PMI-ACP certificate

There is an interesting certificate from the Project Management Institute called PMI-ACP which stands for PMI Agile Certified Professional.

After the PMP certificate which is well known, but dealing with the Waterfall approach, this new certificate is oriented towards now emerging Agile approach of managing projects. It is no wonder that it is currently the most taken exam on PMI.

Prerequisities are:

• 2,000 hours of general project experience working on teams. A current PMP® or PgMP® will satisfy this requirement but is not required to apply for the PMI-ACP.

• 1,500 hours working on agile project teams or with agile methodologies. This requirement is in addition to the 2,000 hours of general project experience.

• 21 contact hours of training in agile practices.

What I find interesting is a list of books that are suggested as reading, to prepare for this certificate and I believe it is a good list for everyone who is working as an Agile Project Manager. List can be found here: http://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/certifications/agile-gain-insights.pdf

There is also an examination content outline, which can serve great as a guideline of the topics one should focus on as an Agile Project Manager. You can find those topics here: http://www.pmi.org/-/media/pmi/documents/public/pdf/certifications/agile-certified-exam-outline.pdf

Taken from there (but do visit the link for even more in depth details):

• Agile Principles and Mindset
  Explore, embrace, and apply agile principles and mindset within the context of the project team and organization. 
• Value-Driven Delivery
  Deliver valuable results by producing high-value increments for review, early and often, based on stakeholder priorities. Have the stakeholders provide feedback on these increments, and use this feedback to prioritize and improve future increments. 
• Stakeholder EngagementEngage current and future interested parties by building a trusting environment that aligns their needs and expectations and balances their requests with an understanding of the cost/effort involved. Promote participation and collaboration throughout the project life cycle and provide the tools for effective and informed decision making.
• Team Performance
  Create an environment of trust, learning, collaboration, and conflict resolution that promotes team self-organization, enhances relationships among team members, and cultivates a culture of high performance. 
• Adaptive Planning
  Produce and maintain an evolving plan, from initiation to closure, based on goals, values, risks, constraints, stakeholder feedback, and review findings. 
• Problem Detection and Resolution
  Continuously identify problems, impediments, and risks; prioritize and resolve in a timely manner; monitor and communicate the problem resolution status; and implement process improvements to prevent them from occurring again. 
• Continuous Improvement (Product, Process, People)Continuously improve the quality, effectiveness, and value of the product, the process, and the team.