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Almost every organization – big or small – needs project management to make sure their projects run smoothly. Yet, a lot of them don’t show any interest in project management because they think it’s an unnecessary tax and overhead. Not to mention, that it’ll increase the efforts in the planning stage. Running projects without good planning and management can lead to bigger problems down the line. So, let’s first try and get a better understanding of what exactly project management is all about.

What exactly is project management?

You might have often read or heard about projects failing. This can be due to the lack of funding and resources, lack of direction for the team, unsatisfactory leadership, etc. However, the most common reason for failure is the lack of proper project management. Project management is a disciplined process involving planning, initiating, executing, and controlling the work of the team working on a certain project.

Project management helps in organizing and managing multiple projects to achieve business goals. The organization’s plans could be producing or developing unique products or services. It’s worth noting however that project management is relatively different from repetitive, normal operations of any business. For example: in a manufacturing company, the actual work is to process resources into production, which is a normal operation since these are permanent work of businesses. On the other hand, project management could be utilized to come up with new business ideas to create or develop another product, and put that in motion.

Project management helps in carrying out various activities using project management tools, software, knowledge, skills, techniques, and methodologies. All these help in making a project successful. The main aim of project management is to ensure objectives are achieved within certain constraints. However, sometimes well-developed projects face risks, and many factors can be responsible for them, which brings us to…

What is project risk management?

As the name indicates, project risk management is the process of managing risks or avoiding risks during project development. While project management is important for a project’s success, project risk management is equally crucial to account for unforeseen circumstances.

In simple words, project risk management is the process of evaluating, identifying, mitigating, or preventing risks to the project that have the potential to impact the outcome. Project managers are mainly responsible for calculating and overseeing the risk along with solutions to mitigate the impact of that risk.

Project managers should have a clear knowledge and understanding of the objectives. This will help them effectively manage risks and identify possible barriers that could affect the project. They need to make sure the project planning is running smoothly and that all the requirements are met throughout the duration of the project.

Project risk management is all about evaluating the given project objectives and determining potential threats to those objectives and what can be done to address them. The types of scenarios and events that cause the risk are broad and sometimes misunderstood.

Different types of project risk

Beyond the basics of what “risk” means in project management or project development, project managers should know the different types of risks. This would allow them to know how the risks impact the project’s outcome and how they could be prevented. Various kinds of risks occur during the project development:

• Cost: The biggest risk affecting project development events is the budget. It can be a great threat, especially in cases where the projects are going over budget. Errors in budget estimation usually generate risk in project management in addition to not planning for external factors in advance.
• Schedule: The risk of an unprepared schedule, like events that cause delay, can increase problems in project management. The postponement of projects can be due to many internal and external factors and is another reason for scheduling issues.
• Performance: Another major reason which can be a potential threat to the project is the incompetence of the team members or the project manager. Their bad performance can really risk the project and create a barrier to producing results.

The types of risks or occurrences can vary, depending on the details of the project. Once the project managers identify the category of risk, the next step is to address the risk or issues that can hamper the project. Let’s check out the tips on how to respond to and manage project risk.

Tips to reduce or prevent risk in project management

Although it’s impossible to eliminate risk completely, there are a few things one can do to avoid it. Here are a few tips which can help you reduce project management risks.

• Keep the risk register up to date: The risk register in project management can either be a combination of a risk management plan or a separate document. It should contain all the possible risk events and scenarios that can hamper the project. Use the register to keep track of what risks occurred, how you addressed them, and what risks you couldn’t find a solution to. This will help you have a better risk management experience and help you in the next project development.
• Understand the risk event: Another most important thing in risk management in project management is doing the risk analysis and having in-depth knowledge of it. The common mistake people commit to looking out for possible outcomes and not understanding the risk itself. For example, people sometimes tend to think “missing the deadline” is a risk, but rather it is an impact. They should remember the factor that caused them to miss the deadline instead of what should be done to avoid delay.

• Be proactive instead of reactive: One of the most common mistakes project managers make is to be reactive to risk management instead of being proactive. You might react quickly if anything unplanned happens during the project management. That’s when you are supposed to step back and look at your project through a proactive lens. Investing time in the early stage of risk management and fully analyzing every possible risk can reduce the occurrence of unplanned events.

Bottomline

Implementing and executing a risk management plan for a project can prepare your team for unplanned events. Preventing the risk in project management improves the project’s credibility and helps you achieve business goals. So, make sure you consider the information in this article and facilitate effective project management to mitigate losses and drive better results with minimal effort. 

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As per project management statistics, 2.2 million new project managers will be needed each year till 2027. This shows how project management will become a highly valued skill. And how does one show off their credibility as a project manager?

That’s where project management certification comes to the fore. As the name suggests, it sheds light on the concerned candidate’s ability and skills to work with different processes. Besides that, project managers are also responsible for managing people and business priorities that come with handling a professional project. This certification is the list of credentials that validates the project leadership as well as the expertise of the candidate in the particular field.

The role of a project manager is crucial for the successful completion of projects, and a certification acts as a stamp of approval that one has it in themselves to achieve the same. Having a project management certification can help one get their dream job more easily. If you are seeking a post like that, you should continue reading as this article can be helpful to you.

What is project management certification?

Before getting into the nitty gritty of project management certification, you should know what it is. In technical terms, project management certification is official documentation that authenticates a professional’s knowledge and skill of leadership and project management. This states that the candidate is capable enough to lead a team, manage the teamwork to maintain maximum accuracy, and bring the best results to achieve the objective.

Though this certification is not mandatory for all companies, it is considered significant in improving project managers’ credibility. Apart from that, it also makes your resume look more attractive so that you can seem like the eligible candidate for that role to the hiring manager.

How to get project management certification?

There are many kinds of project management certifications available in the market. Some of the best known of these certifications include PMP (Project Management Professional), CAPM (Certified Associate in Project Management), CSM (Certified ScrumMaster), etc.

Hands-on training and coursework are slightly different for each course. Professionals can enroll themselves in any one of the courses according to their professional needs.

Benefits of project management certification

Having a project management certification has a lot of benefits besides just bolstering your resume. If you ever doubt whether you should invest your time and money to get the certification, we have listed down key benefits to help you get a better understanding.

1. Establishes credibility

Any type of project management certification requires concerned professionals to adhere to some particularly stringent guidelines. Some of these guidelines include inspection of educational background, knowledge, and experience in the professional world and more. These can help the professionals prove their competence in doing the job effectively. As a result, it becomes much easier for professionals to do their jobs with the utmost efficiency and add value to the organization.  

2. Increases the chance of getting hired by companies

If you have a Project management Certification, that will increase your marketability any day. Your CV will appear more attractive than the candidates who do not have such certifications. It’ll make your employer aware of your skills to become a recognized project management professional.

Nowadays, the shortage of qualified talent is visible. This certification can surely accelerate the process of hiring. You will already have a track record because of the experiences you have gathered during your certification training. As a result, you will appear more eligible for the position you are applying for. Moreover, working towards certification proves to your recruiter that you are ready to gain more knowledge in your field and properly lead the team assigned to you.

3. Enhance your skills

One must undergo certain training and a good amount of coursework to attain a project management certification. All these will enable you to crack any exam regarding these project management skills. The training will make you more capable as a leader and teach you how to manage a team to get the most effective work possible. Apart from that, the coursework, along with some hands-on experience, enhances your skill in planning, initiating, implementing, and monitoring.

4. Gain a common language for project management

Beyond the usual reasons, a project management certification will provide a common language for working on any project and leading a team on different projects. This common language can keep up with some consistent approaches within an organization.

This also benefits the team members to communicate with each other and the manager to ensure everything is going on at a proper pace. Such certifications also enable you to understand the goals better and to discuss the projects in that common language with the team.

5. Helps you make more money

A project management certification can be a key to earning more than usual because it gives a good weightage to your CV. Surveys show that people who have the certification get a better salary package because gaining experience always increases your earnings. Top corporates are now looking for industry-recognized certifications for hiring experienced and able applicants only and assigning them quite good-paying roles. 

6. Facilitates networking

Project management certification will help you develop a global connection. You’ll be able to create a network with multiple certified professionals worldwide. The wider your network, the more chances you will soon get a well-fit job. Of course, the networking benefits aren’t just limited to job opportunities, but the fact that you stay on top of what’s happening in the industry, and be ahead of the others by leveraging the latest trends.

7. Opens doors for more clients and opportunities

With a project management certification, you can be an influential character to new clients. The management skills you have acquired during the training will help you avail new and advanced opportunities, new clients, roles, and leadership skills.

8. Formalize already known skills 

During the certification process, you will get some training to help you brush up on your knowledge. The training will help you improvise the knowledge and skills that you are already familiar with, making you more capable of fulfilling your duty as a project manager.

9. Add value to the company’s growth

Your project management certification is not only beneficial to your professional career, but it will also be a great help to enhance the value of the company you are working for. During the training, you will know and learn the best tactics and efficient skills to optimize any project management. This will help increase the company’s growth and will certainly result in increased revenue.

Bottomline

In getting to know about the beneficial aspects of the Project Management Certifications in this article, you must understand the impact of this certification on your professional career. Going through the training and the coursework to get the certificate will never go in vain. Everything you will learn during the process will turn out to be useful at some point or the other during your professional life.

Looking for project management software? Check out Flow, an all-in-one tool for managing multiple projects and team members easily. Sign up for a trial now, no credit card required!

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