Hilma Kadhepa, Engelbeth Djami, and Mike Greeff recently earned the coveted designation of project management professional (PMP), which is the premier project management certification in the industry.
“There are now about 15 PMPs in Namibia,” Grafton Whyte, director of the Namibia Business School (NBS), said as he explained the school's efforts to improve the standard of project management in Namibia.
Greeff, a civil engineer at Lithon Project Consultants, explained why he pursued the PMP.
“First, as a manager of projects, I wanted to become better in what I do day to day. Second, I wanted to obtain a project management credential that was internationally recognised.”
Kadhepa, a business applications manager at Silnam IT Solutions, added that “with a PMP, I will be continuously exposed to best practices and emerging trends in project management,” referring to the 60 professional development units (PDUs) which PMPs must complete every three years to maintain their designation.
Qualified project managers are in high demand in the country for a wide range of sectors such as construction, agriculture, ICT, mining, healthcare and the government in general.
A PwC survey showed that certified PMPs handle more than three-quarters of the high-performing projects. Also, companies with more than one-third of PMP certified managers have much better project success than companies which do not.
The candidates had to document their project management experience and complete project management training to be eligible to sit for the PMP examination.
After being deemed “eligible” by the Project Management Institute (PMI), they then had to sit for the PMP examination. Djami, a project manager at First National Bank Namibia, said he prepared for the examination over a one-year period.
According to Katrina Simon-Agolory, a manager at NBS; “The process of earning the PMP fundamentally changes the way one thinks about and manages projects, which in turns leads to improved results for business, the government and the country as a whole.”
The next NBS' PMP boot camp is scheduled for 16 to 20 September 2019, which culminates with participants sitting for the PMP examination in Windhoek in early 2020.