I am a PRINCE 2 accredited/ certified holder, with many years experience of working in FTSE 100 companies in The UK and western Europe. I also have a wealth of experience in telco, oil & gas, manufacturing and local/central government.

I am coming to Lagos in November, for a 5 days intensive project management and Six Sigma training. This is the first of its kind in Lagos and everyone interested in project management, process improvements and most importantly looking to gain world-wide recognised certifications, should definitely attend.

We have had an overwhelming number of interest and there a discounts available for people. visit our website: www.utmostconsulting.com to find out more or drop  me an email on enquiries@utmostconsulting.com

@ulohomuno.

Thank you very much for your detailed and painstaking write-up. You really made my day.More grease to your elbow and wish we could have more people like you on this thread.Please i will really appreciate it if you could send me materials that could be of use to a starter. Thanks may God reward your effort.rickeko@yahoo.com.

Just to add to the question on contracts, PO (Purchase order) in projects; my background varies from telco, oil & gas, local and central government etc. and this is applicable to a N1,000 to N100M projects. Purchase orders, PO, are simply vouchers for payment of a service, issued to the supplier.

Certainly, in the UK and Europe, they are used as the standard of payment to suppliers and they can be legally binding. Contracts are slightly different, they are contractual obligations of the transaction between one or more parties and these will include, product or services, down to maintenance, product life cycle of the  product /service provided, the limitations of the product/services etc.

Kashif,

It it the clarity of my explanation that is important and I have only managed to achieve this based on my experience.

I hope I have managed to sum up with project management is all about, stripping out the complexity of this subject area.

I agree with you, PRINCE 2 is simple and very easy read. On top of that, it is more widely recognised that PMI.

Also, I am curious, why do Nigerians refer to this subject as PMP ( project management professional)? It is not an industry recognised abbreviation here in Europe.