Why should I renew my PMP®?

Back in 2016 I decided to go for a PMP® certification through a preparation course: filling the application forms, providing details about my project management experience, 35 hours of classroom training, studying for 1500+ hours and sitting for a 4 Hours exam. Thankfully I passed the exam and received my certificate. Earlier this month, 3 years through the PMP® Certification cycle, my certificate came up for renewal. If I decided to go for it, I would be required to earn 60 Professional Development Units (PDUs). Quite a commitment. I asked myself three questions:

• Do I absolutely need to renew the certification, knowing that if I don’t, I won’t be able to claim anymore that I have the necessary credentials?
• What’s in it for me, what other advantages do I get if I renew the certification? is it worth the renewal costs?
• How long will it take me to go through the renewal process?

The brainstorming I did led me to a clear conclusion: I need to renew the certification.

I would like to share my train of thought and give three tips that helped me, and which I think might very well help others in my situation.

Tip#1: Remember your original reason for deciding to go for a PMP® certification three years earlier. Is that reason still valid today?

Some people earn a PMP® to show employers they are serious about their profession and that they have an internationally accredited professional certification which might justify a higher salary. If, however, these people shifted their career away from project management, they might very well decide not to renew their PMP® certification and consider pursuing other certifications more relevant to their new job. There is no right or wrong here. Everyone needs to update their priorities according to their current and future career prospects.

Tip#2: Think about the benefits of keeping it. Think about the advantages of updating your job skills and knowledge.

The PMP® certification certainly enriches your CV and puts you in a better position when prospecting for a related career. But this is not the only advantage of such a certification. By renewing your certification, you ensure that you are keeping your project management knowledge and skills up to date. The Professional Development Units (PDUs) required to renew the certificate are all about learning, practicing and knowledge sharing. You will learn about the latest best practices, studies, researches, tools and techniques which will increase your effectiveness and efficiency.

Make it a habit to always check your PDUs section on ‘myPMI’ dashboard to check and update your progress in the current cycle. Learn about how to earn PDUs by visiting PMI.org https://ccrs.pmi.org/info/earnpdus

Tip#3: Attend training courses that will benefit your goals

There are plenty of options to get PDUs. Select the ones that work for you and serve your personal and career goals. If for example, you are planning to establish a PMO office in your organization, attend, either face to face or through eLearning, a course like Establishing and Managing the Project Management Office (PMO), or at least read a book on the subject. In my opinion, attending a traditional training course is more effective for several reasons:

• You get totally immersed and focused for 3-5 Days when attending a course
• You get to network with like-minded people and engage in peer to peer insightful discussions
• You get the opportunity to get advice from the professional trainers about the tools and techniques you may be currently using in your complex projects.

Decide and act now towards renewing your PMP®. Meirc Training & Consulting can help you with your renewal. They have plenty of 5-day public courses, each one worth 30 PDUs. To view the scheduled 2020 courses, visit https://www.meirc.com/associations/training-courses-pmi

Good luck with your renewal!

And, as I have told you above, I have acted on it earlier this month, and got my renewed certificate!