AgilePM, etc. Certifications

[Peter Loew]

The last certification I did was PRINCE2 > 5 years ago, which means it's now expired. I have since worked as a Senior PM and Programme Manager in mixed agile (Scrum / Kanban mostly) and waterfall environments. I've led transformational projects and instigated portfolio-wide changes to agile processes, and general project delivery methods. Most places I've worked in very loosely use a PRINCE2 framework implementation, and as a Programme Manager, I haven't yet met a client who demanded I have MSP - most clients I work with are more interested in my ability to manage senior stakeholders, pull teams together and deliver rather than produce a blueprint or PID. I don't really have much desire to update my PRINCE2 certification. I was interested in the PRINCE2 Agile bolt-on, but when I saw how thick the book was, I was completely put off, especially since you need PRINCE2 Practitioner to do the PRINCE2 Agile add on. I can only imagine how over-engineered it is.

The certifications I think would be most useful to me (for relevant personal development and for getting better paid gigs) are: AgilePM Practitioner, MSP Foundation (is it worth doing the Practitioner?), AgilePgM Foundation (there isn't a Practitioner yet) and maybe a Scrum Master Certification just for the hell of it.

As AgilePM is based on DSDM Atern, I wonder how practically useful it will be. Everywhere I have been uses Scrum and it has always been up to me to overlay good PM process and structure. Does anybody have any experience of the AgilePM Practitioner certification, or thoughts on how practical it is?

It would be good to hear from anyone who has done any of the above certs.

P

[Simon D]

As a new PM i would be interested to hear the views of other members on Agile, more roles appear to be asking for this qualification. As a Prince2 Practitioner i am weighing up to go down the Prince2Agile or the dedicated Agile Foundation Practitioner route? Any input would be gratefully received, as a note im fresh from Prince2 so the book knowledge base is still there, to a degree.

There is cost difference but i think it better to invest time into the right qualification rather than chase the cheapest route.

Thanks

[Lockhouse]

Putting aside the rights and wrongs of Agile, how it's not the Emperor's new clothes (not much it isn't!) and just talking about it in contract terms....

My backup skill is Agile (when I'm not financial data-ing) - I've got Scrum Master, Product Owner and DSDM Atern Agile PM certs (and Prince2). I've done a couple of Agile rollouts and scrum mastered a few times and more important that the certificates is the ability to talk about the implementation of Agile and it's application in real world situations. Peter - it sounds like you have more than enough experience to be able to do that. All the certificates have ever done for me is got me in front of the client.

[Peter Loew]

Putting aside the rights and wrongs of Agile, how it's not the Emperor's new clothes (not much it isn't!) and just talking about it in contract terms....

My backup skill is Agile (when I'm not financial data-ing) - I've got Scrum Master, Product Owner and DSDM Atern Agile PM certs (and Prince2). I've done a couple of Agile rollouts and scrum mastered a few times and more important that the certificates is the ability to talk about the implementation of Agile and it's application in real world situations. Peter - it sounds like you have more than enough experience to be able to do that. All the certificates have ever done for me is got me in front of the client.

Since I posted I am now a certified AgilePM Practitioner, CSM and certified in Lean Kanban. Did I need these? No, but I wanted to do them out of professional interest and to keep aligned with the market.

P

[Peter Loew]

As a new PM i would be interested to hear the views of other members on Agile, more roles appear to be asking for this qualification. As a Prince2 Practitioner i am weighing up to go down the Prince2Agile or the dedicated Agile Foundation Practitioner route? Any input would be gratefully received, as a note im fresh from Prince2 so the book knowledge base is still there, to a degree.

There is cost difference but i think it better to invest time into the right qualification rather than chase the cheapest route.

Thanks

As a new PM I think don't bother doing additional qualifications right now. You've got your Prince2, now get some experience. Come back after 5 years or so and start beefing up your qualifications with which will probably be AgilePM v3 or v4, refined CSM and no doubt scaling agile frameworks like SAFe, LeSS or perhaps even DAD (doubt it though).

[Simon D]

As a new PM I think don't bother doing additional qualifications right now. You've got your Prince2, now get some experience. Come back after 5 years or so and start beefing up your qualifications with which will probably be AgilePM v3 or v4, refined CSM and no doubt scaling agile frameworks like SAFe, LeSS or perhaps even DAD (doubt it though).

Hi Peter, yes I agree some industry experience and then looking into continued development would be a sound plan. At the moment I have an element of funding available and would like to use it whilst I have the opportunity and everything is still fresh ( if I do Agile for Prince2) and I can tap into it.

[Peter Loew]

Hi Peter, yes I agree some industry experience and then looking into continued development would be a sound plan. At the moment I have an element of funding available and would like to use it whilst I have the opportunity and everything is still fresh ( if I do Agile for Prince2) and I can tap into it.

You seem to be fixed on PRINCE2 Agile. Unless you work in places where PRINCE2 is the de facto standard delivery framework and there is a drive to more agility *under prince2*, then I am not sure how practical this course will be for you. In some ways PRINCE2 Agile has come a little too late. Organisations, including government departments, have already started adopting Scrum and Kanban because there was and still is, a strong perception that PRINCE2 = waterfall, traditional project management and command and control project management. True or not, this perception has taken over and organisations have fallen for purer agile frameworks, now we finally have a reaction from APGM but it's a little too late to be practical, in my opinion.

However, ask around, talk to trainers and get their views. Call up training companies and talk to them about what they think and ask them about attendance numbers.

I was at the APMG conference a few weeks ago, I couldn't believe that the PRINCE2 Agile textbook was almost as fat, if not fatter, than the AgilePM text, and remember that you need to be PRINCE2 certified in order to do PRINCE2 Agile!

If you want to just learn how to run projects according to the Agile manifesto, with some lightweight governance that speaks to management (to make it practical), then I'd recommend you look at AgilePM Practitioner v2 (don't just do the foundation, come the last day of the course, you'd wish you just booked the Practitioner instead).

[northernladuk]

Tell them you have certificates for your training at the Batiatus Ludus, the greatest gladiatorial school in all of Capua. Two references from Spartacus and Crixus available upon request.

Nothing else comes close.

Failing that whip your NVQ Lvl 2 in Radiator bleeding.