There are more PMP qualified Nigerians than there are PRINCE2 Practitioners. The question of which one is more widely used is not an easy question because most of the organisations in Nigeria are not collectively mature with use of Project management methodology . It is individuals with various experiences particularly from abroad that selectively run the project management processes within their selective departments. Most organisations adapt aspects of methodologies to make their own framework.
    Accredited organisations for PMP will include Tourqay Global Systems and ODESE Consulting(PRINCE2). These are the 2 I am sure of.

[size=16pt]PEOPLE PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS FORUM WAS STARTED TO INITIATE DISCUSSIONS AND RESOLVE ISSUES EXPERIENCED BY NIGERIAN PROJECT MANAGERS AROUND THE WORLD.PLEASE DO NOT POST ON THIS FORUM IF YOU ARE HERE TO JUST WASTE PEOPLES TIME BECAUSE IT IS NOT ENCOURAGING AND IS DETERRING EXPERIENCED PROJECT MANAGERS FROM CONTRIBUTING TO THE FORUM.[/size]

pbat,

I would advise you to study at home for your PRINCE2 Foundation exam that is not so challenging. For the Practitioner I would advise you try to get some experience before attempting to do the exam via home study. The PRINCE2 practitioner is a 3 hour open book exam. My PRINCE2 online material (manual 2005) will be made available (free of charge) for the benefit of all those that would like to do the PRINCE2 course in the future. Please note that the 2005 Foundation and Practitioner still remains valid. You can still take 2005 Foundation and then seat the 2009 Practitioner. 2005 Practitioner exams will only stop in December. Our 2009 PRINCE2 material will be made available from September 2009.

Gents,
Apologies for being absent for a while. Just had a new baby and launched a new product. Have also been having issues with my replies disappearing suddenly so gave up on Nairaland. Thought I should try again.

orisedude

email me at eddie_olobia@yahoo.co.uk for further information on PRINCE2 unless of course this message disappears again.

Regards

@crazylegs

You can check them out at www.torquayglobal.com/index.php and send them an email.

"how can project management impact on Nigerian economy positively?"

The Nigerian Economy is made up of two sectors. The Public and Private sectors. The operation of the private sector is dependent on the successful delivery of government policies and development programmes.

  I will focus on the public sector because of the ripple effect it has on the private sector.

Please note that that the objective of any project management methodology is to ensure successful delivery of projects within approved budget,time and quality. The expectation also is that any methodology should be adapted and embedded into a framework that suits the operation of that organisation.  Project management is not an antedote for corruption it is a mitigation of project failures.

The public sector can successfully deliver viable project outputs by adopting the use of a project management framework  tailored to meet it's various operations.
            I used the word "viable" because it is the key word to deem the success of project delivery. Presently there are numerous instances of projects in Nigeria that are signed off as completed(In the contractors mind) but have not delivered the intended output of a project.  These so called completed projects are unsuccessful in the project management sense as a result of not meeting the quality intended or not adding any value to the development of the public. One of the route causes of this issue is the lack of adequate risk management at the corporate/programme level in most cases the high level risks preventing the projects from moving from initiation to start or planning stage are never logged or managed.
      Project management instists on logging all risks and evaluating (at all stages) before moving to the next stage of approval to reduce the chances of more issues arising in succeeding stages. Any such issues would increase project cost, time and quality. Risks should never be allowed to become issues in a project.

        I will not touch the cost and schedule indicators too much because Nigerians have mastered these (In a sense) what the public sector struggles with is Quality management, Benefits realisation management and Project Transition management.         

I know some readers are seating at the edge of their seats and shaking their heads because I have not mentioned planning on the list.Planning is dependent on these initial factors i.e. if a comprehensive Benefits realisation analysis is not performed  properly then the project scope will be flawed from the start and the planning will yield invaluable output.(So cool down)

Successful delivery of government projects taking into account all the indicators(budget,time,quality) I mentioned above will improve on the realisation of project benefits to the public and private sectors of the governement.

    I will try and explain in more detail in my next note with an example by drilling down down further on the positive impacts of project management on the operations of suppliers (i.e government contractors), the sponsors(i.e. ministries,state governemnents and governement agencies) and the user (nigerian public/private sector)
    It will be easier to convince the interest groups than to give a wholistic view of positive impacts on the economy.

Hi guys,
    Sorry been rather busy,
 
     @kashif
As a result of not being directly involved in the 25 storey building project I was limited on what issues and risks had arisen from the project. It would be a lot easier to comment on failling projects I was directly involved with. Though I would rather hear of experiences in Nigeria as that is what this forum is for. Your comments have been taken on board.


  @bode228
Thanks for the contribution. Question to you though is what should the Project Manager do if he does not have the clout to convince stakeholders of their resposibilities on the board i.e. if for example the project manager is new and just taking over a failed project. What if he is more versed on Project Board responsibilities than the Sponsor or Project Director

I know I am playing devil's advocate here but I have come to realise that these are some of the issues that PM's face in Nigeria i.e how to manage ego's

Kashif,
   
     Finally someone else comes on board to share ideas. Let us make one thing categorically clear my statement about PMP was as follows
"PMP on the other hand completely ignores the initiation and Starting a project processes and goes straight into project implementation"

It would be wrong for me to say that PMP ignores planning so please do not misquote me

I did not start this forum to begin banter on which methodology is better than the other. In practice I have found that PRINCE2 and PMP complement each other and I say this because I have studied both materials.

The objective of Simultrain software is to give candidates the experience of performing the day to day roles and responsibilities of a project manager and is not PMBOK centric. It is based on the generic principles of managing projects it is not there to teach you any specific methodology.

One of the major points that I believe we both will agree on is that from the start a comprehensive Requirements/Design document should have been reviewed and the high level risks outlined (the use of a new software being one of them).

The question that you could answer for us from your experience is "how do you make management to review project documents properly, be accountable and have proper visibility of projects in Nigeria so that failure is minimized" Could it be the lack of skills maybe or no project governance structure and or no knowledge of their roles and responsibilities

Yes we do.

Prince2 is a Project Management methodology which originated from the UK OGC (Office of Government Commerce). It is widely used in the world and recognised because of it's control of change from initiation to closure.

PMP on the other hand completely ignores the initiation and Starting a project processes and goes straight into project implementation.


Both certifications are lucrative but the benefits to you will depend on what extent you will like to apply project management skills i.e do you just want to be a project manager and stop there or are would you want to move up the project management career ladder by being a Programme Manager  or Programme Office Manager.

1) If you would like a foot in the door to being a project manager you can achieve this by studying( and sitting for the PRINCE2 Foundation exam at any of the British council offices in Lagos,Port Harcourt or Abuja.ODESE will commence the online course on Jun 2009 for only ₦900 per hour)
You may also decide to go for the PMP course for which you must attend a class to qualify to seat the exam.

You will ideally need to take a Simultrain assisted course to help you in gaining the necessary job experience that you may not already have.


Simultrain is a Project Management Simulation Software that puts you in an virtual office where you manage a project from beginning to the end. You will be tasked with planning resources ,making decisions,dealing with team issues and so on. ODESE will commence this training at the end of June 2009 and you get a certificate which confirms that you successully attended a Project Management Simulation class.


2) On the other hand if you want to  become a consultant,trainer or Programme Manager the truth is to get some experience as a project manager first and then attempt to do the PRINCE2 Practitioner exam.


PRINCE2 Practitioners get paid as much as £300 to £800 a day in the UK depending on experience and sector. In Nigeria I know that PRINCE2 Practitioners are paid more money than PMP certificate holders.


PRINCE2 Practitioner exam is a lot tougher than PMP as it is a scenario based exam. I have known people to have repeated the Practitioner exam 4 to 5 times just because they were not practicing Project Managers.

With PMI you can go to the class take the course and do the multiple choice exam and pass it easily. The choice is yours really. There is a PMI institute in Lagos and they can advise you on where to a take the PMP exam if you choose to do so.

Mr Crackles you are right so tell me what challenges can you give as an example for people on this forum to learn from. I will try my best as a PRINCE2/MSP Practitioner with your help to tackle them. I want this forum to be very educative.

By the way are you studying by yourself for the qualification

There is a consultant in Nigeria that can provide you with some guidance on Six Sigma. He is my business partner . I do not need to know you to help you. Send a text to 08099443696 and he will call you back.

KNOWLEDGE NOT SHARED IS KNOWLEDGE LOST

A forum is necessary to discuss issues that project managers in Nigeria/Africa face and we try and resolve them on this thread. what challenges are you facing as a project manager.

NON PROJECT MANAGERS ARE INVITED. PROJECT MANAGEMENT IS COMMON SENSE

Nairalanders,
I believe that now there is a craze for project management certifications like PRINCE2,PMP