One source of major consternation for PMP aspirants are a category of the Project Management Framework called the ITTOs. “ITTOs” stand for Inputs, Outputs, Tools and Techniques. The framework currently is comprised of 49 project management processes that span five domains or process groups -- Initiating, Planning, Executing, Monitor and Control, and Closing. So, for all 49 of these processes there are items that go into the process (inputs), things we do while executing the process (tools and techniques) and results that come out of the process (outputs).  For example, let’s take one of the very first processes we do called “Develop Project Charter.” For this process an input would be the business case for why we are taking on this project. One of the tools used would be meetings, and, no surprise here, but the output is the Project Charter.

That’s simple enough, but when you consider that all 49 processes have multiple ITTOs, you quickly realize that it can be quite confusing to r...

Thanks for stopping by, my name is Dan Ryan and I am PMP and PMI-ACP certified and I have been helping people pass the PMP Exam since 2011. This is a regular series of Project Management coaching videos that I am producing and sending to my followers. If you like it, please register to continue to have them sent to you weekly.

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Thanks for stopping by, my name is Dan Ryan and I am PMP and PMI-ACP certified and I have been helping people pass the PMP Exam since 2011. This is a regular series of Project Management coaching videos that I am producing and sending to my followers. If you like it, please register to continue to have them sent to you weekly.

Over the years of coaching and training people for the PM Exam, I have come to understand that people are really quite intrigued by the concept of different learning styles.  There are some different classifications out there but basically we are talking things like; Linguistic, Kinesthetic, Visual, Interpersonal and so on. 

I have found that the overwhelming majority of people really, really want to consider themselves ‘visual’ learners.  If my research is accurate (and I have asked thousands of people) visual learning is the only way people learn!  As I looked into this topic I started asking myself, why is it that people feel like visual learning is so cool that they have become enamored with it? 

In the effort of fairness I may have tilted some people towards this answer by asking something like “You know a lot of my students are visual learners, what about you”? Practically, 100% of the people agree when asked that way. 

I think that the truth is that we all have a blended lear...

Are you someone who has failed your PMP® exam and you are wondering what to do next?
You have come to the right person, as I am the PM Tutor and have helped a number of PMP® students with good advice and beneficial tools and techniques.

Just as when learning to ride a bicycle, someone may fall and usually, right away they get right back up to continue to learn how to ride that bicycle.
Besides attending my live 6 hour webinar, you can follow my simple recommendations:

• Schedule your PMP® exam as soon as possible before the March 26th deadline, even if you must travel and the center is not nearby www.prometric.com ;

• Take advantage of my professional coaching which will provide a clear understanding of the PMI concepts and framework;

• Purchase my recommended PMP® test simulator.

Okay so you have studied very diligently for the PMP® exam according to the PMBOK® Guide – Fifth Edition, and maybe you have paid for and attended classes that provided great supporting materials, as well paid for and received a number of valuable professional coaching sessions, which were of tremendous value!

Maybe you have also taken many practice PMP® exams as instructed and scored very well, and now you are very confident of your knowledge of the Project Management Framework, as based on the PMBOK® Guide – Fifth Edition.

But then suddenly you have a dilemma which is that you cannot find any availability at any nearby Prometric Testing Center, to schedule the PMP® exam based on the PMBOK Guide® – Fifth Edition, before March 26th, and you do not want to take the PMP® exam based on the PMBOK Guide® – Sixth Edition, which starts on March 26th.

What should you do?

As a the PM Exam Coach, I can help as I know there are many sincere and diligent PMP®students, that have encountered the...

My name is Brian Fink and I have been involved in some kind of project management for most of my career, nine years as a chemical engineer and the last eighteen years in IT. I earned my PMP® certification in 2015 and one of the keys to that success was taking multiple simulation exams. Now that I am writing questions for simulators, I work hard to understand the way that PMI® wants someone to think about project management. First, I pick a concept that the question will be about. I come up with the core question and the correct answer. I then expand the question to include a situation and complete the answers with the explanation. What I enjoy most about this is seeing how people work to get to the correct answers especially if they are working to understand a new concept that they have not encountered in their previous experience.

After working as a digital project manager for fifteen years in the fast-paced dot-com world, I made the decision to apply for certification, broaden my horizons so-to-speak. Had it figured out at this point, right? After all, I should be teaching these courses, not attending. I knew how to manage, how to implement, execute, monitor, and close. Oh, and here comes the yet. Yet, I did not know the philosophy, the standardization, the why to the how. That is what I learned. And here’s how I did it, passing the exam on the first pass, above target in three out of the five processes, target on the other two.

Aside from the PMI-requisites, I worked with Dan and While the instructions were direct and dead-on, what truly helped were access to the resources provided. Spreadsheets filled with the ITTOs (and you got to know these, brother), PowerPoint decks and PDFs breaking down the ins-and-the-outs of the Knowledge Areas, and best of all, access to test exams. These were the true compass point...

On investigating on ways to pass the PMP® exam, in a short space of time, I came upon Shiv notes and how to pass the exam within 5 weeks. A free webinar was introduced and I watched it. I did not understand the integration concept and how quality and scope was tied in initially and the way it was explained I was in awe and was sold.
My preparation from then was following the 5 week plan from here. This I completed within 4 weeks. During this time I also practiced writing down the ITTOS daily after completing each knowledge area. I understood most of them, but practicing them daily made it easier to remember. I then reviewed each topic with the Rita Mulcahy Book. I did not read the entire book, I just read the notes and did the questions on each topic. I utilized the free simulators that were recommended and I was consistently scoring in my 80s. I also downloaded a PMP® App on my phone that provided PMP® questions on each knowledge area. I was consistently doing some form of PMP® studies...

Started my PMP® journey with attending an accredited PMI® Course. This lasted about 8 weeks and was a refresh on everything I learned about Project Management in a one year course I took with University of Irvine/SCE in 2014. In retrospect, I should have taken the test at that time, when all the information was fresh.

I knew obtaining the PMP® Certification (official accreditation) was necessary due to changing qualifications at work and also, to make myself more marketable in the future. I have felt the last two months working with Dan Ryan and Cornelius and all their tools, has actually made the difference in being ready for the actual test in the Prometric Center. I had never taken such a test and the timing, intensity, strategy and overall knowledge learning with all the tools, weekend class, simulator, newsletter, presentations, tips and practical practice has made me a very strong Project Manager, not only to pass the PMP® Test, but in my in my future interviews and career advan...