In another PMP/CAPM discussion board, someone asked about the value of PMI's CAPM certification. One of the issues was, since hiring companies value PMPs over CAPM, how can they get the PMP even though they lack the experience qualifications.

   I thought I'd share my response with everyone here.

CAPM 

Re:  "[Since] I don't have such experience [to qualify for PMP certification] right now, the best option would be  start as a CAPM and try to get a new job related to this field.   However, as some people say the CAPM certification would be  worthless, is it really a good idea to start by CAPM ?"

Yes,  it really is a good idea. Earning your CAPM certification would, indeed, be your best option.  The CAPM designation shows your current (and potential) employers that you have a mastery of project work and a good grasp of project management concepts and methodology. Not only will this make you an excellent candidate as a team member on a project, it also shows your potential for promotion to project coordination and, eventually, project management work.

Re:  "I've already heard from some people that [the] market doesn't treasure this CAPM certification just because there's an even better certification called PMP."   

This is like saying that a high school diploma is useless, since the market only recognizes college degrees and, therefore, you should skip high school all together and go straight to college. 

The PMP designation is not something you get to help you move into project management.  It's something that professionals who already are project managers (and have been for many years) earn to certify their experience, knowledge and adherence to a code of ethics.  There's no short-cut to this (other than lying on your application, in which case, despite passing a test and having a piece of paper, you are not a project management professional -- you are only someone who has a piece of paper obtained by deceit).

Sitting for an exam and passing it does not make you a project management professional.  Don't confuse PMP certification with IT certification or vendor certification.  For vendor certification, all you need to do is pass a test (or a series of tests).  For example, if someone wants to break into .NET programming, they can take a couple of Microsoft cert exams,  then embellish their resumes to say that they also have previous experience with the skill.  Passing a test doesn't prove past experience and it's only a moderate measure of someone's knowledge or skills. (It only proves that they can pass the test.)  However, some people use IT certification as a tool to bypass certain experience requirements requested by headhunters. Sometimes (tho not always) there is some justification for this (e.g., "2+ years experience with Windows Vista and SQL Server 2005 required" -- Since Vista isn't even out yet and SQL 2005 has only recently been released, this is unreasonable).  This is not justified for PMP or CAPM candidates, however.

In addition, embellishing your resume violates PMI's codes and standard. You simply can't be a PMP or a CAPM and also be someone who embellishes his/her past or pretends to be what he or she is not.  As I said earlier, this isn't some IT vendor cert.  Professional certifications, such as the CPA, CFP, etc. as well as the PMP include education and experience requirements as well as the ability to pass a rigorous exam.  They also require abiding by their professional organizations rules and codes.  (For example, there is no law prohibiting an attorney from revealing the contents of a conversation with a client. However, this violates the rules and codes of the ABA and, therefore, an attorney who does this will lose his/her ABA certification and membership.) 

One of the things that makes both a PMP and a CAPM attractive to hiring managers is that the certifications means that they have been vetted and, possibly audited, so you can have a higher trust of the accuracy of their resumes.  Also, their adherence to the code of ethics and responsibility means that customers and clients will know that this employee is one of high standards and responsibility.

Since a lot of IT professionals seek PMP certifications and, since many IT professionals also have vendor "certs" (which is not the same thing as a professional certification), they often confuse PMP certification with, say, Cisco or Oracle or Microsoft certification since, in both cases, there is some kind of exam.  Please do not make this mistake, yourself.

So, you ask, "I'd like to know whether would be worthwhile to take the CAPM exam as a start point." 

The answer is YES. Just as earning your H.S. diploma is the starting point to earning a college degree, taking the first step of preparing for and earning CAPM certification is an excellent starting point for eventual PMP certification 4 years or so, down the line.

The CAPM is a relatively new certification.  People were earning them as long ago as 2 years ago, but only a few hundred CAPM certifications were granted up until this year.  Now, with the recognition of project management as a profession (and the recognition that project management is a very specialized area of management, not to be confused with functional management, general management or executive management), both the CAPM as well as the PMP designations have increased in stature.  So, while it's true that, back in 2005, the CAPM was not widely known (just as, back in the 1990s, the PMP was not as widely known), going forward, into the rest of this decade, the CAPM is becoming very widely recognized as the designation for experienced team members who are candidates for more project leadership roles.  Just like the PMP, which has been around for a while, but only took off as a hiring criterion in the last few years, the CAPM is about to take off as critierion for hiring decisions. It will definitely give you an advantage over your job hunting competitors.

The CAPM desgination can move you into a team lead role much faster than if you don't have it.  Gaining experience in a team lead role can both add to your experience hours in PM related work (required for PMP eligibility) as well as move you into an actual  project manager spot. By the time you do apply for PMP eligibility, you'll already be a PM and will be ready for certification.

Another plus: Since the CAPM exam is primarily a test of the Guide to the PMBOK, as a CAPM you will have deep knowledge of the Guide to the PMBOK, which accounts for anywhere from 35% to 60% of the what you need to know for the PMP certification exam. So you will start your PMP preparation with a definite marked advantage.

Dilemma?  How can I get the experience needed to be a PMP certified ? There's no dilemma.  Get CAPM certified.  Gain the experience you need over the next 3 - 5 years. Then apply for PMP certification.

Bottom line: Earning your CAPM designation is an excellent way to position yourself for project management roles as well as marketing yourself for better jobs and positions.

 - - Jerry Bucknoff, PMP, MBA 

The original post, that the above is a response to, is not repeated here in order to avoid copyright or ethical issues. This above response has been written by Jerry Bucknoff, the author of these remarks. It may be reused or published by the owner(s) of any message boards that the author posts it on. To the best of the author's knowledge, all quotations are used under the "fair use" doctrine and do not violate any copyright laws of the United States or Canada.