When people talk about what makes them happy in their chosen career, things like good pay, workplace flexibility, and impactful work are often cited as main reasons.
For many, these reasons guide how they pick companies to work for and which ones to avoid. Companies also have a set of parameters that guide hiring and fast-tracking decisions.
A salary survey conducted by Project Management Institute (PMI) in November last year showed that professionals with a Project Management Professional (PMP) certification reported higher median salaries than those without a PMP certification which was 16% higher on average across the 40 countries surveyed.
A further 50% of respondents reported their total compensation (including salary, bonus, and other cash incentives) increased over the 12 months prior to completing the salary survey. This was highly notable given the general negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on global employment.
The PMP Certification is a globally recognised validation that proves that a project practitioner understands and can apply the key skills needed for them to excel in the project management profession.
These project management skills enable these professionals to deliver the right results by applying the correct methodology and approach per project.
As rapid changes continue to occur in world markets, the skills needed to succeed evolve and so does the PMP certification exam.
This means that the exam constantly tests how a project professional has been able to adapt to these changes and can continue to drive good results.
For organisations, this certification, therefore, implies that any project professional holding it can help them execute projects effectively and produce great results, thus assuring the professional of their career growth.
For instance, the recent update by PMI to the PMP exam in 2021 made 50% of the exam cover agile methodology, other hybrid ways of working, tests on current project scenarios, and even some key project regulations.
With the PMP certification covering all of these, a project professional is bound to do more impactful work and also earn higher pay, key parameters of career success for many professionals involved in projects.
In the same vein, professionals who have these relevant project management skills are also the ones who can work in different environments due to their understanding of agile methodologies.
They also continue to produce results that keep them, their companies, and even their countries ahead of the game.
All of these lay a template for professionals to maintain business success wherever they are because their career success lies in how much innovation and adaptability they can bring to their work.