Directory:Article Purgatory/Project and Program Management Competency Standards

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Project and Program Management Competency Standards There is a growing sense of frustration that knowledge based credentialling alone (i.e. PMI's PMP or OGG/APM's PRINCE2 et al.)are not contributing significantly to delivering projects or programs on time, within budget, in substantial conformance to specifications, while fulfilling the purposes for which the project was undertaken in the first place.

As the practice of project management matures, consensus seems to be building that we need to move beyond knowledge based credentialling, and like medicine, law and engineering, need to be focusing on COMPETENCY assessment rather than inferring competency through the results of taking multiple choice question exams.

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Definition of Competency

Competent comes from the Latin root competere which means “to be suitable”.” For the purposes of this article, the definition that will be used is the quality or state of being functionally adequate, characterized by marked or sufficient aptitude + attitude + skills + strength + knowledge. This definition represents a compilation and restatement of definitions from several highly regarded English language dictionaries, including the Merriam Webster Online, Encarta and Oxford

In terms of every day use, the term “competent” is generally perceived as describing someone who is sufficiently skilled and capable of performing a task or job with little or no supervision or direction. As in a competent plumber or carpenter or a competent teacher. It does not necessarily mean superior, but one who meets some minimum criteria to do a job or perform a task or series of task in an acceptable and appropriate manner.

Measuring or Inferring Competency

There are two general approached to inferring or measuring COMPETENCY:

Attribute based wherein personal attributes and other characteristics are identified and assessed. Competence is inferred based on the presence of the necessary attributes.

Performance based wherein work outcomes and performance levels are identified and assessed. Competence is inferred based on the demonstrated ability to satisfy the performance criteria.

Critera for Creating a Competency Standard

Ideally, there are several criteria for a competency standard to be credible:

1. Indepedent- Ideally, for a competency standard to be perceived as being fair and unbiased, it should be independent from the organization who created the body of knowledge, methodology or processes upon which the competencies are being assessed or evaluated.
2. Global- The standards should not be written in such a way as to serve as a restraint of trade. They should be flexible enough to incorporate different cultures, laws, customs and methodologies;
3. Transportable- To be meaningful, they must be benchmarked against other comparable standards to provide for reciprocity.
4. Open Source Licensing- To meet the requirements of the Millenium Development Goals (MDG's) these standards need to be placed in the "public domain" under "open source" or "creative commons" licensing.
5. Available at no cost- Consistent with the future of knowledge creation and maintenance, project and program management standards should be freely available to everyone. The creation and maintenance of these standards should be a labor of love, contributed to by all practitioners for the benefit of the growth and success of future generations of practitioners.

When evaluating standards, organizations should consider these factors before making a decision to adopt or support any competency standard.