EDITOR’S NOTE: Each month in Project Management Tipoffs, our experts answer a careers-related question from our readers. This month, Nicola Thorp took the time to handle a PRINCE2 query…
“Being a project management professional who has been made redundant and actively seeking a role to no avail for the past few months, would employers take notice of me if I gained my Prince2 qualification?” – Ian, Redhill
Arras People’s Nicola Thorp takes up Ian’s question…
Thanks for your question, Ian. A simple answer is maybe – it’s always difficult to say based on a job advert, most asking for Prince2 practitioner are actually asking for a project professional, who has and can work within a structured project management environment. Having worked with hundreds of organisations across a diverse range of industries I have yet to discover a company working stringently to PRINCE2. If you have a background working in project management using a formal approach you can get around the request for the dreaded P2 “tick in the box” by clearly demonstrating core competencies within the remit of each role you have worked in.
To start, simply take a blank piece of paper and draw a line with the project lifecycle from start to finish and fill in the core areas with your own personal experience; i.e. Areas such as writing the business case, project initiation document (PID), planning, gate reviews, benefits case etc. Once you have a concise list of competencies it is time to add them to the CV and contextualise – don’t just list like a job description, this is your opportunity to really demonstrate your understanding of the importance of clear communication within the field and remember managing a team of 5 is completely different to managing a team of 50+ across Europe.
Of course you may have a project management qualification which is not P2, maybe APMP, PMI or similar – it is important you use the P2 terminology in your CV and ensure you clearly talk about the structures you have worked in (which are invariably a form of P2), don’t assume the CV reader knows what these qualifications are!
There are a few good deals out there at the moment (being a competitive market) with trainers; if you have set aside some funding for professional development and have previously worked within a P2 environment then it will not hold you back taking the qualification. As with all qualifications, these should be taken to compliment your experience – we never advise going to take the exam unless you have worked to the structure previously.
If you would like to put a question to Nicola, email her and it could end up in a future edition of the Tipoffs Q&A. For more examples like this and/or further help & advice regarding extending your search and creating professional and effective cover letters refer to our Careers clinic / JobSearch Support Services / Careers Advice pages.
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