PMP Certification

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Below are the series of articles that are part of our endeavor to get PMP Certified.

The Chapters below are based on the different phases of a Project which begin with Project Initiation, then Planning, then Execution, then Monitoring & Control and then finally the Closing phase. When I wrote these articles (while preparing for my PMP) we were still using PMBOK 4th Edition but right now we are at PMBOK 5th Edition.

Articles which cover topics that got impacted in the 5th edition and articles that aren't relevant as per the 5th edition will have comments beside them in Red for easy identification. The corresponding articles will also be updated one by one.

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For taking the exam you will need the PDU Certificate which this blog wouldn't be able to provide. You could consider the self study training offered by our affiliate partner Whizlabs for the same.



Hope you find it useful.

Articles Index:

General Topics:

1. About the PMP Certification
2. Tips to get PMP Certified
3. Main parts in Managing a Project

The Remaining Articles in this series will be classified broadly into 5 Parts as explained in Chapter 3.

Part 1 - Initiating the Project

Section 1: Introduction to Project Management 

1. Main Parts in Managing a Project
2. Introduction to Projects
3. Understanding Projects
4. What is Progressive Elaboration
5. Understanding Process
6. Project Lifecycle
7. Project Management Knowledge Areas
8. Project Stakeholders
9. The Most Influential Stakeholder
10. Organizational Influence on Projects
11. Understanding the Organizational Structure
12. Environmental Factors & Process Assets
13. Relation Between Project, Program and Portfolio
14. Other Terms Related to Project Management
15. Project Management Office
16. Big Picture of Project Management
17. Summary
18. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 2: Project Initiation

1. Introduction to Project Initiation
2. Origins of Projects
3. Understanding Project Selection
4. Developing a Project Charter
5. Identifying the Project Stakeholders - This process was part of Plan Communications Management knowledge are as of PMBOK 4th Edition but has been moved to Stakeholder Management Knowledge Area in the 5th Edition
6. Stakeholder Analysis
7. Stakeholder Management Strategy
8. Summary
9. Important Terms & Definitions

Part 2 - Planning the Project

Section 1: Project Scope Planning

1. Introduction to Project Planning - A New Process called Plan Scope Management got introduced whose output will be used to manage the project scope. 
2. Developing the Project Management Plan - Though this process exists in the 5th edition also, PMI has introduced dedicated planning processes for Scope, Schedule, Cost and other knowledge areas which did not exist in the 4th edition. So, the actual contents or updates to the PM Plan at the end of this article would change slightly
3. Managing Project Scope
4. Collecting Requirements For Projects
5. Requirements Collection Process
6. Defining the Project Scope
7. Creating Work Breakdown Structure
8. Before & After WBS
9. Section Summary
10. Important Terms from the Section

Section 2: Planning for Project Schedule & Communication

1. Introduction to Project Schedule - PMBOK 5th Edition has introduced a dedicated process called Plan Schedule Management that would contain details of how you would plan to manage the projects schedule. This wasn't the case in PMBOK 4th Edition
2. Defining Activities
3. Sequencing Activities
4. Estimating Activity Resource Requirements
5. Estimating Activity Duration
6. Developing the Project Schedule
7. Project Communication
8. Planning Project Communication
9. Section Summary
10. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 3 - Planning for Project Resources

1. Introduction to Project Resource Management -  A New process called Plan Human Resource Management has been introduced in the 5th edition of the PMBOK
2. Developing the Human Resource Plan
3. Estimating Costs & Determining Budgets
4. Procuring Project Resources
5. Procurement Management Plan
6. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 4: Planning For Quality & Risk Management

1. Big Picture of Quality Management
2. Planning Quality
3. Big Picture of Risk Management
4. Planning Risk Management
5. Identifying Risks
6. Analyzing Risks
7. Qualitative Risk Analysis
8. Quantitative Risk Analysis
9. Planning Risk Response
10. Big Picture of Quality & Risk Management
11. Section Summary
12. Important Terms & Definitions

Part 3 - Executing the Project

Section 1: Managing Project Work

1. Introduction to Project Execution
2. Executing a Project - Big Picture
3. Directing & Managing Project Execution - The Process was renamed as "Direct and Manage Project Work" in the 5th edition but its intended purpose or how it would be used by the PM hasn't changed. So, just remember to use the new name 
4. Performing Quality Assurance
5. Conducting Procurements
6. Section Summary
7. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 2: Managing the Project Team

1. Introduction to Human Resource Management
2. Big Picture of HR Management
3. Acquiring a Project Team
4. Developing the Project Team
5. Managing the Project Team
6. Motivating your Team
7. Section Summary
8. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 3: Managing the Stakeholders

1. Introduction
2. Big Picture of Stakeholder Management
3. Managing Stakeholder Expectations
4. Distributing Information
5. Section Summary
6. Important Terms & Definitions

Part 4 - Monitoring and Controlling the Project

Section 1: Monitoring & Controlling Project Work

1. Introduction
2. Big Picture of Monitoring & Controlling Project Work
3. Monitoring & Controlling the Project Work
4. Integrating Change Control
5. Administering Procurements - This process has been renamed to "Control Procurements" in the 5th edition of the PMBOK  but its purpose or how it will be used by the project manager hasn't changed
6. Section Summary
7. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 2: Monitoring & Controlling Quality and Risk

1. Introduction
2. Big Picture of Quality Management
3. Controlling Quality
4. Monitoring & Controlling Risks - This process has been renamed to just "Control Risks" in the 5th edition of the PMBOK but its purpose or how it would be used by the project manager hasn't changed
5. Performance Reporting - No such process exists in PMBOK 5th edition. Pls ignore this chapter.
6. Section Summary
7. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 3: Monitoring & Controlling the Golden Triangle

1. Introduction
2. Big Picture of Monitoring & Controlling the Golden Triangle
3. Controlling Scope
4. Controlling Schedule
5. Controlling Cost
6. Measuring Performance
7. Section Summary
8. Important Terms & Definitions

Part 5 - Closing the Project

Section 1: Closing the Project

1. Introduction
2. Big Picture of Closing the Project
3. Verifying the Scope of Project Deliverables - The definition of how the scope will be verified has been slightly changed in PMBOK 5th edition. As of the 4th edition we had a process called "Verify Scope" but it has been renamed to "Validate Scope" in the 5th edition with minor changes. 
4. Performing Project Closure
5. Performing Procurements Closure
6. The Finishing Touches
7. Section Summary
8. Important Terms & Definitions

Section 2: Ethics & Professional Responsibility

1. Introduction
2. Ensuring Individual Integrity
3. Contributing to the Knowledgebase
4. Enhancing Individual Professional Competence
5. Promoting Interaction among Stakeholders
6. Dealing with Unprofessional Conduct
7. Big Picture of Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
8. Section Summary
9. Important Terms & Definitions

If you are interested in getting your hands on mock PMP Exam questions, drop me a note at anandvijayakumar007@gmail.com

Thank you to all future PMP's