When I was getting starting in project management, PMI was about 3% of the size it is today. Its national profile was small, and its name recognition was limited, even within project management circles. One name that was widely known however, was Harold Kernzer. Having published his first project management book in the late 1970’s, his “Project Management: A Systems Approach to Planning, Scheduling and Controlling” was a project management standard in the days before the PMBOK® Guide existed.
In this article, published in the PM World Journal, January 2014, Kernzer discusses the evolution of project management training in general, and the specific value of the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)® certification.
“For more than thirty years, I have traveled the world conducting lectures, seminars and workshops on various aspects of project management. At each location, I am inevitably asked the same question: “What major changes have you seen in your career in project management?” Program participants expect me to talk about the PMBOK® Guide, program management, portfolio management, project management leadership, the PMO, Agile, and other such topics; however, they become quite surprised when I state the biggest change has been in the way we educate project managers.”