Every few years, PMI runs the Role Delineation Study. That is, it talks to project managers across various industries, geographies, and domains to understand how project management practices are evolving. Based on the findings, PMI then updates the PMP Examination Content Outline document – the syllabus for the PMP exam.
In PMI’s own words, “A role delineation study is a widely used method for identifying the function, or role, played by professionals who are responsible for a particular range of professional practices”. The idea is to keep PMP aligned with the industry. This means that, if you are a PMP, you know about the latest project management approaches, processes, and practices.
That is not all. The syllabus of PMP covers all the aspects of project management which are:
- Scope management
- Schedule management
- Cost management
- Quality management
- Resource management
- Communication management
- Risk management
- Procurement management
- Stakeholder management
But what about the Agile approach? Quite a lot of projects are managed with this approach nowadays. Agile is an adaptive approach to software development projects that helps teams deliver value to their customers faster, while being able to manage changes to initial requirements. This practice is gaining momentum nowadays as more companies are looking to adapt their product development efforts for faster delivery to market.
Remember the Role Delineation Study? The latest study discovered the importance of Agile. Now, the latest PMP syllabus covers Agile project management.Not just this, PMI also discovered that many organizations use a combination of Agile approaches and/or Predictive (or traditional) approaches. This is called the Hybrid approach. The PMP syllabus now covers this as well. As you can see, with PMP you have one of the most comprehensive certifications on your hands.