Professional certificate in Project Management or Green Belt in 6 Sigma
February 12, 2013 6:39 AM Subscribe
Professional certificate in Project Management or Green Belt in 6 Sigma, which one is better for the resume or the career in general?
Hi, my SO is being given the option through her work to either get a professional certificate in Project Management or a Green Belt in Six Sigma. Does anyone have experience with these and know which is worth more on a resume or for a career in general? She currently works for a large international bank and wants to advance her career so her boss gave her the option of these two. He did mention that it would be easier to sign off on the Six Sigma course and that it also was a good networking opportunity if that makes a difference.
The professional certificate in Project Management would be from a university but is obviously not a degree.
Thanks!
Hi, my SO is being given the option through her work to either get a professional certificate in Project Management or a Green Belt in Six Sigma. Does anyone have experience with these and know which is worth more on a resume or for a career in general? She currently works for a large international bank and wants to advance her career so her boss gave her the option of these two. He did mention that it would be easier to sign off on the Six Sigma course and that it also was a good networking opportunity if that makes a difference.
The professional certificate in Project Management would be from a university but is obviously not a degree.
Thanks!
The PMP will be more portable from what I've seen. Six Sigma gets some eyerolls by people who subscribe to other process management methodologies -- or don't subscribe to any one.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 7:18 AM on February 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 7:18 AM on February 12, 2013 [1 favorite]
Six Sigma belts generally don't carry much weight outside of the company you got them in, so if she's considering a company change at any time, she should be aware that a Green Belt is going to be a big fat nothing on her resume anywhere else.
posted by xingcat at 7:19 AM on February 12, 2013
posted by xingcat at 7:19 AM on February 12, 2013
Response by poster: Thanks! I'll run these by her. She didn't mention whether the PM Certificate would be for a CAPM or a PMP.
posted by modoriculous at 7:29 AM on February 12, 2013
posted by modoriculous at 7:29 AM on February 12, 2013
It's hard to answer this kind of question without knowing what your SO does and what her goals are. Personally, I've found employees who pursue these kinds of certificates to not be very impressive but perhaps there are roles for which they are suited.
What are your SO's career goals, and how does he or she see these certificates as enabling him/her to achieve them?
posted by dfriedman at 7:58 AM on February 12, 2013
What are your SO's career goals, and how does he or she see these certificates as enabling him/her to achieve them?
posted by dfriedman at 7:58 AM on February 12, 2013
PMP is the best most portable certification. It's also screamingly expensive. Since your SO's bank is willing to pay, I'd go with that one!
I see PMP in job ads way more than I see Six Sigma.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 8:24 AM on February 12, 2013
I see PMP in job ads way more than I see Six Sigma.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 8:24 AM on February 12, 2013
I have both and agree with most- the PMP was much harder to test for and far fewer in my organization have it. Lots of people have the Green Belt for Six Sigma.
posted by shaarog at 10:51 AM on February 12, 2013
posted by shaarog at 10:51 AM on February 12, 2013
Response by poster: Again, thanks everyone for the great responses! This has certainly helped a ton.
posted by modoriculous at 11:05 AM on February 12, 2013
posted by modoriculous at 11:05 AM on February 12, 2013
i am (at least nominally) a project manager. Headhunters are all over me even though I'm not looking for work. I have a number of Green Belt friends for which this is not true. This may differ between profressions, but I am in pharma, medical device and biologics. I'm also a consultant who can't remember the last time I wasn't working.
posted by kamikazegopher at 4:28 PM on February 16, 2013
posted by kamikazegopher at 4:28 PM on February 16, 2013
I don't have much experience with the PMP world.
It's not really true that Six Sigma has *no* standard of qualification -- The American Society for Quality (ASQ) has certifications that you can get in this. I have the Lean Six Sigma Black Belt credential, and I've used it at three different Federal jobs. Yes, it's the government, but I've been surprised at how useful having the basic credential can be.
posted by jason6 at 9:44 AM on March 2, 2013
It's not really true that Six Sigma has *no* standard of qualification -- The American Society for Quality (ASQ) has certifications that you can get in this. I have the Lean Six Sigma Black Belt credential, and I've used it at three different Federal jobs. Yes, it's the government, but I've been surprised at how useful having the basic credential can be.
posted by jason6 at 9:44 AM on March 2, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
If no one else answers, feel free to memail me for my opinion; I just consider it too unqualified to post.
posted by saeculorum at 7:10 AM on February 12, 2013