Bank exec told me she'd never hire a PMP

[Prloko]

Accept for those of us that are here, right?

I don't know that IT people are averse to higher education, its just that with the right experience and certifications, you can make a good living in IT.

Actually, I truly mean "averse". This is only limited to the IT folks I personally know, YRMV. They were self taught as youngsters, just dabbling at first, and then learning through trial and error and a few books from B&N. That breed is dying as companies expect college degrees now, but these guys who are now in senior positions are always griping that the college learned IT folks don't know what they are doing and are learning technology and theory that is already dated. I am equating this Bank exec to these IT folks I know.

[LaterBloomer]

Hearing it was IT, and not the legal department, makes what was said make more sense to me. Different mind-set. Different types of problems that have to be addressed.

[soliloquy]

Hearing it was IT, and not the legal department, makes what was said make more sense to me. Different mind-set. Different types of problems that have to be addressed.

What would the difference be in mindset? Both IT and the legal department would be more likely to use Agile methodology than lean six sigma or the like? I work for a large law firm and we work as outside counsel for a number of large corporations and their project management teams generally use Agile methodology as well. I thought Agile was more IT friendly than other types of project management methodology?

[Kaz]

She scoffed and said she worked at BOA and that she'd never hire someone who had a MSPM because she does not believe in Project Management education programs. She said people who have gone through those programs are too rigid and resistant to thinking outside the box. She said PMP's are even worse as they do not know how to think outside of the box in order to turn the ship around when necessary. She said when you talk to a PMP they have to go through 30 steps to make one change and that they lack the creativity and ability to streamline issues.

She "worked", so past tense? Perhaps the reason she is no longer working there involved a PMP somehow hmmm? Sour grapes perchance? The "... they lack the creativity and ability to streamline issues" could be self-rationalization when how it really shook out was more like, "I can't believe they fired me for completely ignoring that project's documentation requirements! Why are they so fixated on this project manager's systematic controlled plan?! Can't they see how creative and streamlined I was!?"

Of course that is just me having speculative fun with someone I know nothing about, but she is a good example why I never take any single person's comments/advice/"sage wisdom"/etc. as more than just a single data point that will get dropped into an entire sea of data. It's not just a work thing or a school thing, it's an everything thing. People WAY over value one-off experiences. I've had bosses and colleagues that were night and day relative to each other on a given topic. Some were pro-college, some were anti-college. If your resume landed on their desk one would hire you and one wouldn't, based off of the exact same reason. :ack: Nothing you can do about one specific "desk" or another, just have to gather as much applicable data as possible.

I'm going to be self-teaching myself some programming this year. I decided to start on Java. Why? Asked a bunch of friends/coworkers what they thought I should go into, then Googled a lot on the topic. Java was a pretty clear favorite. Was it unanimous? No. One of the most important and successful people I know told me to stick to the Microsoft suite of languages (Visual C#, Basic, etc.). That advice mattered to me, but it was only one piece of advice. Since I know this person's background quite well I knew that the main reason they suggested the Microsoft suite was because they didn't have any professional exposure to any others! hilarious Kind of a no-brainer to suggest the ONLY thing you've used lol. Granted, I did weigh that particular person's opinion heavier than anyone else's based on a number of reasons, but in the end the scales still tipped distinctly against them.

[soliloquy]

No, she still works there. She did say she's leaving in 5 days when I talked to her though. She's worked there before about 10 years ago, left, came back, and left again according to her linkedin. She said she found a better opportunity. Of course she also told me mothballs and frayed rope keep copperheads out of your yard so I was already looking at her with the side eye.

Second look she was IT PM at Wachovia. She's a Business Analysis PM at BOA.

[Devanna]

She'd never hire someone with a MSPM? Now who's not thinking outside the box?

[LaterBloomer]

Methodologies weren't what I was considering, Soliloquy, I was thinking mind sets. The inherent approach of folks who enter the legal field versus those who enter the IT field. My experience (and, yes, Kaz, I DO way over value my experience!) is that those who enter the law field approach things differently than those who enter IT. My view, however, does tie in with Kaz's experience regarding determining which programming to learn. You hear different things from folks based upon their backgrounds. (So, Kaz, I value your experience to the extent that it supports MY experience!)

[DrNRG]

For someone to make such a rigid one-dimensional assessment about a broad spectrum of people simply because they hold a specific
credential to then vilify others for their inability to think 'outside the box' seems to be a bit ironic, maybe even paradoxical.