Celebrating Three Years as a Certified Project Manager

Almost three years now since I took the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam! And now here I am, happy to share that I have just renewed the certification for another three years!

Early in June 2011 I was encouraged by my employer to become a certified Project Manager. After many years leading different IT projects I was already possessing the necessary experience for the Project Management Institute (PMI) to accept my application. I then become an eager student of the PMBOK Guide and the even more famous Rita's book.

I have to admit that spending my personal time preparing for the exam was not exactly fun, and that at the beginning I was a bit sceptical that I should gain some valuable knowledge. However, as I became more familiar with the project management areas and how they are developed in the PMBOK, I certainly became aware that there was much to learn. I realized how many of the things I was doing in my day to day work were being done in the correct way, and I also understood how others could be improved.

A good thing about the PMP certification is that you have to work to keep it. The certification is only valid for three years, and if you want to renew it you have to keep on learning about this Profession - in addition to pay the fees to the PMI.

So now I've got my renewal for another three years. This means I have to start planning how to gain my next 60 PDUs so I can celebrate another renewal in due course!