More than a dozen members of the construction industry are this week taking part in an intensive five-day programme to receive professional qualifications in project management.

The certification course is being offered by the UK-based Association for Project Management (APM) in conjunction with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Instructor and founder of JC Consultancy John Colville told that after passing a mandatory examination at the end of the course, the professional qualification will give participants an advantage over their competitors. ?If you are bidding for work it should set you apart from the rest because you are saying, ?I can do this?,? Mr. Colville said, adding that the course focuses on the management of commercial, financial and organisational sides of a project. A large portion also focuses on people skills such as good communication.

?A project manager is someone who organises a project to a given time scale with a certain standard and to a cost and hopefully they bring the project in within time and on budget,? Mr. Colville said. ?There are a lot of people who actually say I?m a project manager, but they don?t really know what project management is and that is where the course comes into such good use because it formalises an individual?s approach to project management in an internationally recognised body of knowledge.?

The qualification process, which involves a rigorous examination, will assess participants? breadth of knowledge in all areas of project management from the strategic and commercial implications of their role, to the technical, commercial, organisational and people management skills required to successfully participate in a project team. Candidates for the APMP qualification must have a combination of experience and education before sitting the exam. ?To be a good project manager, you really need to have some life experience as well as technical knowledge,? says Mr. Colville. ?That?s why we insist on the combination of experience and education.?

Although the participants are all associated with the construction industry, the APM has members whose projects range from technology systems to major event management. Its key objectives are to develop and promote project management across all sectors of the industry and beyond. Mr. Colville said: ?The APMP examination is an important tool for architects and surveyors since it assures others in the industry that an individual understands the practical realities of executing a large projects.?

The course has been so popular it will be offered again in Bermuda from May 9 to 12.