Though there is no recent update regarding the application for Chartered status, the Association for Project Management (APM) appear to be putting significant effort into phase 2 of their “Chartered & Beyond“^#1 initiative.

The marketing machine of the APM has initiated a number of threads to increase their take on what professionalism is in the context of project management. APM has churned out articles in Project magazine, a new blog (complete with accompanying Twitter account) and, most enlightening of all, a new website dedicated to the proposition of professionalism in PPM through their new theme of the 5 Dimensions of Professionalism. This was also backed up by a public presentation at Project Challenge by Liz Wilson (Head of Professional Standards and Knowledge at the APM) which can be downloaded here.

Tipoffs contributor John Thorpe has filled readers in before on the details of the 5 Dimensions, so it would seem there is no real need to rehash things in this space. What is worth noting though is that the “pilot” appears to be an exercise in fitting their current members into their new world structure, rather than an exercise that looks to include non members and other PPM disciplines.

Transparent debates and roundtable discussions have been the norm with the APM, including one led by APM Chairman Mike Nichols in September 2008 with representatives of the leading associations for other professions.

A more recent discussion on professionalism and the role of qualifications featured in the May 2010 issue of Project magazine (.PDF). Liz Wilson and Andrew Bragg (chair) represented APM in the nine-person panel. One of the crucial issues for professionalism is the matter of qualifications, and how the industry struggles with an identity-crisis to employers due to practitioners who can pass an exam and be deemed a “project manager.” Wilson is troubled by this.

“I think collectively as an industry we still have some work to do to educate employers about what qualifications say about people,” she said in the Project article. “It is slightly unfair to say a particular qualification, whether APMP or PRINCE2®, doesn’t attest to competence if that is not what it is designed to do. The real issue is people expecting qualifications to indicate other things they are not designed to test. But how do you communicate that to industry and find a programme of learning and qualifications that meets those expectations?”

When it comes to assessing project managers for the charter, Wilson toed the APM 5 Dimensions line on simple course times that take less than a week to complete: For the professional project manager, it was not going to cut it. Moreover, assessment itself would not serve as a be-all, end-all for professionals, either.

“I have difficulty with a qualification where the standard mode of delivery is a two, three or five-day course with an exam at end of it. You have to encourage people to embrace APM’s five dimensions in terms of breadth and depth, so that people sign up to the notion of life-long learning.”

“We need to have more flexible qualifications so senior project managers can engage on where their status already sits. There must be other things; qualifications can only be some of the answer and not all of it. There is tendency to think all the things that make a project work have to focus on the competency of the individual whereas, in fact, the organisation or project team needs to have the confidence and capability to do what needs to be done. Not every project manager has to have the same profile skills or competencies.”

One element of dispute was the role soft skills have to play in professionalism. Arras People’s Lindsay Scott specifically emphasized a need for more focus on the behavioural soft skills and contextual skills which a project management professional needs to perform their roles successfully.

Wilson worried what that might do to perception of the profession as a whole. “But how do we focus on interpersonal or ‘softer’ skills, without being seen to be ‘dumbing’ down on project management qualifications?” she asked. Scott and Peter Simon of Lucidus Consulting both stated that wasn’t the perception in the wider project management marketplace. Toni Wynne (Office of Government Commerce) went one step further and stated that commercial skills were also an important requirement in a project professional’s competence and capability levels.

It is good to see these open debates and initiatives; though as a party with no axe to grind other than a meaningful move to professional status, Arras People would like to see more emphasis on being inclusive. Significant players such as the APM-Group, the OGC, PMI, etc., will need to buy into the future of the profession if the APM is to meet the objective of “becoming the owner of the profession for society”. The feeling would appear to be that the industry recognises the need for a change of emphasis from “trained in project management” to “trained and competent to be a project manager”; so maybe the time has come to take the lead from the politicians and form a working Coalition which can deliver for the practitioners?

#1 – As the UK’s largest Professional Membership Organisation#2, the Association for Project Management (APM) decided to aim for the status of a Chartered Body: from where they can become the “creator and then owner of the profession for society” in the UK. Launched in 2007 “Chartered & Beyond” had a clear 2 step plan; Phase 1 – Implementation of the Royal Charter; Phase 2 -Implementation of register of Chartered Project Professionals (ChPP). In the early days there were timescales (now passed) aligned to this plan, though at the time of writing, the decision still lies with the Privy Council. However the APM are still hopeful of a positive outcome from the formal application, submitted in October 2008 and are “engaging directly with the decision-makers in government, whilst maintaining a “dignified silence” in public”.

#2 – The APM recently announced that their membership has reached (and recently passed) 18,000 individual members.

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Two hours. A lot can happen in that time: you can go out to get the bread and come home branded a bigot by the nation’s most powerful man. You can play a football match. You can have a birds and the bees talk with your 11-year-old.

It’s also the time we set aside last Wednesday to tour the Project Challenge Spring Show 2010 at the NEC, Birmingham. Public speakers galore, slideshows, chatting up project people your keen to put a face with, squinting at name badges. People show up at public trade shows like these with their own personalised, tailored agenda: mine, for instance, was about professionalisation of project management. You’ll be able to read more about it 20th May in Project Management Tipoffs, and you can also read about our take on the APM’s 5 Dimensions on the Camel and from Tipoffs in March.

Liz Wilson of the APM talked with a standing-room only audience about the 5 Dimensions, and while the earlier links can highlight that better and at length, one thing she mentioned sparked my speculative interest – destination. Often, we hear of project managers who “fell into it”, often, like a love interest you first met in an elevator, coming to the job by accident. These people, as Liz put it, used to become project managers as a second or third destination for their career after leaving university.

Though not the sole driving force in the campaign for professional status, the rise in 1st destination project managers had become a factor. Yes, those kids fresh out of Uni like I once was: they thought they had learned everything, only to find out the hard way they were going to get taught all over again. Now, scattered among those areas of concentration, diplomas are – more than ever – featuring the words “Project Management” on them, and that’s before we even get into the Master’s degrees in this new course of study.

I needed some air upon hearing this, because I had sensed the grads might think they had the inside track. They do not. I was reminded of a conversation I once had with a law professor, who said that a pre-law undergraduate concentration meant little to law schools – wide ranges of concentrations forged a career in law: political science, economics, business, communications, english, psychology – you name it. This was straight from the horse’s mouth, and reflecting on my own original career path (yes, I am anything but 1st destination in projects), it no longer seemed a stretch. I had worked in journalism with English and Art majors, not only full-fledged Comm/Journ graduates. Even a Comm/Journ professor told me he’d willingly hired English, Art, Speech Comm and Political Science majors. Horse’s mouth again!

I could go on. Sitting across from me is a Psychology grad who used good admin skills to gain her first job, then work her way into first-hand PM and PMO knowledge box. My boss upstairs never went to Uni: he just forged ahead in the workforce, gained the experience and used his first-hand attained tools, know-how and business savvy (if I’m forgetting anything, the next performance review will no doubt serve as an opportunity for a reminder) to forge a career in project management.

The 1st Destination folk might be getting scared enough as it is. I intend to bring out their competitive nature. What you should be taking away from this is the matter are the questions of experience and talent. Consider: if I took a course on coaching football and passed, I’d be qualified to coach your kid. But wait! I’m a bitter Yank who’s never played the game on any competitive level. Still sure you want to entrust your child’s development within the sport with me? Same goes for projects: you need to have been in a situation where you can put your gifts on display. I’m not one to dismiss a diploma; I’m Usain Bolt-quick to dismiss a diploma minus real-life application of talent or adaptabile learning skills.

I’m hopeful that in the event project management is professionalised or even if it is not, the APM will effectively demonstrate to its burgeoning graduates the importance of real-time application of project management skills, be they in an internship , an apprenticeship, or a trainee capacity. Cooperation with public and private sector entities with close ties to project hiring would be crucial, and a good stable of companies should be available.

But that’s just me. What’s your take on:

• professionalisation?
• Chartered Status?
• Project Challenge 2010?
• Degrees in Project Management?

Your comments are not only welcome, they’re encouraged.

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It was good to see the Association for Project Management (APM) today breaking their “dignified silence” regarding the progress of their quest to attain the guardianship of Chartered Status for project professionals in the UK. Andrew Bragg the CEO of the Association confirmed that the APM is still committed to achieving this Status in as short a timescale as possible. Bragg acknowledged that their “dignified silence” and project management “don’t always go hand in hand” but maintained that it was necessary in order “to allow for due process of consultation amongst the Queens Advisors”. In terms of the overall progress of what is probably the largest change project the APM has ever seen there was no update regarding the anticipated timescales on an outcome from the formal petition which was submitted to the Privy Council back in October 2008.

Whilst the wait for news on the application continues, the APM used this opportunity to tell the community that they are launching a project professionalism pilot which focuses on the five dimensions “created by an expert, pan sector working group”  of; breadth of knowledge, depth of competence, achievement through professional qualifications, commitment through CPD and accountability through adherence to a code of professional conduct.

The team at Arras People welcome the fact that the APM have finally broken their silence on the Chartered Status and as an organisation we are 100% behind initiatives that will support increased professionalism within project management. We still have reservations about the process and how inclusive it has been, but like the 50% of project professionals who responded to the 2010 Arras People Project Management Benchmark Report (PMBR 2010) agree that we should “have a single body that represents, regulates and enhances our reputation”.

Regarding Braggs “dignified silence”, as project management professionals we firmly believe that SILENCE has no place in a change project; we believe this has been a fundamental flaw in the APM’s approach as the silence will always be filled. As practitioners we believe communication is key and ALL stakeholders should be updated even if the message is “there is no update, but we are doing xxx”.

We are also concerned that the emphasis of Bragg’s message is around “support from leading organisations across the public and private sectors”. In our opinion the APM has shown too much emphasis for this group of stakeholders whilst failing to engage with the wider practitioner community, who after all are major stakeholders in this process and its outcome. As a respondent to the PMBR 2010 said “where is the debate?” people don’t like change that is done to them!

With regard to the APM’s work to define project professionalism;  in project speak that’s great initiation but we must wait to see how “project professionalism” will be executed and again what this means for the project practitioner. We especially look forward to the “accountability through adherence to a code of professional conduct” and how this will be adopted by the wider community of PPM practitioners in the UK.

Note! By Arras People’s calculation of 80,000 PPM practitioners active in the UK (PMBR 2009), the APM has approximately 20% of the community as members. If this is checked against the alternative APM calculation of 300,000 practitioners their membership accounts for just 6% of the community.

The press release in full:

CHARTERED STATUS REMAINS TOP PRIORITY FOR APM

Interviewed in the March issue of APM’s Project magazine, CEO Andrew Bragg confirms that APM is committed to achieving chartered status for the Association in as short a timescale as possible.

The in-depth interview explains the rationale for the continuing ‘dignified silence’: to allow for due process of consultation amongst the Queen’s Advisers. Bragg acknowledges that progress of the application has been slower than initial planning assumptions. These were based on the highest levels of support from leading organisations across the public and private sectors that any association has ever achieved for its campaign for chartered status.

The article confirms that, in response to demands for a single professional standard, APM is to launch a pilot in April 2010 for the new project professional standard.  Created by an expert, pan-sector working group the standard will be rigorous, whilst the routes to achievement will be diverse and flexible, reflecting the wide range of career paths by which professional competence in project management can be achieved.

Referring to APM’s ‘professionalism’ agenda, Bragg says:

“We are determined to maintain the huge momentum for raising professionalism within project management that the chartered campaign has created. In APM, we now define project professionalism as comprising five dimensions: breadth of knowledge, depth of competence, achievement through professional qualifications, commitment through CPD and accountability through adherence to a code of professional conduct. We are committed to increasing awareness and achievement of these five dimensions across the many organisations intent on improving project management capability.”

The interview will be reproduced in full on APM’s website at http://www.apm5dimensions.com/content/chartered-status-remains-top-priority-apm

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Assuming that the delay in the APM getting its charter is not fatal, will it be worthwhile being a chartered project professional?. At the end of the day this depends if employers place a premium on “professional” project managers. Why should they do this? Unlike many of the older professions Doctors, Lawyers and Accountants,  chartered status will not be a legal requirements to practice, so will being a Chartered Project Professional differentiate one project manager from another? And will this value be recognised in the Jobs market?

We only need to look at the PRINCE2 qualification for the answer.  When faced with a stack of applications for a job, those with the best quality qualification will get to the top of the list. From this trend we can expect Chartered Project Professional to rapidly earn a value in the market place and a ChPP could be the next “badge” on honour. But is this true value?

Are we not missing the whole point of a profession, the value of a professional project manager, is to improve our industries quite appalling track record at delivering successful projects within the constraints expected by the sponsors, stakeholders and the public. Will a professional project manager be more competent, capable and successful than one of the street PM’s (even with a one week PRINCE2 course)? This will be the real challenge for the APM and those who put themselves forward to be awarded chartered status. If they can deliver more successful projects for the sponsors, business and the public then the chartered status will have real value in eyes of society.

Paul is an experienced project management practitioner and has particular expertise in change programme management, risk management, earned value management and project management training development and delivery. Paul has managed the delivery of multi-million pound training and development programmes for clients such as Network Rail and Transport for London. These programmes have involved sourcing project, risk, planning and commercial management training from a wide range of suppliers and partners. Paul has also delivered training for clients in many sectors including Telecommunications (Orange and Concert), Financial Services (American Express, TD Waterhouse and Abbey National), Engineering (British Nuclear Fuels, Network Rail, TfL, Infraco SSL, and Strachan and Henshaw) and Construction (Carillion, Lend Lease Consulting, Halcrow, Parsons Birinckerhoff and Wilson Bowden). Paul is passionate about the move towards professional standards in project management.

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From anywhere, from anyone, for any reason whatsoever, we here at Arras People are left only to wonder amidst the overly red skin on our necks from the past weekend: “Whither chartered status?”

Doubtful we were the only ones. At any rate, back in the colder days of late January, we did such wondering aloud, asking whether or not Chartered Status for project managers was something APM could easily manage alone while meeting the expectations of its members. With no relevant news update and no relevant information on the APM website, we’re more than a tad concerned about the future of the Chartered Status application. Not only for the APM’s sake – for the sake of all project management personnel affected by the possibility of a charter.

Here’s a rundown from our 2009 Benchmark Report in relation to project management practitioner knowledge of the Charter application:

The Association for Project Management (APM) may have a challenge on their hands with their Chartered Status application for Project Management.

So says Arras People, the project management people, in their 2009 Arras People Benchmark Report, released in January.

The fourth annual report features the views and opinions of project management practitioners across the UK. Respondents to questions about the application indicate apprehension amidst the confident talk in favour of Chartered Status. Citing new statistics derived from the survey, Arras People concluded that APM ‘will have a significant challenge moving forward if they are granted a Royal Charter…keeping these members happy, minimizing attrition and managing potential membership growth along with driving professional standards in the marketplace will test their capabilities.’

Among non-APM members who were asked if they aware of the Chartered Status application, 80 per cent responded they ‘were not aware’. 76 per cent of those non-members supported the APM’s ownership of this initiative and believe that it will enhance the status of the profession.

Current APM members did not pledge the same level of optimism as non-members. Though an overwhelming majority (90%) of membership trust APM, 27 per cent feel they will never achieve Chartered Project Professional (CHPP) status if the application proved successful.

That was three months ago. In that time? Few words have been devoted to the subject, save for smatterings in Google searches regarding Arras People‘s Charter questions in its Benchmark Report. Which, for the practical application of the Charter itself, isn’t a sign of progression in the application process.

Maybe we’ve been tooting the horn for Chartered Status a bit too much in the last six months. Or maybe this is sometimes just the byproduct of building something, then handing it over for approval – the application process seems a trial of patience and persistence, as the Privy Council’s deliberate deliberations would ensure. After meeting with a prominent APM member last June, we reported on APM’s goals within the application timeline. According to the Chartered Status Timetable and Feedback page at the APM web site, February was the “Earliest opportunity for a Privy Council decision on grant of a Charter to APM”. (Please note that APM adds the following disclaimer - ‘NB: The dates stated are the earliest possible. The timetable by which the Privy Council will complete its deliberations is outside the control of the programme.’) Clearly, the process puts APM at someone else’s mercy – no matter how long it takes to put ink to paper for the final decision.

With April almost in the bag and mid-2009 the target range for Chartered status awarding, we wait with patience for the next few months. Such is life when you’re waiting to become a certified UK professional on par with the engineer.

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It’s as close as some people might ever come to a full-fledged identity change, this concept of making a career change. Imagine the rugby union professional who cuts his career short for, in the midst of his RFU prime, a shot at winning an Olympic medal as a decathlete. Confronted by the press, the athletics novice retorts, “But it’s always been my dream!”

Rare is a career shift that extreme, but for the everyday professional of a certain industry who wants to become a full-fledged project management professional, it can feel that overwhelming. Often, factors within that career path have nudged them toward project management – the company progresses you on the management ladder, but your title puts the word “project” in front of “manager”, somewhat unbeknownst to you. Also unbeknownst to you is that the title gives you a new distinction, a new set of responsibilities – and a false sense of security.

That’s right, I said it – false sense of security! Let me show you what I mean: Are you a project manager? Before you respond, understand that the answer is not as simple as the “yes or no” nature of the question makes it sound. Did you know, for instance, that the project management industry itself is seeking a chartered status through the Association for Project Management? My take on the biggest reason to do this? The very ambiguity of the title ‘project manager’. There are some people who lay claim that they are project managers, and within the undefinable realm of their particular workplace, it could very well be so. Good for them. But are the responsibilities transferrable? Not as often as you would think: One person’s ‘You’re doing a heck of a job‘ is another person’s ‘national disgrace’. Too often, people and standards slip through, and there’s nothing to save it. Skills need sharpened, training needs to be undertaken, and the profession itself becomes stronger and more stable.

Other people find a different line of work.

Hence, APM is seeking a standard, a certification on par with the certified accountant, plumber or mechanic. As the saying goes, you can fix a broken pipe, but you may not necessarily be a plumber. So, too, do many project managers seek to seperate themselves from the pretenders.

And if you’re looking to make the full-bore switch to project management, there’s no reason not to believe that it’s a grand field to run through. But you might want the help of a proven leader in project & programme management consultation and advice.

That leader is Arras People, the UK’s top project management consultation firm, and the tried and true method for deciphering your PM capabilities is the Project Management Careers Clinic. This 30 minute one-to-one telephone consultation has proved popular over the last four years, and built confidence and readiness for project management professionals from all over the UK and in other parts of the world, too.

We’re going to remove two key elements of the clinic however, in the very near future, while adding another. We’re adding some face-to-face opportunities, whilst subtracting the telephone. You can also leave your payment card in your wallet.

Free clinics are on offer 25-26th March at the Project Challenge Spring Show 2009 at the NEC in Birmingham. You can register for a clinic online here, and – key pre-requisite, this one – register for free to attend the two-day show. You can find us at stands 174-176, and sessions are available for registration between 9:30am and 4pm on both days.

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Please note that the Arras People Survey is still open and can be completed by following the following link: 

http://optima.benchpoint.com/optima/SurveyPop.aspx?query=view&SurveyID=245&SS=gEQB3p

This report is a short extract based on the current respondents to the Arras People 2009 Survey.

The extract looks at the information provided about remuneration expectations in the 2008 survey compared with what respondents are telling us actually happened during 2008. We then take a look at the outlook as Project Management Professionals head into 2009. © Arras People 2008

2008 Movements in Salaries and rates for those who have responded so far to the survey show the following trends;

• 50% of contractors remain fixed as against just 28% of the employees.
• Employees appear to have fared much better in the increases, with 62% of them having achieved a raise between 1 to 10% (31% between 1 to 5%) compared with just 31% of the contractors.
• At the top end the number achieving a greater than 10% increase sees 14% of employees compared with 10% of contractors.

2008 Projections from our previous survey when compared to actual movements show a remarkably stable picture where actual changes appear to have been significantly in line with our respondents’ expectations. Contractors amazingly, as in last years survey, have a 100% match on actual outcome versus what they projected at the beginning of the year 2008. Employees on the other hand seemed to enter the year a little more bullish and did not quite achieve what the levels they had expected.

2009 Projections from our current survey would appear to show that the market as a whole is expecting 2009 to be a tighter year again in terms of increases, though once again the employees see stronger opportunity for increases;

• 65% of our contractors see a tight market where rates will once again remain fixed compared to 53% at this time last year.
• 12% of our contractors are anticipating that they will achieve rate increases, compared to 38% at this time last year.
• 23% of our contractors are anticipating rate drops, compared to just 9% last year.
• 43% of our employees see a situation where salaries will remain fixed compared to just 30% at this time last year.
• 44% of our employees are anticipating that they will still achieve rate increases in 2009, compared to 65% at this time last year.
• 13% of our employees are anticipating rate drops, compared to just 5% last year.

As mentioned above…

Please note that the Arras People Survey is still open and can be completed by following the following link: http://optima.benchpoint.com/optima/SurveyPop.aspx?query=view&SurveyID=245&SS=gEQB3p. The full report from Arras People will be available at the end of January 2009.

For further information please contact survey@arraspeople.co.uk.

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I managed to get some time out of the office this week to attend The APM North West Branch lunch for local corporate members in the European Capital of Culture. As ever I got lost in Liverpool, but eventually managed to find the venue in time for the start.

The venue was Chung Ku, which not only managed to rustle up an excellent lunch but also provided a stunning vista across the watery expanse of the River Mersey.

As is its wont, the lunch provided an excellent networking opportunity and the opportunity to catch up on the challenges being faced by differing organisations and sectors.

It was interesting to listen to Graham Woodward, chairman of the APM North West Branch committee, giving his update on APM’s pursuit of a Royal Charter which appears to have been wholeheartedly supported by a large number of organisations and institutions. Unfortunately this large amount of support has now led to a slight slippage in the anticipated timeline, as the Privy Council works its way through this large list of “supporters”. So Phase 1 of the process is ongoing, and planning for Phase 2 (the register of practitioners) is also in hand. Graham reported that membership of the APM is on the increase and growing faster all the time! It would be interesting to understand the correlation between increased membership and the APM’s pursuance of a Royal Charter.

After lunch, Dusty Miller of Sun Microsystems shared his thoughts and observations on “Sustaining Project Management in a Global Company”, sharing his perspective from the challenges Sun have faced as their business evolves. This stimulated a lively debate and sharing of thoughts and observations from the floor. On a personal note, it took me back to the challenges we faced at Hewlett Packard as we built a Professional Services Organisation.

So, good lunch, good use of time and as ever thanks to the APM North West Branch committee for their continued efforts!

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In September we published the results of our snapshot survey on the Chartered Status of Project Management – we asked you – the project management community to share your thoughts on the news

Article previously published in the APM Project magazine (Aug/Sept 2008)

Professional Recognition for Project Management Practitioners

Over 76% of respondents to a recent Arras People survey think that project management professionals need chartered status, and 83% said they planned to apply for chartered status as project managers after the APM’s charter application succeeded.

As leaders in the field of Project Management recruitment Arras People need to make sure that we understand the trends and initiatives that are in play or may in the future impact our profession; key among these at this time is the initiative by the APM to apply for a royal charter to recognise the professional role of all project professionals. After a recent presentation to the team at Arras House, a lively debate ensued amongst the team regarding the pros and cons of this application and the potential impact for individuals and employers alike. In turn we held a snap shot survey to add to our data-bank, taking the thoughts, perceptions and opinions of those directly affected by the APM’s initiative
for chartered professionalism status – project managers themselves.

Posting a five-question survey on the Arras People website, we asked project managers:

• Are you aware that the Association for Project Management (APM) is currently going through the process of chartered status for Project Professionals?
• Do you think the Project Management industry needs a chartered status?
• Do you believe chartered status will impact your role as a Project Professional?
• If yes, how do you think you will be impacted?
• As an individual would you look to achieve chartered status once this is available?

Comments praising the APM’s decision poured in:

• ‘The quality of Project Management will improve gradually as a result’.
• ‘Better kudos; more salary progression etc.’
• ‘I would seek chartered status and it would be a good benchmark for employers and recruiters.’

A positive reaction on the whole at this time, though there are bound to be many challenges and opportunities moving forward. Keep in touch with Arras People as we track this initiative and others, impacting the Project Management domain.

Other figures that emerged from the survey show that just over half of our respondents were aware of the charter application (51.5%), and just 12 percent didn’t think project managers needed chartered status (9 percent)
of respondents answered that were unsure).

In addition, 58 percent felt chartered status would affect them as project professionals, while 24 percent were unsure and 18 percent said they felt they would remain unaffected.

In response to the question “how do you think you will be impacted?” by the Chartered Status, comments included;

• ‘…forced to seek formal certification despite experience already gained’
• ‘more levels of training and certification required might not be a good thing’
• ‘It would feel like an acknowledged role in the society and be in the league of all the other professions that are chatered (sic)’
• ‘The bar will be raised, and it will provoke a gap between the strongest and the less experienced project managers’
• ‘Professional responsibility with potential litigation. It will also raise the standard.’
• ‘I think that this would be good for me as I would seek chartered status and it would be a good benchmark for employers and recruiters. It would sort out the wheat from the chaff.’
• ‘Badly, have always worked for small companies which makes this sort of status harder to achieve.’
• ‘The profession of project management is often not recognised. Chartered Status tends to bestow a certain cachet and I believe that once chartered status is received, then I will be recognised as a professional instead of one of those interfering know it alls that do not actually help in delivering a project!’

Thank you to everyone who completed the survey.

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Many of you have spoken since its introduction, and we are appreciative of what you have had to say thus far.

But our Arras People survey on the Chartered Application for Project Managers is still open, and we look forward to more of your thoughts, knowledge and views on this pivotal time in the project management profession. The survey is geared toward the people most directly affected by the Association for Project Management (APM’s) application for Chartered Status of the profession: you, the project professional.

And as we said before, it still takes just 15 seconds!

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I have been working at Arras People as a Recruitment Consultant for about 4 months now and thought it might be interesting (and therapeutic, from my point-of-view) to share a few things I’ve noticed about the industry since moving from one side of the fence (as a candidate) to the other side (as a recruiter).

My opinion of the recruitment industry has always been mixed. Like a lot of things, I suppose quality is often sacrificed for quantity, especially where vigorous targets are concerned. When I was looking for work through various agencies for the first time around this time last year, it was hard on occasion not to feel like an object in a sale when dealing with some agencies. Particular gripes were recruiters pushing me for jobs that I clearly wasn’t appropriate for, and not being notified by agents following unsuccessful applications or interviews. I understood at the time that everyone was out to do well for their own selves – the recruiters being no exception – but there is surely no need for candidates to feel and be treated like cattle in an auction. From my own experiences (and I’m sure this is the same of many other people), it conveys not only a lack of knowledge on the part of the recruiter, but also a lack of respect for the candidate.

I must stress at this point, however, that I did come across a few recruiters that really put in the effort during the process. These were few and far between, so they bucked the general trend. (In particular, having more than one telephone conversation before being placed in front of an interview panel was always a good start).

Having been on the other side of the fence as a recruiter for a few months now, I think more than ever that many of my misgivings with the industry were well-founded, as my experiences of dealing with candidates so far have, on the whole, been positive in terms of both maintaining contact and treating candidates with the respect they deserve. It is funny to see though how things that I used to do as a candidate now wind me up as a recruiter. A candidate that applies for a job on multiple occasions (and when a job is re-advertised) is one of the main things that still get my goat. Another is impatient candidates wanting a result straight after an interview. This is something I was definitely guilty of in the past following interviews – I remember in one instance phoning the agency up day after day following the interview for about a fortnight afterwards until finally getting the knockback. The poor chap at the recruitment agency must have wanted to give me a verbal slap after the first couple of calls.

Anyhow, it’d be interesting to see what other people’s thoughts on this are, maybe people have similar views and experiences to myself or think completely differently…

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We’d love to hear your thoughts on the Chartered Status of Project Management.

> Takes just 15 seconds

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Arras People had the exclusive pleasure of enjoying the company of Mr Graham Woodward, Deputy Chairman of the Association of Project Management, Thursday 12 June, and learning about the process and status of APM’s application for a charter for the project management profession.

With over 16,500 individual and 500 corporate members in APM, Woodward indicated the organisation would be the best project management-based entity to take such ambitions forward.

To date, the process of applying for the charter is a long, arduous one. Between April and June 2009, Woodward said a preliminary application for charter would be submitted to the Privy Council. A formal application would then be submitted in June, followed by an estimation of three months’ deliberation by the Council to follow. The Privy Council’s final decision, according to Woodward, would be delivered in October 2009.

UPDATED, 9 July 2008: What are your views on the APM Chartered Status of Project Management? Arras People would like to know. Be sure to check us out online at this address for updates on the APM application for Chartered Status, and give us your thoughts and views in our Online Survey. It only takes two minutes!

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