PfMP® Intellicamp Course Outline

Course Description for PfMP IntelliCamp

I. Description

With the latest certification in Portfolio Management from the Project Management Institute (PMI)®, PMI has effectively raised the bar as well as the recognition of the entire project professional. In the broad scope of project-related disciplines, portfolio management presents the pinnacle of the profession. Consequently, we at PMO Advisory strongly support PMI in this effort to build on this body of knowledge and to advance the certifications.

We believe the Portfolio Management Professional (PfMP)® certification can help project professionals not only be more secure in their jobs and vocations, but also a stop toward the formal recognition of their skills, experiences, capabilities, and importance to the their organization.

The PfMP credential is more like the PgMP® then PMP®. Like PgMP, the PfMP exam is very experienced based but with the added difficulty of obtaining senior executive experiences. PMP is also heavily experienced-based, but most professionals can emulate or imagine the specific project-level activities. It is much more difficult for the PgMP and PfMP as there are far fewer portfolio and program managers. Perhaps even more important, the trajectory of professionals attempting and passing the PfMP is also likely to be closer to PgMP (which there are less than 1,200 professionals after nearly 8 years) than PMP (of which there are about 650k). This is partly due to the qualifications, but also due to the exam rigor and the credential process.

What makes our Intellicamp unique is that it is taught by not only a certified PfMP instructor but also an experienced portfolio manager. It is “intelligent” as the bootcamp is not just sheer memorization of facts. Instead, we use a more Socratic method of presenting questions and answers. This way, you will be more mentally prepared to tackle the difficult experienced based questions. By creating a small and structured environment, you are able to accelerate the learning and complete the PfMP preparation in less than 30 days.

 

II. Time Commitment – Accelerated

The PfMP Intelicamp is designed for busy project professionals with a razor focus on passing the exam. Unlike many PMP boot camps that run for 4 business days, we have substantially reduced the class time to 1) fit your busy schedule and 2) focus on the essential activities required to pass the exam. This class will not cover in great length the general project portfolio management theories and concepts. We already assume you have the knowledge and experience.

From an effort perspective, we believe the bootcamp candidates must budget between 80-120 hours over a month in preparation for the exam. Here is roughly how this time will be allocated:

  • 8-10 hours of online or in-class bootcamp
  • 30-40 hours of reading and truly understanding the Standard for Portfolio Management 3rd Learning the terminologies and their meaning is essential for passing the exam.
  • 20-30 hours of reading the “Sensible Guide to Passing the PfMP Exam” book and other course materials including tackling the exam questions
  • 10-25 hours of practice exams in each of the five knowledge areas (2 hours each knowledge area)
  • 10-15 hours of practice exams going through the mock exam at least twice (4 hours per mock exam plus time to review the answers)

 

III. Assumptions

We designed our PfMP Intellicamp with the following assumptions, and we assume all our participants agree with this set of assumptions before registering for our bootcamp. The three assumptions are as follows:

  • All bootcamp participants are seasoned working professionals with the minimal required qualifications as specified in the PfMP qualifications by PMI. Click here to see details.
  • All bootcamp participants understand the need to read thoroughly and understand the content of the Standard for Portfolio Management 3rd edition (aka. Portfolio Standard) before the bootcamp. This is a basic and essential requirement as the exam is based on the terminologies and concepts of this book. Unless you are willing to dedicate the effort to read this book, enrolling in this bootcamp will likely be a waste of your time and money.
  • All bootcamp participants agree to perform the tasks specified in our bootcamp diligently. From PMO Advisory’s perspective, we will help you pass the exam in a one-year time frame. Thus, we also have a substantial stake (and risk) by accepting you into our program.

We track progress via our online practice exams, and if we start seeing significant delays or deteriorations, we will warn you. As long as you are making progress, we are committed to support you through our various mechanisms for a period of one year.
 

IV. Aim

The purpose of the Boot Camp is simple – prepare busy project professionals for passing the PfMP exam, ideally on the first attempt.

 

V. All Inclusive

For our PfMP Intellicamp, we offer a comprehensive suite of support options.  These include the following:

  1. Web-based delivery of content (see below for schedule type)
  2. Full access to online practice exam for a year
  3. “Sensible Guide to Passing the PfMP Exam” book
  4. Courtesy and high-level review of the application
  5. Invitation only to a LinkedIn forum for ongoing Q&A
  6. Free exam aids and other course content
  7. “The Standard for Portfolio Management” book Third Edition (Non-PMI Member Only)

Most importantly, you can attend additional PfMP Intellicamp sessions for a period of up to 1 year or until you pass the exam.

 

VI. Content

We have organized the PfMP bootcamp into nine sections; the first eight sections correspond to chapters in the Portfolio Standard and our Sensible Guide. The ninth and final session is a wrap up. The timing of each section varies, from 15 – 90 minutes, with an average of 60 minutes each.

Note: For the PfMP Intellicamp, we intentionally schedule all the sessions 30 minutes longer, just in case we need the extra time to get ready along with ample time for Q&A.

 

1.    Preparing for the Exam

  • Understand the PfMP qualification process and requirements
  • Manage the exam room environment and timing
  • Develop a preparation strategy for you (we have our recommendations, but it must be your plan).
  • Understand the recommended exam aids that you should consider (and customize for yourself).

 

2.    How to think like a portfolio manager

  • Understand the business rationale for the existence and advancement of portfolio management
  • Get into the mind of a portfolio manager as you tackle the experience-based questions in the exam
  • Be able to articulate a simple framework that outlines the primary skills and roles of portfolio managers

 

3. Portfolio Management Process Group

  • Articulate the three process groups in the current standard for portfolio management
  • Discuss the key differences between Portfolio, Program, and Project management

 

4-8. Strategic Alignment, Governance Management, Performance Management, Communication Management, and Risk Management

  • Understand the goals of these knowledge areas
  • Address and explore the key business questions that underpin each of these knowledge areas
  • Explain the business and practical challenges that are common and systemic
  • Describe and present the representative tools, techniques, and other assets
  • Discuss some tricky questions and pitfalls that may come up on the exam

 

9. Wrap Up

  • Review the lessons learned in the Boot Camp, including the lesson plans, exam aids, managing test time, and preparing the mind for the exam
  • Address any questions from the practice exams
  • Wishing you good luck and we look forward to celebrating your success which is also our success!

 

On the knowledge areas, we based our materials on PMI’s examination content outline (ECO). But we dive far deeper into those tasks. For example, in the ECO, there are 8 tasks listed for Strategic Alignment. Our content contains 26 tasks/sub-tasks for Strategic Alignment. What we share is our consulting approach, and thus this is another way why this bootcamp is highly “intelligent”.

 

VII. Schedule Type

For your convenience, we currently offer our PfMP bootcamp in two modes:

  • Type 1 is based on three sessions, each session to be approximately 3-3.5 hours typically delivered in the early afternoon (in New York) from 6:30 – 10:00 PM. We will consider early afternoon sessions too, which is more practical for professionals in Europe.
  • Type 2 is onsite delivery. For companies wishing to train more than 3 people, we can consider coming to deliver the training in one day (slightly longer day than usual). Participants continue to qualify for all the benefits mentioned in Section V including attending additional PfMP Intellicamp sessions online or in our Northern NJ office for a period of one year.

 

Do you have any additional questions? If yes, please email us at cert@pmoadvisory.com.
 

PMI, PMP, PgMP, and PfMP are registered marks of Project Management Institute, Inc.