PDU Opportunities
Professional Development Equals Enhanced Skills and PDUsHow to overcome challenges to participate in professional development activities.
Earning professional development units (PDUs) is more than just part of maintaining your Project Management Professional (PMP®) credential. It is an opportunity to gain knowledge, sharpen skills and network. Professional development activities keep you up to date on everything from the newest theories on building a project management office to updated tools and techniques.
It is not always easy. Geography, money and time can stand in the way of your ability to participate in professional development activities. But there are some creative ways you can overcome these challenges, grow your professional skills and earn PDUs.
Geography
Many practitioners live in areas of the world with few local professional development opportunities. Michael Idoko, PMP, of Kaduna, Nigeria, for example, was daunted by the prospect of earning 60 PDUs every three years to maintain his credential.
"The project management profession is still very much at the infant stage here," he says. "The limited awareness makes it difficult to obtain support and permission from our companies [for classes and seminars] and travel visas from the government [to actually go to events]."
The nearest PMI chapter, the PMI Lagos, Nigeria Chapter, is approximately 550 kilometers (342 miles) away, so Mr. Idoko had to get creative.
He joined the PMI International Development Specific Interest Group (IDSIG), which is a virtual community that has members from around the world who focus on the project management needs of internationally funded projects in the public sector of developing countries. Since the IDSIG conducts most of its meetings through online teleconferences, he was able to get involved.
By participating in this virtual community, Mr. Idoko not only earned PDUs, but also learned about project management in developing countries and helped expand his local project management community. He led IDSIG's effort to organize and host a project management conference in nearby Abuja in 2006.
Money
Not all organizations are willing to cover the expenses related to their employees' involvement in professional development activities. Since earning his credential last year, Joe Nolan, PMP, of College Park, Georgia, USA, developed a cost-efficient program for attaining the necessary PDUs while sharing project management knowledge.
Besides attending PMI chapter meetings and seminars, Mr. Nolan developed a project management teleconference/webinar series through his work. The program enables him to hold audio or online teleconferences, which the company pays for, with other PMP credential holders in the company who do not work at his site, and to earn PDUs for presenting topics and for participating.
"The certification [application] and exam were difficult enough. Having to go through recertification was not something I wanted to think about," Mr. Nolan says. "This program keeps my costs low, takes [a minimum number of] hours away from my weekly work routine and capitalizes on my current job."
Similarly, others have found ways to share and enhance their project management skills and gain PDUs at minimal cost. Lou Ware, PMP, of Brenham, Texas, USA, moderated an ethics discussion for a senior engineering class at Texas A&M University. Elaine McCluskey, PMP, of Batavia, Illinois, USA, helped a local Girl Scouts of the USA troop plan and execute a trip to England and Scotland.
Time
Balancing a career and home or family responsibilities can be difficult for any professional, especially those seeking professional development. Kiyoshi Sakamori, PMP, of Yamato-shi, Kanagawa-ken, Japan, lives in an area rich with professional development opportunities, but finds that time is his biggest obstacle.
Mr. Sakamori not only serves as a professor at Japan's Tokyo Metropolitan University, but also teaches professionals about project management on evenings and weekends.
"I'm very busy. . There are many seminars that I cannot [attend] because [they] are scheduled at [times when I teach]," Mr. Sakamori says.
Instead of attending all the big conferences like he used to, he now dedicates his time to the education committee of the PMI Tokyo, Japan Chapter. He is able to share his specialized teaching expertise and does not always have to participate through face-to-face meetings. The committee, Mr. Sakamori says, does a lot of work and communicating online.
Gene Schreiner, PMP, of Kansas City, Missouri, USA, began teaching project management concepts at his organization in a move that helped mesh his professional growth activities with time spent at the office.
"I have developed and taught four different project management classes at my company to project managers," Mr. Schreiner says. "I do this in addition to my regular job, and received 10 PDUs for developing the classes, and 10 PDUs each time I teach them."
Sometimes, credential holders are challenged to attend conferences, seminars and classes for professional development and PDUs. Whether time, money, or geography is your particular hurdle, there are other options around if you know where and how to look. Virtual teams, volunteerism or teaching, or speaking in your work place can all lead to PDUs and enhanced project management skills.
