Responsibility to the Profession

This section of the code has several subsections.

Compliance with All Organizational Rules and Policies

The first section deals with the responsibility of the PMP project manager to make "accurate and truthful representations concerning all information...related to the PMI Certification Program." The PMP should have both knowledge of and an ability to convey information about all aspects of the PMP examination.

Q.	You are a PMP-certified project manager who works for a company that is trying to get all its project managers certified. You are asked by some of your non-certified colleagues for guidance on how to take the exam. You should:
		A.	Refer them to the main library for project management information.
		B.	Tell them that you are far too busy to help them right now.
		C.	Write a short guide to taking the exam and hand it out to everyone.
		D.	Give them guidance about the various resources available.

The answer is D. You don't have to write a guide to be helpful. A wide variety of resources are available for getting ready for the exam, including websites, books, magazines, and papers. Part of your responsibility after you pass the exam is to give help and guidance to those who are taking it after you. This is the way that a profession becomes stronger, and by this type of conduct, you can give back to the profession, which professionals can and should do.

The second section of "Compliance with All Organizational Rules and Policies" can be problematical for the practicing PMP. The PMP Code suggests that "upon a reasonable and clear factual basis, [PMPs] have the responsibility to report possible violations of the Code." Although this seems to be a good standard, care must be taken to ensure that you have all the facts available and that you know to whom you should report violations. It is not clear in the Code where to go with your information. That, combined with the stigma of being a "snitch," occasionally makes this a hard part of the Code to follow. However, you should not allow repeated violations of the PMP Code to go unchallenged. Sometimes the person who is violating the Code is not aware of that fact, in which case you must be circumspect in your handling of the problem.

Q.	You have been with the organization for a short time, and you find what you think are clear violations of the PMP Code that occur with frequency. As a PMP, you should:
		A.	Move to another company.
		B.	Write down the infractions, discuss them discreetly with other PMPs, and decide how to handle the situation.
		C.	Confront the other PMPs in the hall and make sure that you do it loudly and often.
		D.	Let the situation take care of itself.

The answer is B. This is not an easy situation to be in. This is also a time when asking other PMPs for input will be extremely useful. As with anything where you will be accusing someone of infractions of the rules, make sure you have your facts straight before going to anyone. There is always the possibility that you do not have an understanding of the actual situation. This is a good time to be professional and circumspect in how you handle the problem. Gather up all the information you can to make sure of what you are doing.

Q.	In this same organization, you constantly hear rumors about a certain PMP failing to live up to the PMP Code. You should:
		A.	Confront him or her immediately.
		B.	Ignore the rumors.
		C.	Gather as much information as you can before proceeding.
		D.	Make sure you pass the rumors along.

The answer is C. The more information you have, the more you can plan for dealing with the problem, if there is one.

Q.	You should ________ the information you have so that you can present it to others if that becomes necessary.
		A.	Write down
		B.	Memorize
		C.	Modify
		D.	Hide

The answer is A. The more written information you have, the better off you are. If you only have verbal information, you probably shouldn't proceed.

This is a very difficult situation in which to find yourself. You have a responsibility to the PMP Code and also a responsibility to the individuals with whom you are dealing. There is no single way of handling this well, and you must balance the need for adhering to the Code with the need for protecting the rights of the person or persons you might report. This is not easy.

The PMP Code of Professional Conduct states that "[you have the] responsibility to cooperate with PMI concerning ethics violations and the collection of related information." This statement complicates the debate. As PMI clarifies how to handle infractions, it will be easier for the practicing PMP project managers to be compliant with PMI procedures.

The final section under "Compliance with All Organization Rules and Policies" states that the PMP has the "responsibility to disclose to clients, customers, owners, or contractors, significant circumstances that could be construed as a conflict of interest or an appearance of impropriety." This statement contains the same issues as are found in all the sections of the Code.

Q.	You believe you have found someone who is not disclosing all of the costs involved with an upcoming project. Rather, this PMP is constructing a WBS that does not include all the tasks necessary to get the project done. You should:
		A.	Ignore it because the PMP is a friend of yours.
		B.	Call PMI home headquarters.
		C.	Confront the other project manager immediately.
		D.	Talk to the PMP about the WBS to see if you can rework it to reflect actual costs of the project.

The answer is D. By working with this PMP, you may be able to avoid a serious conflict. If he or she refuses to change the WBS, you have a responsibility to go to stakeholders and voice your concerns. How you do that depends in great part on your personality. In any case, you should construct a WBS that more fully shows all the tasks involved in the project in question and make sure of their accuracy before going to any stakeholders.

Candidate/Certificate Holder Professional Practice

According the Code of Professional Conduct, the PMP or candidate is responsible for "provid[ing] accurate, truthful advertising and representations concerning qualifications, experience and performance of services." A part of being professional is truthfully representing yourself in print and verbally. This means that you cannot claim to have had experiences you have not had, nor can you claim education that you have not received.

There have been several cases in the sports world recently of coaches who misrepresented themselves in their resumes, and as a result, they were let go from the colleges that hired them. As a project manager, it is important that you keep your resume up to date and correct. As you add experience to your career, this should be reflected in updated material in the resume. It is also important to note that some people are better at writing resumes than others. There are also companies available that will help you prepare a professional-looking resume. Some advice for resume writing: if you didn't do something, don't even think of putting it on your resume. There will only be trouble if you do.

Q.	You are looking for classes that will help you professionally. There are a series of one-day seminars that you can take that will help you. This series is presented as a set with the tuition for the set of five inclusive of all of them. You are unable to attend one of the days of the set. The topic covered that day is important to you, and you have already taken the other four days. What should you do?
		A.	Sign up for all five days again.
		B.	Put it in your resume that you have attended the set.
		C.	Put only the classes you have actually attended in your resume.
		D.	Do self-learning about the class you missed.

The answer is C. This is another example where there is more than one correct answer. It would be good if you did self-study about the topics that you missed, but it would not give you permission to put it in your resume. Only show the classes you have taken and your actual experience.

When I was in the first days of studying for my PhD, a memo circulated around the department that told the sad story of a person who was a professor at a major university. He stole his dissertation from another person who actually had written the material in the 1930s. Because the topic was obscure and there was not a complete tracking of all dissertations written, he got away with his deception for more than 20 years. A young researcher had happened upon both dissertations, and when he found that they were the same word for word, he turned the information into the dean. The man who stole the dissertation was fired, even though he had tenure. No one mentioned what he was going to do in the future, but certainly he was ruined in the academic community. This memo went to everyone in the department without comment. We all understood what was being said.

Another major area of professional practice is the PMP responsibility to "comply with laws, regulations, and ethical standards governing professional practice in the state/province and/or country when providing project management services." This is a major issue when you work abroad. You must know and abide by all of the laws, regulations, and ethical standards of the place where you are working. Here is a question that reflects how difficult this can be.

Q.	You have been assigned to a major project in another country. Before you go, you check with your providing organization to make sure you understand all of the constraints of working in the other country. When you get there, you settle into a routine and do excellent work, completing the project within 5% of the planned budget and schedule. To show their appreciation, the sponsors of the project, who are wealthy men in their own country, send you an expensive gift to, as they put it, "Say thank you for your hard work." It turns out that this is a fairly common practice in that country but is against both ethics and regulations in your own country. What should you do?
		A.	Send it back.
		B.	Take it and go home where you can enjoy the gift because you did such an outstanding job.
		C.	Say nothing but leave the gift in your hotel room when you leave the country.
		D.	Talk to your management about the problem and get them involved.

The answer is D. When there are conflicts between one culture and another, it is a good idea to get your own management involved. Do not try to resolve problems like this without telling your management. Although it may be acceptable in the country in which you worked to accept gifts, it may not be acceptable in your own country. Because your management already has some relationship with the sponsors, get them involved so that no one will be offended by the actions you take.

Advancement of the Profession

The PMP Code of Professional Conduct says that you have the "Responsibility to recognize and respect intellectual property developed or owned by others, and to otherwise act in an accurate, truthful and complete manner, including all activities related to professional work and research." This relates very closely to issues that have been discussed earlier. One of the most powerful tools to make sure that you are giving credit to others is the use of quotation marks whenever you are using someone else's material. This shows that the material is not yours and that someone else has done the writing and/or the research. Anything that someone else has published, either privately or in public domain, must be cited when using it. Failing to do so is called plagiarism and is not allowed when using the intellectual property of other people.

Q.	You are writing an article about risk. In the middle of the article, you use a statistic from a well-known report that is the standard for explaining risk. Everyone writing in the area of risk knows the report. Because the report is so well known, you:
		A.	Assume that everyone knows where the statistic comes from.
		B.	Hope nobody notices.
		C.	Cite the report.
		D.	Let someone complain.

The answer is C. No matter how well known the materials are, if they are someone else's, then you have the responsibility to cite the source.

The PMP Code of Professional Conduct also states under Advancement of the Profession that you have the "Responsibility to support and disseminate the PMP Code of Professional Conduct to other PMI [certificate holders]." Let other people know that page 22 of the Project Management Institute Certification Handbook has the complete Code, and you will have complied with this responsibility.