Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #125338 in Books
• Published on: 2001-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 216 pages

Customer Reviews

Necessary but not sufficient for the PMP exam
This PMBOK book is really a document of the PMBOK standard. As a standards document, it is fairly well done. If you plan to join the Project Management Institute, keep in mind that this book is free with PMI membership but only in CD-ROM format.

Like the other reviewers of this book pointed out, this book should not be the only preparation for the PMP exam and does not cover all the subjects on the exam. Nevertheless, I found reading through it once (even though it has a definite tendency to put me to sleep) an important preparation for the PMP exam. It is true that not all subjects in the exam are covered by this book, e.g. professional responsibilities, communication, leadership approaches, etc. To prepare for the exam, it is best to also use an exam prep book. In this regard, I found the book by Kim Heldman (and the CD-ROM that came with it) very helpful for passing the exam. I passed the exam after preparing with this book and Heldman's book, and it was not a marginal sort of pass.

If you plan to get an exam prep book, make sure that it is recently published (2002 or later), preferrably with lot of sample questions to practise with. The PMP exam underwent major changes in 2002 and started placing a lot of emphasis on testing understanding based on specific scenarios. Probably because of this, I did not find passing the exam requires much brute-force memorization.

Do not panic,
For those new to this book it is pretty much the project manager's bible in the same sense that "The C Programming Language" by Brian W Kernighan, Dennis M. Ritchie is to programming. That is to say this is the one to get off the ground with. It is also the basis of the PMP (Project Management Professional) test given by the PMI® (Project Management Institute.)

It comes in both paper, and CD-ROM using Adobe Reader. I have seen the paper book but bought the CD version it includes a tutorial on how to use the CD-ROM media. The media is a mater of preference. There are 425 pages and a good index and references.

Be aware that there are earlier versions. At the time of this review this is the latest version; however as The Body of Knowledge advances so will the PMBOK (Project Management Body of Knowledge Guide ®.) There for it is advisable for people that have read the earlier version to now read this version as a few terms have changed and some emphases have shifted.

As with any institutional book this is a good starting place or a solid foundation. However it may not cover concentrating on the waterfall concept of project management many instances such as the Unified method among others. They also do not take in many external influences as FDA requirements. And it is up to the reader to reconcile the two institutions.

Some changes to the Third Edition:

* Differences in Project life cycle and product life cycle are better explained.

* The number of process changed from 39 to 44.

* A greater emphasis is placed on the importance of Process Groups.

* Chapter three "Project Management Process for a Project" is moved and renamed "The Standard for Project Management of a Project."

* The project management processes now show process integration.

Essential reference fo PMP
This book is a good reference and should be used as a reference book. You need to know the content of this book to pass the PMP. However, don't use thie book at the only source of study. Get a copy of Andy Crowe's "The PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try" and "The Ultimate PMP Study Aid" (from ebay).

By the way, when your join the PMI memnbership, they will send a CDROM verson of the book free.