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PMP Preparation – Employer Support
On this page: Budget | Sponsoring membership | More support
How Much Should You Budget?
The PMP certification is not a big financial investment. However, given the benefits a well-managed certification initiative brings, many organizations are prepared to support their employees and cover the costs. A detailed description of what employers can do can be downloaded here.
Letter templates to initiate corporate sponsorship for certification can be found here.
Seminar
The costs for seminars vary. Please inquire with the company you trust.* Furthermore, be aware that the seminar fee reflects the professionalism of the trainer.
Membership, Application, and Miscellaneous Items
In addition to seminar costs, these are the additional costs that sponsoring organizations should put in the budget per employee:
| Position | Fee* | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| First-year membership fee (payable to PMI) | $139* | Recovered by a $250 member discount on the exam fee. Unlocks the free download of PMI literature. |
| Exam fee (payable to PMI) | $405* | Including the $250 discount for members. |
| Core literature | — | Free download for PMI members.** |
| Practice questions for self-directed learning after the seminar | — | Included in the seminar fee.*** |
| After-class mentoring during application and further preparation | — | Included in the seminar fee.*** |
| Miscellaneous items (e.g. additional literature) | $100 | Not a necessary position, but often helpful. |
| Total: | $644 |
* Numbers for Europe. PMI charges different fees in other countries and changes the fees occasionally without notice.
** See Reading Plan.
*** Most students require intensive additional support between the seminar and the exam. Not all seminar providers offer that.
Should an Employer Sponsor PMI Membership for Employees after the Exam?
My clear recommendation: Yes.
By becoming PMI members, employees join a global community of over 700,000 professionals in 222 countries and territories.* This is the place where project management is professionalized and further developed.
On top of that, members have free access to a digital library of Standards and Publications. This includes standards for many hot topics, such as:
- PMBOK Guide 7th Ed.*
- Agile Practices Guide*
- Process Groups: A Practice Guide*
- Standard for Program Management
- Standard for Portfolio Management
- Requirements Management: A Practice Guide
…and many more.
*: My seminar participants receive the PMP Study Workbook, which summarizes the 3 PMI books and simplifies self-study. I recommend everyone else to read the three books.
These standards help develop knowledge. Corporations use them to ensure a common language and understanding inside the organization and in cross-corporate Project Business.
What Else Can You Do?
Apart from monetary support, employers can help their project managers on the path to becoming PMP-certified. See my recommendations.
