PMI Standards Development

PMI global standards are the foundation of the profession, helping you ensure your organization’s knowledge and frameworks are up-to-date.

How are standards developed?

Our standards are developed and approved through a consensus-based process that ensures that all interested stakeholders can participate. PMI is an American National Standards Institute (ANSI) accredited standards developer, and our process conforms with ANSI requirements.

Policy for the Development and Coordination of American National Standards

Standards development follows six steps:

1. A notice is placed on PMI.org for positions on the standard development team. This team, with co-leaders, is assembled from the pool of applicants, along with a second team of subject matter experts to provide a first review of the draft. The team also includes the PMI staff member who is the product owner of the standard.
2. The team meets over a period of several months to draft and refine the standard.
3. The draft is provided to the selected subject matter experts for review, after which the team considers these comments and makes changes to the draft as appropriate.
4. The revised draft document is made available for public comment in a Public Exposure Draft (PED). The team considers these comments and revises the draft , as appropriate.
5. The finished standard is sent for approval to the Standards Consensus Committee, a group of independent volunteers, who validate the development process of each PMI standard.
6. With a vote to approve from the SCC, and upon recommendation by the Product Manager, Standards, the new standard is approved by the Director & Portfolio Lead, Standards and Publications.

“Please note: PMI staff should be contacted for questions regarding PMI Standards Program Committees and Teams and their activities.”