Showing posts with label PMP Success Stories 2020s. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PMP Success Stories 2020s. Show all posts

Sunday, February 04, 2024

PMP Live Lessons Success Story: The Best Course Content I’ve Ever Seen and Blindly Followed The Material To Be A PMP

By Lakshmi Narayan Dash, PMP, SAFe Agilist, CSM, ACSM


Introduction

I had been working in the IT industry for years in various administration and operation projects. I decided and wanted to go from technical responsibility to management responsibility. 

My keen desire was to learn agile well, which will help in my new responsibility. The PMP certification course has at least 50% content from Agile. This encouraged me to go for the credential.


PMP Coaching Experience

I was completely new to Agile when I began. I had one-to-one discussions, and also joined sessions in group settings. Though I was completely new to Agile, after the session and going through the material, my knowledge improved rapidly. I was giving better ideas and suggestions to the Product Owners (POs) and Scrum Masters (SMs), with whom I have been driving the project for the last three years.

Own Study

I have been trying and preparing for the exam from 2021. In the first round of my preparation, I was slow and was able to complete Integration Management. The next preparation I went through Agile content repeatedly. The material and content are the best as per my knowledge and experience.

My last preparation was a very short one and it began during the end of 2023. I had gone through the PMP Live Lessons content for a variety of questions. I had a discussion with Satya Sir. Post the discussion, 

I only prepared for Agile, Hybrid, Resource Management, Stakeholder Management, Communication Management, Quality and Procurement Management. 

I tried multiple question sets from the PMP Live Lessons. The below things helped:

  • Going through Agile content of Live Session more than 5 times and twice while going through the lesson-end questions.
  • I’ve gone through Resource Management, Stakeholder and Communication Management thrice. 
  • I nearly tried around 600 questions though I was not prepared through other knowledge areas (KAs).

Review – PMP LIVE LESSONS

PMP Live Lessons course is the best one I have ever seen. As mentioned earlier, I have been preparing since 2021. But it’s difficult from my end to pay for three years. 

Hence, I tried other free material from the internet, material from Indian Institute of Management’s (IIM) training etc. Trust me, they don’t have any substantial content. 

Please plan for 6 months PMP Live Lessons membership and blindly follow the instructions given in the live sessions. You yourself will tell where you stand after six months. Don’t miss the group classes conducted as it is a team learning with experienced managerial students. 

My suggestion will be these:

  • Active listening to the content of Live Lessons.
  • Revise with higher speed.
  • Challenge yourself by going through lesson-end and full-length questions. 
  • Repeat and improve.

PMP Exam Experience

I scheduled and took my exam at the Pearson Exam centre in Kolkata, India.

My strategy was not to leave any question as there is no negative marking. The exam is divided into three parts/sections and my goal was to complete three sections anyway as questions might be from real time, which I wanted to know and learn. 

Followings the number, content and kind of questions faced:

  • Fifty percent questions were from Agile and Hybrid.
  • Thirty percent questions were from resource management, stakeholder management and communication management.
  • Make sure we are preparing as per PMI syllabus for PMP, specifically these three domains - People, Process and Business Environment. 

My final score is shown below. 

Domain-wise, following is my score.


When I was informed that I’ve cleared the exam, at first, I could not believe it. But later it dawned upon me that I’ve indeed cleared the exam and is a certified PMP. Words cannot describe the feeling. You have to experience it yourself to know it. 

Suggestions for PMP Aspirants

Dos

Don’ts

  • If you are an experienced professional, don’t wait long to give the exam. Go and give it a shot.
  • There is no need to read the PMBOK Guide, 7th edition. I didn’t receive a single question from it.

Conclusion

I wish I could have extended access to the PMP Live Lessons. The content and questions are outstanding. 

For me, now the actual work has started. The learnings that I have had are to be used in my professional and personal lives.  Everything that you learn in your PMP journey can be planned for and be used in all spheres of your life.

Brief Profile: Lakshmi Narayan Dash, PMP, SAFe Agilist, CSM, ACSM, Leadership and Change Management  Certification from IIM-Raipur

Current Role: Agile Project Manager and Senior Scrum Master.

Brief experience details: 3.5 years with HCL, 10 years with TCS, 2 years with Deutsche Bank and 9 months with Equiniti.


 



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Friday, June 09, 2023

PMP Success Story: A Dream Come True with The Book, I Want To Be A PMP

By Masood Ahmed, PMP


Introduction 

I first heard about the Project Management Professional (PMP)® from my senior IT colleagues. I learned the importance as well as the usages in the real-world with this certification. Post that, I decided to go ahead and pursue the PMP certification.

But for nearly one year, I have been facing a lot of personal and family challenges as well as health issues. I’m still facing some of these challenges, but fortunately, I was able to continue studying daily.

One of the decisions I made was to definitely achieve this goal in my life within three months. It took me more time than that. But today, at the end of my journey, I’ve been successfully certified as a PMP.  

Own Study

To appear for the PMP exam, you need to have mandatory 35 contact hours in project management. But when I completed my PMP virtual training session for these contact hours from Simplilearn.com, I was afraid about the certification. My understanding was little. I was not sure how to study for the exam and clear the exam on my first attempt.

So I started discussing this difficulty with my senior friends and family members. One of my good friends (Mr. Shams Ul Huq) suggested that that I discuss with Satya Sir on this problem. He informed me that I will definitely get good guidance. 

As I continued my discussion with Shams, he suggested that I to go through the PMBOK® Guide, but I was not sure how to study this vast guide. Hence, I purchased the Book, I Want To Be A PMP, 2nd edition. 

During my preparation, I studied the PMBOK Guide but I did not know how to proceed with the ITTO exercises. The book helped in that regard.

Book Review - I Want To Be A PMP

This eBook, I Want To Be PMP, genuinely prepared me for the difficult concepts to understand. 

Such concepts are explained easily and there are very easy ways to remember the entire set of processes of the PMBOK Guide.

I studied this book two times before my PMP exams. I also attended all the mock questions of this book. 

I suggest that future candidates refer to this book, along with the PMBOK guide.

In my experience, nearly 80% of the exam questions will be on Agile and Hybrid-Agile. Hence, I request all the students of PMP to prepare these aspects very well, which are covered in this book.

PMP Exam Experience

As I wrote in the beginning, I’ve been facing a lot of challenges, including my health. But I never gave up. I spent four-hours daily, irrespective of my daily workload.

First, I scheduled the exam for March, 2023, but I unfortunately failed in the PMP exam. I was very down and spoke with my parents, who motivated me a lot to not to worry. They asked me to try once more and give my best. Satya Sir also told the same.

Based on these encouragements, I went for my second attempt and booked for the PMP exam on June 7, 2023. Yes, Alhamdulillah, I passed my PMP exam with a very good score. It was “Above Target” as you can see below. When I informed Satya Sir the same day, he also told me the same. 

The final congratulation message: “Above Target score…, Congratulations on being a PMP…” from PMI was heartening to see.


Suggestions for PMP Aspirants

Do’s

  • Study smart instead of only studying hard. Both are needed to clear the exam.
  • Go through a proper PMP 35 Contact Hours course, which will set the foundation for you, not just another course which will strike fear in you.

Don’ts

  • Please don’t be overconfident. But be truly confident based on your preparation.
  • Never give-up on your dream. It’ll come true one day.

Conclusion

At the end of my journey, I would suggest that you take the PMP training and guidance from Satya Sir. I came to know much later, but finally succeeded in being a PMP. 

I also want to inform you to carefully study his book, I WANT TO BE A PMP. 


Brief Profile:

Masood Ahmed, PMP.

Senior Functional Consultant – Program management. I have total 12 years of experience. 





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Wednesday, February 22, 2023

PMP Live Lessons Success Story: Tomorrow is Hope, Today is Real, Go For it Today and Be A PMP with PMP Live Lessons

By Adinarayana Murthy Bhuvanagiri, PMP

 

Introduction
I began my career in marketing and finance domains and moved my career later into the Information Technology industry. I started looking for PMP to have better career prospects and a better future. More importantly, I wanted to master the project management domain, rather than being a political expert playing politics in an organization and hanging on to a job.

I asked myself what I can do to master this topic, get a better prospect and get respect and recognition for my expertise. This led me to the PMP certification, the most well-known, influential and respected PM certification.

But easier said than done!

I knew it would be a challenging exam, and I had to prepare for it. I started my PMP journey a few years before and joined the classroom session of Satya Narayan Dash. It was completed in four days, but I took a long break due to personal commitments. But I did not give up hope.

Going for the PMP and Cracking It
I’ve been getting emails frequently (Management Yogi’s mailing list) on new management articles, new courses and above all, the Success Stories.  I would always pinch myself on it as it motivated me a lot. I again started what I could not complete earlier and started my PMP journey in May, 2022 and cleared the Exam in January, 2023.

I am proud to say that I am a PMP certified and formally qualified management guy with one of the world’s most well-known certifications. My overall score was Above Target (AT) with two ATs in three performance domains. That was very heartening.


PMP Coaching Experience
As mentioned earlier, my first coaching 35 hours of learning was from Satya’s classes. It was good, in fact, very good. And I loved it.

The project management language was new to me, so it was not initially very exciting. I merely attended as many were going for it. But when I started paying attention to it, the real learning started, and it was all fun, with the needed seriousness.

I started enjoying the session and learned a lot in the process. I learned, if we give our all, we learn the most.

After the session, I purchased the PMP Exam Prep Book, I Want to Be A PMP, 2nd Edition, written by Mr. Satya Narayan Dash. I went through the book and the 60+ videos, which came as part of the e-Book.

Later on, I purchased PMP Live Lessons Video Course, again by Satya Narayan Dash in May 2022, where my actual and final preparation started.

Own Study
After subscribing to the PMP Live Lessons, I started reading the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) Guide, 6th edition.

The PMBOK guide is like a novel, not exam preparatory material. But I’d recommend that you read the guide.

There is no need to read the PMBOK Guide, 7th edition. In fact, I didn’t face a single question from the PMBOK Guide, 7th edition in my PMP exam, though I’ve learned it from Satya’s Management Review Sessions.

I’d read two to three hours early in the morning. It’s around 4:30 AM to 7 or 7:30 AM. Before going to bed, I’d again glance at what I’ve read in the morning. This is like a revision for my earlier 2-3 hours of learning.

Along with the must-have PMP Live Lessons – Guaranteed Pass, I’d strongly recommend these two:

The best thing about the Live Lessons videos is that you can watch them as many times as you want. I want to mention one important aspect: the length of Live Lessons video is two to ten/twelve minutes maximum. Hence, you won’t be bored for sure. It keeps the pace of learning.

During my preparation, my main obstacle was time, as I was the critical resource only after my onsite manager. It created a lot of obstacles as I’ve a lot of workload. But keep your commitment, and don’t give up.

Review – PMP LIVE LESSONS
The primary reason I purchased PMP Live Lessons is to have a sound understanding of Agile and Hybrid methods, along with traditional ones. It provided me with that.

I’ve gone through the videos, and I can definitely say one thing: Whatever video I watched and re-watched is worth every minute I spent. 

Every lesson in this course is equipped with a set of Smart Cards and several practice questions with answers. I’ve gone through them and it was very helpful for me. The explanation of why an answer is correct is also quite beneficial.

As you go through and complete the lessons in the course and go through the Smart Cards, you can quickly know how much you’ve understood on the subject you have completed. There are also references to the PMBOK Guide.

Satya’s Management Review Sessions
I joined Satya’s Management Review Sessions from October 2022. Several participants also join this session, particularly those who have subscribed to his video courses. It was very helpful. Even today, I join these sessions.

These talks are a really good approach; you can ask questions directly face-to-face. This happens every week and is led by Satya. These sessions provide a lot of support for aspirants, and it’s of high value.
You can clear all your doubts and it helps a lot to improve your knowledge wherever you are lacking.

PMP Exam Experience
I went for the Online Proctored Mode for my PMP exam. My strategy was simple, and it was to take all 180 questions in the prescribed 210 minutes (3 hours 50 minutes). But the problem was sitting that long, even with breaks.

As a professional working manager, I rarely sit that long as I have to address issues or solve problems frequently. I’ve practiced five to six full-length questions to prepare for this purpose and sit for longer durations.

The following are the types of questions I faced in the exam:

  • A number of questions were on Agile and Hybrid-Agile management.
  • A large number of questions were from Procurement Management, and Resource Management.
  • A number of questions were also from Schedule Management.
  • Most of the questions were situational.
  • I didn’t receive a single mathematical question, which surprised me.

As you go through the exam, watch the clock continuously. Time flies.

I could not get enough sleep before the exam. All the Q&As were running through my mind. In fact, before the exam, I was thinking about how soon the night would be over, and I’ll sit in the PMP exam! It worked for me with a final satisfactory score.

Suggestions for PMP Aspirants
Dos:

  • Believe in yourself. You surely can do it with the right material.
  • Give your 100%, prepare for PMP preparation.
  • With the right material and practice, you can confidently give the PMP Exam.

Don’ts:

  • Don’t give up once you have started your PMP preparation.
  • Revise and rethink what you have learned earlier, and where you can apply your learning.
  • Don’t be irregular at all in your preparation. Regular preparation is the right and best way to clear the exam.

Conclusion
Finally, I want to share a small story.

I visited a car showroom to enquire about a newly launched car. The salesperson informed me about a waiting period of six months. I took the car details and the brochure and came back home.

One day the salesman called me and asked about my car purchase. I said the waiting time was too long, so I dropped the idea. The salesman replied: “Sir, if you had booked the order on your first visit, by this time, the car would have been delivered to you!”.

That made me think about PMP certification and the session I attended years before for my 35 contact hours. And I postponed it again and again!  

I realized if I kept on postponing, I’ll never be a PMP and would never have success in the exam. Then and there, I searched for Satya’s mobile number, called him immediately and informed him that this time I wanted to be a PMP without any delay at all.

So, if you plan to be a PMP, start it today. Do it today and start now.  We don’t know about tomorrow. Tomorrow is hope, and today is real.

I wish you all the best in your journey and hope this success story helps you become a PMP. Good luck!

Brief Profile
Name: Adinarayana Murthy Bhuvanagiri, PMP, SAP Certified PM
Role: Working at Wipro Technologies, as an offshore Project Manager. I’ve over a decade and half of experience in various corporations, primarily in software, finance and marketing domains.

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Tuesday, October 19, 2021

PMP Success Story: Determination, Right Material and A Lot of Practice Will Make You A PMP

By Shubhra Rishi, PMP


Introduction

As a young professional in the Project Management Industry, I was motivated to get certified as a PMP to achieve a globally recognized credential that would further help me stand out among other professionals. 

I’m determined to excel and succeed in my career and this certification allowed me to gain transferable knowledge to leverage along with my experiential learnings. Additionally, I know that acquiring the PMP certification will bring me incredible new career opportunities and broaden my professional network.


PMP 35 Hours Online Learning Experience

I’ve never met Satya as I reside in North America. I went for the 35-Hour Online PMP Contact Hours Course after following his book, I Want To Be A PMP. The course was extremely helpful in my PMP preparation. Satya’s videos were detailed and explained each concept well. 

Here is my review of the course:

  • The course content flows together seamlessly. 
  • The ‘Yogic Revisions’ and ‘Yogic Tips’ really helped in absorbing the material and provided timely reminders on when concepts from the same and other lessons should be reviewed. 
  • The end of lesson questions and exercises tested your knowledge of the material in a great way, and it was very helpful that the answer sheet provided detailed explanations of the correct answer and why the other options were not correct. 
  • Satya points out which material is likely to be on the exam, take note of those things especially and ensure that you know it. 
  • Also, in some of the lessons there are articles that Satya links, I would recommend reading through those especially if the material is less clear to you because he explains in further detail in the articles which helps a lot. 
  • If there is a flow provided for certain plans or processes, it’s a good idea to understand those because it will explain how ITTOs of the processes feed into each other. 

In addition to taking the 35-hour training course, as noted earlier, I also used Satya’s e-Book for the PMP exam. 

In my view, following are key points about the book:

  • This book is a simplified version of the PMBOK guide to prepare for the exam. 
  • This book was such an easy read and I absorbed the material in a more efficient and effective way in comparison to reading the PMBOK guide. 
  • Satya provided relevant and concise examples, if necessary, but the best part was that any extra content was not included. This was great because it allowed details on the most important parts of the course and did not overload you with less important content. 
  • Each topic in the book was useful and the breakdown of the content within the sections was appropriate. 

On the administrative and overall experience of Satya’s courses, it was very helpful that all access to materials and courses was very prompt and there were detailed instructions on everything from navigating your email to locate the course, breakdown of the course, study recommendations, etc. 

Satya’s course definitely is preparing its students for grand success by providing as much information about each aspect of the process as possible.  

Additionally, Satya responded to all email inquiries in a timely manner and was always professional. He always offered to provide extra assistance if one required it. All these things really eased my mind as there were less ambiguities to overthink or stress about. 

Prior to the exam, Satya also helped guide me to specific areas that I should pay extra attention to in the weeks leading up to the exam based on recent PMP success stories. Thank you, Satya, for all the support and guidance throughout the process.

Own Study

I began my full-fledge preparation for the exam in May 2021 and wrote the exam in September 2021. I created a monthly schedule for myself to clearly know what material I needed to cover each day. 

I followed the below procedure (along with the suggestions):

  • On average, I studied 2-3 hours a day on weekdays and on weekends 3-5 hours. In the initial months, I took one to two break days a week to give my brain a rest as I was also working full time along with studying. 
  • I used Satya’s book and training course and made detailed handwritten notes to better absorb the information. I found his book and course being great to learn the material and hardly referenced the PMBOK guide or the APG (this worked well for me, but please use your own discretion with this). 
  • In my personal experience, writing down the notes was a great way to learn. I found it helpful to read aloud the notes I had made and make notes again on the most important parts of the chapters. 
  • As you review the material, test yourself on contents of project documents, plans, etc. This helped me to connect why these documents are used in the different processes.
  • I took the 6 full length practice exams in the couple weeks leading up to the exam once I had reviewed the material thoroughly. I approached it this way because at this point, I had reviewed the material a few times and was more prepared to sit through the exams. 

The obstacles I faced while studying was getting overwhelmed at times with the amount of material, and since there were overlapping plans and documents in the processes, learning to differentiate where they are used. 

I overcame this through reviewing the content a few times, asking myself questions and staying focused during my study sessions. 

I found it important to have a quiet space while studying that is free from distractions. During the summer months, I would sit outside to study because it allowed me to enjoy the weather while also being productive towards my goal. 

PMP Exam Experience

I scheduled to take the online proctored exam at home through OnVue so that I could get my exam result right away. My first strategy going into the exam was to pace myself as I completed the questions and flag any questions, I was unsure about so I could come back to them later. 

Some of the challenges while taking the exam online were:

  • No scrap paper, calculator, pen, etc was allowed on your desk. All tools to be used were provided virtually (highlighter, calculator, etc). 
  • Exam takers are NOT allowed to move their mouths to read the question back to themselves. This did throw me off in the exam because I like to read aloud or at least mouth to myself the question to better understand it. However, no movement of the mouth is allowed. 

Coming to the questions in the exam, I’ve following experience.

  • The questions in the exam are almost all situational and largely on agile/hybrid approaches. 
  • There were hardly any direct questions on the exam that referred to specific ITTOs, plans, documents, etc. Therefore, I think it is important to understand the content and memorization of each ITTO in each process is not required. 
  • I would also not focus a lot of time on mathematical questions as there are hardly any on the exam and the ones there are simple and can be solved using the virtual calculator. 
  • I had some matching and multiple response multiple choice questions in the exam that were simple to answer, majority of the exam was selecting 1 answer from the multi-choice questions. 
  • There are two 10-minute breaks that you get after each 60 questions completed. I recommend taking these breaks as they don’t take away from your exam time and it is a good time to give the mind a rest, give yourself that motivational talk or take a washroom break. 

I used the entire exam time allocated to complete the exam.

Suggestions for PMP Aspirants

Dos: 

  • Make a study schedule and do your best to follow it.
  • Make handwritten notes and read your notes out loud as well to review.
  • Talk to people in your network about their experience with the exam.
  • Schedule your exam once you are feeling confident because this way you will have a target timeline that you are working towards, and it will provide that boost in motivation knowing you are almost done!
  • Take some time off before the exam so that you can be fully dedicated to it, rather than context switching between work and study or other responsibilities.
  • Take breaks during the week so that your motivation remains consistent.
  • Complete your application at your earliest convenience so that your attention can be focused on the exam as the date approaches.

Don’ts:

  • Don’t worry if you get practice questions, exams or exercises incorrect while preparing, read the explanations Satya provides and incorporate those learnings in other lessons/chapters where you can.
  • Don’t procrastinate too much in scheduling the exam, there will always be that feeling of preparing more but at some point, be confident in yourself and go for it!!
  • Don’t just be bookish, but think about your real-world experience, focus on what the PMBOK guide says is the correct way to deal with a situation, go through a process, etc.
  • Don’t Study off too many sources or courses. I find this can be confusing and can result in information overload.

Brief Profile: 

Shubhra Rishi, PMP.

Senior Project Coordinator



PMP 35 Contact Hours Online Course:
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Tuesday, September 28, 2021

PMP Success Story: Takes Sweat, Determination, and Hard Work to Make Your Dream a Reality

By Ansuman Mishra, PMP, SAFe Agilist, CSM



Introduction

“A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work.” This quote, by Colin Powell, former Secretary of the United States, is perhaps the most appropriate one to describe my PMP journey!

During the early phase of my career, I came to know about PMP from my managers who were already PMP certified. Then I did more research about the certification and had the dream of achieving this precious certification one day. Over the years, I was able to clearly see the difference in the way PMP certified professionals were handling the projects and teams.

Although I attended the PMP classroom session a few years before, I could not prepare and give the exam because of professional and personal commitments. Finally, during January, 2021, I decided to go for it.

I knew Mr. Satya Narayan Dash from the classroom sessions and I called him one fine evening to express my eagerness to appear for the exam. He set-up a video call in the same evening and by the end of the call, I was motivated enough to go for the exam, no matter what happens on the other side of my life.

PMP 35 Hours Learning Experience

Though I attended the 35 hours mandatory training session a few years back, I decided to go for that again. Hence, I requested Satya Sir to share the 35 Contact Hours video course, along with the book, I Want To Be A PMP. 

About the 35 Contact Hours Online Course

  • I was learning the latest content with respect to the PMBOK guide (I had learned earlier in PMBOK 5th edition) and also had to go through the Agile content. In addition, the style of questions has changed. 
  • What I liked about the video materials shared by Satya Sir is the simplicity and clarity. The way he explains the concepts is amazingly simple and straightforward.
  • The thing which I appreciate the most is tips and tricks. There are tips and tricks to remember and understand all the 49 processes, in sequence. It helped a lot during the preparation stage and during the exam, to relate and answer questions correctly.
  • The content is actually of 35 hours long and covers all the lessons thoroughly.

About the ‘I Want To Be A PMP’ Book
I’ve read this book around 4 to 5 times. 
  • It is aligned and structured, as per PMBOK guide. Hence, it is very easy to read and revise.
  • I really appreciate the texture. It is very clear and motivates to continue the reading process, page after page.
  • Yogic vision tips: It is one of the highlights of the book and helped me during the preparation phase.
  • Yogic revisions: It helps to remind the past learning. Gives a signal to go back and check the concepts again, if needed.
  • The book contains a lot of flow diagrams and tables, to expedite the learning process.
  • Each chapter contains the comparison/mapping of the Agile environment with traditional predictive methods.  

About Question (Practice) Sets

The questions are really of top class. I’ve also taken questions from Oliver Lehman and Udemy, which gave me more practice. But the questions from the 35 contact hours and the book are way ahead of them. Each chapter contains questions, apart from full length ones.

The reason I mentioned the questions are far ahead because they are situation-based questions. You will face similar questions when it comes to the real PMP exam. Rarely any question, if at all, will be direct!

The answer sets have clear explanations and that helps a lot. The content in the book and videos along with the questions sets, complement each other well! 

Own Study Process

I started with 35 hours of online video lessons and simultaneously referring to the book, I Want To Be A PMP. I was also preparing my own notes.

Each and every day, I ensured to devote at least 2-3 hours, mostly in the evenings after office hours. During the day, whenever I was having time, I was browsing the topics on the internet for light reading.

I have gone through all the questions shared by Satya sir along with his materials, more than once. After finishing two rounds with the reference book and video materials, I started reading PMBOK and APG. I was able to appreciate the content of PMBOK, because I completed the reference book first.

My practical experience in Agile Project Management helped me a lot during the study phase. During my preparation, I was scoring well in the Agile areas as I know it from my job experience. 

Towards the end of course, I did call Satya Sir a few times to check my readiness for the exam. He was very gracious to devote his time, asking questions to me to check the understanding and clarify questions.

In the end, I took an assessment test and received the 35 contact hours course completion certification. When I was consistently scoring more than 75%, I got the confidence to schedule and appear for the exam.

PMP Exam Experience

Below is my exam experience at the exam center and during the PMP exam. 

Exam Center

  • I scheduled the exam in the Pearson VUE center in Bangalore, because I never wanted to take a chance with electricity/ISP/technical glitches at home and wanted to have complete focus on exam content/questions.
  • I did not get disappointed because of my decision. The experience in the exam center was good. They are following all Covid-19 related regulations strictly.
  • I reached the center an hour early and that helped me to settle down, before the exam.

Types of Questions Faced

  • Around 70% questions were based on the Agile and/or Hybrid model.
  • Not one question was direct. All the questions were situational based and needed a deep understanding of concepts.
  • I did not have any mathematical questions barring one on Cost Performance Index (CPI).
  • There were few questions related to multi-response, questions related to graphs. I also received a few drag and drop questions.
  • A lot of questions were there from Stakeholder Management, Communications Management, and Quality Management processes.

Time Management

This is another aspect I want to emphasize. While doing practice sessions, I was able to complete 180 questions within 2.5 hours to 3 hours. However, during the exam, literally all the questions were lengthy. First 60 questions took me around 70 minutes, the next 60 took around 80 minutes and the last 60 around 70 minutes. I marked a few questions for review and spent a few minutes answering those at the end of the phase.

10-Minutes Breaks

The exam comes with two 10-minutes breaks. I took both the breaks and that helped me to refresh for the subsequent sessions.

Suggestions for PMP Aspirants 

The PMP exam is not at all an easy one and below will be my suggestions/advice for the aspiring PMPs. 

  • When you decide to go for PMP, just go for it. Do not give any break in between. Even a gap of one week is good enough to derail the preparation.
  • Read PMBOK guide and Agile Practice Guide, at least 2 times, word by word.
  • Just remember 49 processes (in sequence) and important Inputs, Tools & Techniques and Outputs (ITTO). You need not remember all the ITTOs.
  • Pay focus to the Agile related concepts. Map those to traditional processes and ITTOs.
  • After each practice set, spend a good amount of time reviewing the answers. If needed, go back and refer to the concepts in PMBOK/other reference books.
  • Practice enough questions, but choose from reliable sources only. On the internet, there are many free questions available. Ensure that those questions are based on the current version of PMBOK and the answers/explanations are based on PMBOK guide.
  • Do not wait for the last day to learn/understand new concepts. That won’t help to answer the questions, which are more or less situation based.
  • Celebrate your success!!

Conclusion

I cannot forget the moment when I saw “Congratulations” on the computer screen, after answering 180 questions and three “Above target” scores were icing on the cake. 

More than anything, I will remember the journey. The knowledge acquired during the process is something which is priceless and I am sure it will help me in future assignments.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my family members (blessings of my parents and rock-solid support from my wife were instrumental), friends, all my supervisors/managers and team members who supported me, directly and indirectly during the amazing journey.

As I reach the end of my journey, I can clearly say that, without Satya Sir, I could not have seen the light of the day. He was there for me each and every time I needed. Without his motivation and constant push, I could not have achieved success.   

Brief Profile: 

Ansuman Mishra, PMP, SAFe Agilist, CSM

Project Manager, Tata Elxsi Ltd, Bangalore

 


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Wednesday, August 18, 2021

PMP Success Story: Have the Right Project Management Mindset Across the Value Delivery Spectrum

By Sandeep Jacob, PMP


Introduction

I have been managing teams for quite some time and have always had this dream for many years – to be a certified Project Management Professional (PMP®) from Project Management Institute (PMI®). 

However, I couldn't make it due to various reasons. But I never gave up on my dream.

PMP Coaching Experience

Satya Sir is going to surprise you with his training. He doesn’t need any support of the content or material. The entire content is completely imprinted in his mind. In his class, it was amazing to see the seamless flow of concepts. 

The 35 contact hours learning proved to be a great asset. It’s not the provider that mattered, but the content that I learned from him and easy explanations of the concepts.

The notes that I prepared during his training are the best that I have prepared. It had the gist of the entire training and I could refer throughout my PMP preparation cycle.

The best takeaway is that I could memorize all 49 processes from the PMBOK guide. It was hard to believe at the beginning of the session, but I could remember!


Own Study

The new exam pattern, with a lot of emphasis on Agile Management, was enforced from January 02, 2021. 

I wasn’t confident initially because of additional content from Agile. Thanks to Satya sir who motivated me to retake the test! 

My primary reference material for the new pattern of the PMP exam were two:

The current exam pattern is more aligned with Agile hence I took a conscious decision to give more importance to Agile topics. The combo edition of the PMBOK guide comes packaged with the Agile Practice Guide (APG). 

Also, I recommend buying an additional exam simulator(s) available in the market, which is/are really useful. This is just to prepare you for the exam since most of the questions in the exam are scenario based. Very few questions, if at all, will be direct.

Book Review - I Want To Be A PMP

Right after the training, I decided to go for this book. The main reason was because of the clarity of concepts I experienced in Satya sir’s classes. And, my assumption was correct. The chapters were aligned with the PMBOK guide structure. But it was much easier to follow. 

The interconnections between the processes through his unique diagrams is something which I consider the most valuable. You will find numerous exercises, flow diagrams, flow diagram exercises in this book. 

The revision tips and chapter end questions were of great help. The diagrams were very helpful to revise the concepts effectively. 

His book has also the new and relevant content to Agile.

What's New - I Want To Be A PMP, Second Edition

Project Management Mindset

One thing I would like to emphasize for aspiring PMPs is this: Project Management varies depending on the context. There are many ways to deliver a project and do project management. It can be in a predictive, adaptive (agile) or hybrid mode. This adaptation of mindset is key in passing this test as the majority of questions are on Agile or Hybrid. 

Please take all the full-length mock question sets from Satya sir’s book. You will find a lot of similar questions in the actual exam.

PMP Exam Experience

I scheduled the exam on July 11, 2021 and went for the Online proctored exam. The explanations and links provided by Satya sir in his book, helped me here as well. 

Below are some of the points I want to highlight for the aspiring PMPs.

  • There are two breaks in the exam, 10 minutes each. It did help me to reset and focus on the next set of questions without really worrying about the previously answered questions. 
  • About 60 to 70% of the questions were from an Agile Management perspective. There were a few questions on Hybrid, mostly as how a PM would respond to a situation from traditional to Agile transition. 
  • I have received a few drag and drop questions. 
  • In the beginning of the exam, the proctor warned me about the movement of my head (I was thinking!). I had to ensure not to make that mistake although it was a bit challenging!
  • I completed the exam within the stipulated time, but was not sure of the result. 

I cannot forget that moment when the “Congratulations…” message was displayed on my screen. I scored Above Target in all three domains. 

Suggestions for PMP Aspirants

Dos: 

  • Focus more on Agile concepts, specifically with the right PM Mindset. 
  • Use elimination as a technique to arrive at the correct answer. 
  • Time and stress management during the exam will be very important. Ensure to have practice on it. A good number of questions can be answered using the right PM mindset. 
  • Timely completion of each section is a key factor. As earlier noted, there will be two breaks in this long-duration exam.

Don’ts: 

  • Do not ignore to have sufficient rest and sleep before the exam. Sound sleep before the exam day is essential. 

Conclusion

I would continue to apply the needed PM mindset on the projects that I manage. From my experience, I consider stakeholder engagement and communication management as the most important aspects of Project Management.   

Brief Profile: 

Sandeep Jacob, PMP

I have been working as a Senior Manager, Testing at Cerner Healthcare Solutions India Pvt Ltd.  I am currently managing a Quality Assurance (QA) team.



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