Project Management Training Guide (Courses + Processes)

Erica Chappell

Managing Editor

July 1, 2020

Max 12min read

Ready for some project management training?

Having the right training is vital for managing projects effectively.

However, sometimes, it can be as challenging and confusing as understanding The Matrix!

But with the right resources, techniques, and project management certification, it’s not going to be that difficult.

So what exactly is project management training?

In this article, you’ll learn what project management training is and why you need it. We’ll also cover three ways to get the training you need to become an efficient project manager.

And when it comes to training, who better to help you out than the person who found Neo –– Morpheus!

(If you haven’t seen the Matrix, Neo is ‘The One’ prophesied to save the world, and Morpheus trained him in everything he knows!)

This Article Contains:

Let’s get started.

What Is Project Management Training?

Project management training is a process that boosts an individual’s project management skills and knowledge. Usually conducted by trained professionals, this can be a course, seminar, conference, or even a webinar.

Expert Tip:
Study up on project management methodologies and be sure to network whenever possible.

While a training course helps you prepare for a certification exam, it also helps you become an efficient project manager.

How?

You don’t have to wait to finish your certification program to use the knowledge and skills you gain during the project management course!

I mean, Neo didn’t wait to use his skills until he started his final battle against Smith, right?

For example, let’s say you’re a project manager and during the training course you’re taught how to optimize project execution. You can immediately implement that knowledge into your project plan and save both time and resources!

But is project management training that important?

Definitely!

As the complexity of a project increases, the need for improved skills and knowledge also rises. Whether it’s a new skill or new technology, you need to be equipped to successfully complete all kinds of projects –– regardless of complexity or constraints.

So how does this training make you a better project manager?

Let’s find out.

Why Do You Need Project Management Training?

Sure, project management training courses enhance your skillset and help you become a certified project management professional.

But that isn’t the only benefit you get!

When Neo’s skills evolved, he was able to use them outside the Matrix too, right?

We bet he uses that trick at all his parties…

Similarly, project management training provides tons of benefits, other than getting yourself a shiny new certificate.

During the course of project management training, you learn skills like:

Setting critical goals for your team
Efficient project plan and execution
Project risk management
Project team collaboration
Common project management terminology
Resource management

How does this help?

You gain the knowledge to handle complex situations the right way and catch problems before they become worse.

By setting critical goals, you’ll ensure that all the stages of the project development process are planned out and prioritized. This helps your project run smoothly and provide a successful outcome.

Additionally, efficient resource management brings down the cost for the current project, which you can later invest in future ones!

All this sounds great, but how do you undergo the training?

Here are three simple ways to do that…

3 Ways To Get Project Management Training

Why do you think everyone believed in the Oracle’s prophecy?

Because her predictions always turned out true!

Similarly, to ensure you’re getting accurate project management training, you need to learn from trusted sources.

So here are three reliable sources to get project management training from:

1. Enroll in training courses from accredited institutions

Tons of accredited institutions offer widely-accepted certifications across various industries.

They also provide project management training courses to help you prepare for the certification exam. From individuals with minimal experience to trained professionals, there’s a course for each experience level.

Here’s a look at two popular accredited institutions and the certifications they offer:

A. Project Management Institute (PMI)

The Project Management Institute offers globally recognized, cross-industry certifications and courses. Available in multiple languages, they offer basic knowledge in project management — with a special emphasis on Agile project management.

You can even use these project management training courses to maintain your PMI certification as they all provide Professional Development Units (PDUs) and Continuing Education Units (CEUs).

Wait… what’s a PDU and CEU?

PDU: a unit established by the PMI to measure an individual’s professional development
CEU: a unit of credit equal to 10 hours of participation in an accredited project management class

To maintain PMI certifications, you must earn 30 or 60 PDUs (depending on the type of certification) in a 3 year cycle. You can earn them by writing articles, giving keynote addresses, or just simply doing your job.

What certifications are offered?

Each PMI certification is developed by certified professionals based on rigorous project management standards and continuous research.

They offer various certifications, like:

CAPM Certification (Certified Associate in Project Management): an entry-level certification for practitioners who’d like to manage larger projects
PMP Certification (Project Management Professional): a PMP certification helps credential holders manage all project stages effectively. CAPM certification (or 35 hours of training/education) is a prerequisite for this project management credential.

For more information on the PMP exam and PMP training, click here.

What courses are offered?

While PMI offers several training courses, here’s a look at two of them:

1. Project Management Basics

It’s a foundation-level online course that helps you hone your project management skills and prepare for the CAPM certification. This course is validated by CAPM and PMP certification holders.

It offers 20-minute hands-on modules and a 3-hour practice exam.

With Project Management Basics training course you earn:

23 PDUs
2.3 CEUs

Course pricing

For members of the Project Management Institute: $350
For non-members: $400

2. Introduction to Project Management

It’s an online training course for individuals who want to learn project management basics or project managers who want to increase their PMBOK knowledge.

What’s the PMBOK Guide?

PMBOK Guide (A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge) is PMI’s flagship publication. Developed by active project management practitioners and experts, it provides knowledge on effective project management techniques.

The Introduction to Project Management course is a self-paced course that equips you with all the knowledge you need for effectively managing tasks and projects. Each module comes with a pre and post-assessment to help you measure your progress.

This training course teaches concepts mentioned in the PMBOK Guide, like:

Project fundamentals
Quality control
Creating a project budget
Planning and risk management

With Introduction to Project Management training course, you earn:

23 PDUs
2.3 CEUs

Course pricing

For members of the Project Management Institute: $300
For non-members: $350

B. Master of Project Academy

Master of Project Academy is an online project management training provider that offers different courses taught by experienced professionals.

What courses are offered?

It gives you a PRINCE2 training bundle to help you prepare for the PRINCE2 certification.

Offered by AXELOS Ltd, the PRINCE2 Certification (Projects in Controlled Environments) covers domains such as resource and project risk management, team roles, etc.

PRINCE2 Certification offers two levels of certification:

PRINCE2 Foundation: provides basic knowledge of project management
PRINCE2 Practitioner level: an advanced project management certification for any experienced project manager who has cleared the PRINCE2 Foundation exam

The Master of Project Academy’s PRINCE2 training bundle offers:

50 hours of Foundation and Practitioner certification training designed by industry experts
450+ practice questions
Sample exam modules

Course pricing

For monthly subscription: $107/month
For yearly subscription: $857/year

C. Scrum Alliance

Scrum Alliance offers certifications related to Agile practices, principles and values. These certifications are meant for individuals interested in Scrum team roles and Agile leadership.

What certifications are offered?

While it offers various Scrum team role certifications, its ScrumMaster Track offers three levels of certification:

Certified ScrumMaster (CSM): the CSM certification is for professionals who want to manage a Scrum team
Advanced Certified ScrumMaster (A-CSM): an advanced certification course for Scrum Masters with one or more years of experience. The CSM certification is a prerequisite for this certification.
Certified Scrum Professional – ScrumMaster (CSP-SM): this is the highest tier course in the ScrumMaster Track for certified Scrum professionals

What courses are offered?

Scrum Alliance offers tons of online and in-person training courses conducted by Certified Scrum Trainers.

For the CSM certification you can opt for any online workshop available at the time. They’re usually 2-day classroom training sessions. Each workshop ends with an open book exam, which contains 50 multiple choice questions and has a time limit of 60 minutes.

The CSM training course deals with topics like:

Agile and Scrum foundation
Agile Manifesto adherence
Product vision
Prioritization and estimation
Scrum roles

Course pricing

The cost of the online training course is covered in the certification price, which ranges between $1000-1400.

2. Attend seminars, conferences, and other events

Project management training conferences are live events that are usually held every year, covering the latest developments in the industry.

These interactive events not only provide knowledge for managing projects, but also help the project management community grow.

They are conducted by certified professionals who also provide hands-on training modules.

Sort of like Neo’s virtual combat training with Morpheus inside the Matrix:

Here are two conferences you could attend:

A. PMI Global Conference

PMI Global Conference is an annual project management conference, usually held in October. It’s a three-day event that covers various topics in Agile as well as general project management.

You can earn up to 18 PDUs from this conference to maintain your PMI certification.

B. Association of Project Management Conference

This UK-based conference covers modern project management topics such as Power of the Profession, Sustainability, and Investing in the Profession (these were covered in the 2019 conference).

2020’s topics include “Power of Projects” and “Women in Project Management”.

(Don’t worry, it’s a virtual conference in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.)

The APM conference gives you an opportunity to learn about the latest project management techniques and also earn hours for Continuing Professional Development (CPD).

What’s CPD?

CPD is the process of documenting the knowledge, skills, and experience that you gain when you work after your initial training.

3. Participate in training webinars

You could learn techniques by just uploading training programs inside the Matrix, right?

Lucky you, Neo.

While it’s not that simple for us mortals stuck in real life, training webinars help you learn things virtually.

But what’s a training webinar?

These are live events conducted by certified professionals over the internet. They cover simple as well as complex project management concepts to help you understand all aspects of project management. The participants can even interact with the hosts to ask questions in real time.

What if you can’t attend it live?

Don’t worry!

Usually, these events are recorded so you can access them later too.

Here are two webinars you could participate in:

A. Project Management Institute webinars

The Project Management Institute offers a library of webinars that cover project management trends, best practices and guidance tutorials. You can use these webinars to improve your project management skills and become an excellent project management professional quickly.

For every hour spent on any PMI webinar, you earn 1 PDU.

These webinars are free for PMI members (others have to become subscribers by paying $129/year).

B. Scrum Alliance webinars

Conducted by trained professionals, Scrum Alliance’s live, interactive webinars are only available to its subscribed members. However, anyone can watch the replays for free. Topics covered in the webinar include Agile leadership, Scrum fundamentals, collaboration at scales, and more.

How To Put Your Project Management Training To Use

You’ve completed your training and even obtained a project management certification.

But how do you use this knowledge and skills to manage real life (especially remote) projects?

With the help of project management tools!

Project management tools are like programs within the Matrix –– each one is built to perform a specific set of functions. You can use these platforms for effectively managing tasks, task dependencies, and collaborating with your project teams.

And ClickUp is The One of all project management tools!

But what’s ClickUp?

ClickUp is the highest-rated project management tool in the world.

Whether it’s creating a project plan, assigning tasks, or tracking progress — ClickUp’s the only tool you need!

Here’s how ClickUp makes managing projects super easy for in-house as well as remote teams:

1. Manage projects with Tasks, Subtasks, Checklists

Keeping the Sentinels off the Dock was challenging, right?

But with simple task assignments, the people of Zion were able to fight them off!

Similarly, with ClickUp you can create Tasks, Subtasks, and Checklists to break down your projects into simple tasks and manage them easily.

Here’s how it works:

Tasks and Subtasks: create and assign tasks to project team members and split them into subtasks to help your team know exactly what to do. This helps them tackle the project one task or subtask at a time.
Checklists: break down complex tasks as simple to-do lists which can be checked off as you complete them

2. Box View and Profiles for viewing everyone’s tasks

Remember those Zion Council meetings?

They took forever, right?

As a project manager, you don’t have the time for long, drawn-out meetings to check-in on your team members.

Luckily, ClickUp’s Profiles provide a detailed overview of each project team member’s assignments in seconds!

You’ll quickly know their:

Recently completed tasks
Current tasks
Upcoming tasks

But wait… that’s not all you can do in this project management tool!

ClickUp’s Box view provides a visual overview of all the assigned projects and tasks. A project manager only needs a glance to identify the work distribution across their entire team!

This way, you can quickly identify how tasks are progressing and evenly distribute workloads to avoid overworking your team.

3. Comments for real-time collaboration

When the crewmembers were connected into the Matrix, who provided information on events, resources and security?

The Operator!

Similarly, ClickUp’s Comment section acts as the Operator for your projects.

It facilitates all project-related communication within the team.

How does it work?

Each ClickUp task comes with a dedicated comment space.

You can use this section to:

Exchange project related information
Share relevant files and links easily
Assign comments to specific team members to ensure that your comments aren’t overlooked

4. Custom task statuses to track progress

Most project management tools have built-in statuses to help you track project progress.

However, most of these statuses are irrelevant to your project.

A status like “Editing” wouldn’t be useful for your Nebuchadnezzar recruitment process, right?

This is why ClickUp lets you create customized task statuses that reflect your project stages accurately! For example, Morpheus can create a “group interview” stage for the recruitment process.

And the best part?

All you need is a look at a task’s status to know what stage it’s in!

5. Powerful Dashboards for visual overviews

With so many project parameters, how do you make managing projects easy?

By using ClickUp’s Dashboards!

Project Dashboards are your personal mission control center for a high-level view of your project workspace.

Sort of like the Architect’s view of the Matrix:

For quick visual overviews of your project, Dashboards give you graphs, like:

Burndown Chart: shows the work left to be completed in a project
Burnup Chart: displays the work your team has completed so far
Cumulative Workflow Chart: track your project’s progress and backlogs (project scope)
Velocity Chart: helps gauge your team’s average completion rate

What’s more?

You can even customize your Dashboard to suit your team’s needs with various widgets, like:

Custom: use charts and text fields to view the metrics you want to track
Sprints: visualize the progress of your Agile and Scrum sprints
Statuses: group and view ClickUp Statuses as charts or numbers
Tags: form charts of the Tags used in your workspace
Assignees: depict tasks according to the assigned member
Priorities: view tasks according to their Priorities

However, ClickUp’s not limited to these abilities!

At ClickUp, we try to be like The Keymaker –– opening doors to countless features!

To help you achieve project success, this project management tool gives you tons of other features like:

Project Management Automation: automate hundreds of project actions to save time
Team Reporting: track your team’s in-house or remote work performance in real time
Collaboration Detection: know when someone works on the same task as you
Notepad: a personal notepad to quickly note down anything
Pulse: know your team’s activity across a specific day
Goals: set and track critical goals for your projects
Dependencies: ensure that the tasks are attempted in the right sequence
Gantt View: calculate the critical path for your tasks with ClickUp’s flexible Gantt charts
Native Time Tracking: track the time your tasks and projects take in ClickUp
Mobile Apps: manage projects from your iOS and Android devices