Can I claim PMI PDUs for Lean Six Sigma courses?

One question that we get asked a lot is about claiming time spent engaged in Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt, Green Belt, Black Belt, Lean Practitioner training or professional development activities towards PMI’s PDUs.

A PDU stands for a Professional Development Unit; a way to measure ongoing professional development. It is necessary to maintain Project Management Institute (PMI)-certified credentials. They are a part of Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) program. PMI credential holders can claim PDUs by visiting PMI’s web site.

There are two broad categories of professional development units (PDUs) that you can claim towards renewal:

• Education

• Giving Back to the Profession

Under the Education category, there are six sub-categories for claiming PDUs. These are:

1. Course or Training (e.g. Courses by OE Methods)

2. Global Events

3. Local Meetings

4. Online or Digital Media

5. Reading

6. Informal Learning

If you have completed an OE Methods Lean Six Sigma course or any other online course, you can claim your PDUs under “Education” > “Course or Training” > “Course from other third-party providers“ category.

Each professional development activity yields one PDU for each hour spent engaged in the activity. Some limitations apply and it is best to check out the “Ways to Earn PDUs” section in the PMI’s CCR Handbook that discusses PDU activities and associated policies.

PMI was not classifying PDUs until 2016. In 2016, PMI introduced the PMI Talent Triangle and brought new requirements for earning PDUs. The number of PDUs claimed are also divided into three categories: Technical, Leadership, and Strategic. Based on the contents of the course you can split PDUs into these three categories.

PMI’s Talent Triangle®

Technical
Knowledge, skills and behaviours related to specific domains of project, program and portfolio management. The technical aspects of performing your job/role.

Leadership
Knowledge, skills and behaviors involved in the ability to guide, motivate and/or direct others to achieve a goal.

Strategic & Business Management
Knowledge of and expertise in the industry/organisation, helping you align your team in a way that enhances performance and better delivers business outcomes.

PDU Rules:

• 1 hour of instruction equals 1 PDU

• When only a portion of a course relates to topics relevant to the PMI Talent Triangle skill areas, calculate PDUs by the percentage of the overall curriculum focused on the applicable topic

• Report each course separately. Entire degree programs will not be recognised for PDU credits, only individual courses

• Activities you completed before you earn a PMI certification are not eligible as PDUs. Further, you cannot claim participation in the same course or activity more than once.

• If you earn more than the required PDUs in your CCR cycle, you may apply a portion of the PDUs to your next cycle. Only PDUs earned in the final year (12 months) of your certification cycle can be applied to a future cycle.

Documentation required for audit:

• Registration form

• Certificate or letter of attendance

Hope this is useful for you. Contact us if you have further questions.

Disclaimer: The information contained on this article is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should consider whether the information is appropriate to your situation, and where appropriate, seek official advice from PMI directly.