Departmental Project Management Professional Development
Enterprise Project Management Office Training and Learning Activities
The Enterprise Project Management Office (EPMO) has identified a suite of project management courses specific to project management needs at Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). The EPMO training curriculum builds on the foundational project management courses offered by the Canada School of Public Service complemented with topics such as Project Management Information Solution (PMIS), myEMS (SAP), as well as topics related to the Project and Programme Management Practice (PPMP).
The courses are open to all employees of ESDC and are part of the Project Management Competency Development (PMCD) curriculum.
Project Management Competency Development Program
PMCD is a professional development program with the objective to enhance project management skills at ESDC. The PMCD intends to build competencies and capacity through training that is needed to successfully deliver investment projects. The PMCD curriculum includes learning activities that encompass three core competencies: Technical, Functional and Behavioural.
Once registered in the PMCD program, participants will be provided with a personalized learning path based on previous learning and work experiences, which will facilitate their professional growth and further their career goals. Note that participants will not have to repeat courses already successfully completed.
Target audience and program timelines
Since last year, the PMCD program is mandatory for all term and indeterminate employees who are exercising the functions of a project manager. The Program is currently focused on employees that are project managers of investment projects i.e. employees that are registered as project managers in PMIS for Major, Minor and Small Projects. Some key roll out dates are listed below:
- Summer 2019: Project Managers of Major Projects
- Winter 2019: Project Managers of Minor Projects
- Summer 2020: Project Managers of Small Projects
- Winter 2020: Project Managers across ESDC
Prospective PMCD participants will be contacted by the PMCD team.
The PMCD program is comprised of three levels:
Level 1 - Practitioner is an employee actively engaged in the project management discipline.
Level 2 - Specialist is an employee who concentrates primarily on and is highly skilled in project management.
Level 3 - Expert is an employee who has a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge of skill in project management.
Participants must meet the experience, educational requirements, and specific competencies to successfully complete each level. Given the experience requirements, a period of two (2) to five (5) years to complete each PMCD level could be expected.
Competencies
The illustration below provides an overview of the PMCD competencies and level progression.
Long Description
Expert
Behavioural Skills and Abilities: Strategic Thinking and Decision Making, Managing People, Effectiveness, Negotiation
Specialist
Behavioural Skills and Abilities: Strategic Thinking and Decision Making, Managing People, Effectiveness, Negotiation
Practitioner
Behavioural Skills and Abilities: Strategic Thinking and Decision Making, Managing People, Effectiveness, Negotiation
Functional Skills and Abilities: Project Methodologies, Project Management Information Solution (PMIS), Governance and Project Life Cycle, Human Resources for Project Management, Contracting and Procurement
Technical Skills and Abilities: Project Integration Management, Project Scope Management, Project Schedule Management, Project Cost Management, Project Quality Management, Project Resource Management, Project Communications Management, Project Risk Management, Project Procurement Management, Project Stakeholder Management
For additional information on competencies, please see PMCD Standard.
Assessment
The PMCD program will use three types of assessments that correspond to the type of competency.
Technical competencies are assessed via education, training, and/or certifications provided by the participant in the completed PMCD candidate entry form (registration form).
Functional competencies are assessed through the participant’s experience and education provided in the PMCD candidate entry form. The participant’s work experience is validated by references.
Behavioural competencies are assessed in-person and are specific to each level.
For additional information on experience, educational requirements and assessments, please reference the PMCD Standard.
Once the assessment process is completed, the participant is provided with a personalized learning path. This learning path will list the learning activities to be completed to fulfill the training requirements for the specified PMCD level.
PMCD Curriculum
Access the PMCD program curriculum as well as EPMO’s project management training curriculum on the College@ESDC’s iService page.
The PMCD curriculum provides the training necessary to successfully operate as a project manager at ESDC. The curriculum includes courses from the Canada School of Public Service, Employment and Social Development Canada as well as a select number from third party providers.
This curriculum supports the training requirements for the Practitioner (level 1). The Specialist (level 2) and Expert levels (level 3) will become available in late 2020.
The registration to the PMCD program is being done in phases. Employees who are interested in participating in the program, but do not meet the current registration criteria, will be able to register in a near future. Meanwhile, they can take the courses listed in the PMCD curriculum and register when the program opens to all.
Employees who are interested in participating in the PMCD program, but who are not currently listed as a project manager in PMIS, can still take the courses listed in the PMCD curriculum.
Contact Us
To reach us, please contact the PMCD team in the EPMO’s Single Point of Contact at NC-BGPE-EPMO-GD.