This PMBOK guide is very well structured and the content is exposed neat and organized to cover all tasks and actions to be performed for project management in any field, ranging from Aerospace to civil engineering, and it is helpful as an entrance knowledge to be utilize to delve in other resources for expertness in the matter.

You'd think that a guide to project management would have a better organized structure than this. Project management in itself is not rocket science - it's about planning, structuring, timing, adjusting, controlling, which are all synonyms for the same thing: being organized. Yet I've read rocket science texts that are infinitely more readable and understandable than this book. Tax codes are easier to read than this. My phone bill is easier to read than this.

I have a feeling that the PMBOK Guide was not meant to be a learning text in the first place. Rather, it was probably meant to be a reference for project managers who are designing projects of various complexity and need something to guide them on how to manage the levels and eschelons of their project. It's written from a high-level format, each chapter breaking down the levels further and further to each nugget of information - as if each subchapter is one phase of a work breakdown structure. Logical, yes, but utterly dry, and filled with redundancy ad nauseum. Each blurb of text detail is written in a vague and fill-in-the-blank format, as if they were objects in a computer program. Obviously this was not designed with efficiency in mind.

If you have to get this book, I'd get it alongside Gary Heerken's Project Management. It's not great either, but at least it puts a face on the aspects of project that this book is trying to convey.

This book is really good and although it is a slightly different structure to other project management material, like Dennis Lock's book, it is an amazing resource.

Filled with documentation, definitions and best practice - definitely more suited for people studying Project Management rather than for those who simply want to know how to manage a project or who are starting to learn the basics of the profession.

I am studying project management - this book would never be my choice. It is required reading for the course, not only is it extremely dry, boring but repetitive. I understand the necessity for using this book, since it is the PMBOK, but readers beware... a large pot of coffee is required!

This book is a good start to learn the process and how each part flows into the next. With that said I would not have passed the PMP test without PMP Exam Prep from Rita Mulcahy.

Read this book and highlight what is important. Then read just the highlights. Then concentrate on Rita's book.

You cannot, cannot pass the test with just the PMBOK.

A book I have to have for PMI certification. Is it worth it? Not really.

The book is mandatory reading for the PMP exam. It's written quite well and an easy read dispite the subject matter that most would find really boring.

A lot of people would say that the book does not has flow and is not easy to understand etc ............... but so is project management profession to most of the people, even though they believe they do. People say it not practical, but many are the challenges in project management profession, and to deal with them we need to have a sound base of whats ideal. I mean how would you know the risk of what you are doing unless you know how it is supposed to be done.

This book is straight and challenges you.

If you can read this book and don't sleep then you are something :). I think this guide needs some facelift and some more examples etc.

This book is the definitive reference standard for project management in many fields - Information technology, manufactoring, pharmaceuticals and construction. Although many construction personnel have "project manager" on their business card, few know of and continuously apply the full processes defined in this book.

The early steps, such as establishing a charter, are freqeuntly given less attention, for similar projects, than is desireable -" Do it like we did the last one". The book's treatment of this subject can help avoid possible problems from this less than rigourous approach.

Time and cost management is well developed in construction, and the book's treatment of these subject offers little new. Scope management is well known in construction, but results could stand improvement, and this section can help refocus on this task.

Quality management is known and discussed in construction, but purposful action lags. Construction is just as capable of inplementing quality management as any other industry, and this section of the book is a useful framework for this effort.

The book does suffer from an unnecessary amount of technical jargon, which is a barrier to widespread understanding. Much of the jargon could be changed to terms with identical meaning, that are more widely known in many industires.

Choosing Project Success - A Guide for Building Professionals

This book is wordy in an unproductive way. It's more of a academic paper than a book that teaches. There are techniques that could be better explained. Even with the required educational course and this book, I do not believe I will be adequately prepared to take the exam, and thus will be purchasing books that are recommended by other Amazon reviewers.

It's a great book. I just have to find some time to learn more from it. I've got the feeling that this book not only it's going to help me with things related to my job but also with my personal life. "Management" is a powerful word.
Thanks

PMBOK Guide: The most comprehensive, detailed information available on the subject Project Management Body of Knowledge.

This book is primarily useful for those who are preparing for the Project Management Institute's Project Management Professional (PMP) exam.

At times you might find some topics repeating and at times boring. However, this book provides you with a very elaborate knowledge of information on Project Management.

The PMBOK contains all the information you need to help you organize your projects and run them successfully. It provides down to earth explanations for each phase and describes some of the pitfalls you need to watch for. I strongly recommend it for any seasoned or aspiring project manager.

If you want to become a project manager (or even a better project manager), reading this book will not get you there. As a reference to look up an aspect of project management or a refresher, there is value to having this on your bookshelf, but as far as a learning tool, there is a good chance you will die of boredom before you become a project manager.

My objection to this book is not the content - it does cover the core and essential concepts of the PMBOK. My objection is to the style of how the concepts are presented - imagine a 390 page lecture from your most boring, droning professor from college, and you will understand how this book reads. Plenty of information, but in a format that makes assimilation and retention of the information extremely difficult - unless you have the ability to mindlessly capture data and regurgitate it later. I don't have that ability, and I suspect that many people do not as well.

My recommendation is to get this book and use it to back up learning that you gain elsewhere...there are lots of other books and materials that teach project management concepts far better than this book does. And if you are studying to become PMP certified, this is certainly and investment you need to make, but do not rely on it as your first (or even second) source of information for acquiring the knowledge needed to pass the test. Ignore those who insist that you must suffer the boredom of this book to become certified - you don't.

By the time this review is written the PMBoK has been in print for over 3 years. I imagine the next version is nearly ready for press. So the most obvious reason you should buy this book is if you are planning to take the PMP certification some time soon. Take it before the book changes, especially if you plan on going through a prep course, otherwise you may be skating into unknown territory.

What if you are just in the market for a project management text? In a way, this is not really it. See some of my other reviews for some other PM texts, and then there are other good ones beyond those that I just haven't reviewed yet (because I haven't bought them lately). The PMBoK is not a how-to; it is a compendium of all the things that you might want to do if you are running a project. It focuses on defining the processes involved in project management in terms of major processes, inputs and outputs. This is extremely handy if you are trying to set a standard of practice (which is PMI's intent). It IS the standard in the profession, along with the UK's PRINCE method; there is no point arguing with it (especially if you are planning to take the certification examination). It doesn't often explain how to actually DO any of the things that the standard says need to be done.

Not in this document but on any of a dozen related sites you can get MS-Project templates that assemble all of the tasks in the standard. In actual practice you are probably not going to do many of those things, but at least you will have a moment or two to think through why not.

There is one supremely practical if cynical use of the full scope of the PMBoK. If you are in the consulting business and being challenged as to why the customer has to pay an outrageous overhead for a PM who is after all not doing any coding, bricklaying or whatever, then you'll need to include all the stuff in the MS-Project template and use the PMBoK to explain what all those things are. If you have a customer who is dull enough to need to question why someone needs to manage the work, I can say from experience that when you drop the full-bore PM solution on them and "justify" all those hours that this customer will happily pay the bill and sometimes even insist on even more, now that the "need" has been "documented".

By the time this review is written the PMBoK has been in print for over 3 years. I imagine the next version is nearly ready for press. So the most obvious reason you should buy this book is if you are planning to take the PMP certification some time soon. Take it before the book changes, especially if you plan on going through a prep course, otherwise you may be skating into unknown territory.

What if you are just in the market for a project management text? In a way, this is not really it. See some of my other reviews for some other PM texts, and then there are other good ones beyond those that I just haven't reviewed yet (because I haven't bought them lately). The PMBoK is not a how-to; it is a compendium of all the things that you might want to do if you are running a project. It focuses on defining the processes involved in project management in terms of major processes, inputs and outputs. This is extremely handy if you are trying to set a standard of practice (which is PMI's intent). It IS the standard in the profession, along with the UK's PRINCE method; there is no point arguing with it (especially if you are planning to take the certification examination). It doesn't often explain how to actually DO any of the things that the standard says need to be done.

Not in this document but on any of a dozen related sites you can get MS-Project templates that assemble all of the tasks in the standard. In actual practice you are probably not going to do many of those things, but at least you will have a moment or two to think through why not.

There is one supremely practical if cynical use of the full scope of the PMBoK. If you are in the consulting business and being challenged as to why the customer has to pay an outrageous overhead for a PM who is after all not doing any coding, bricklaying or whatever. Then you'll need the PMBoK to explain what all those things are. If you have a customer who is dull enough to need to question why someone needs to manage the work, I can say from experience that when you drop the full-bore PM solution on them and "justify" all those hours that this customer will happily pay the bill now tha the "need" has been "documented".

I used this book for a Graduate Level Project Management Class. The book is very detailed but confusing at times. I had to research some of the information that was presented. However, I realize that project management is a very organized and detailed practice the book illustrates that point very well.

I found the PMBok very useful and helful for the project management, it clarify a lot all the project management concepts, and as well the path to help you on how manage.

The best option to study to PMI Exams. The PDF versions are not so practical to handle than the book.

This book is a great Body of Knowledge for anyone looking into best practices of Project Management. However, if you are considering joing the PMI, your memebership may include this book on a CDRom so you don't have to purchase it as a book unless you would prefer that format or not joining the PMI

This text was purchased to prepare for a certified PMP prep course offered by a local University. The material is rather dry, however it contains the bulk of the material that is fairplay for the examination. Suggestion to anyone looking at this book is to also purchase an additional test prep resource with example questions in mock exam format, as it will help to interpret the material and provide you real-time feedback as to your grasp on the information.

This is the definitive text on project management showing a metaview of how it all works with details left to other books you might purchase on specific areas like scope, schedule, cost or resource management. You get a free CD version of it if you become a member of the Project Management Institute with the intent of getting your Project Management Professional certification. Start here to get insights into your projects.

Of course this is a book written by committee which represented the diverse members of the Project Management Institute, from construction, semiconductor, software and pharmaceutical industries, and many more. Every context has its own methods for project management, and this book brings them all together showing the overall logic of a project, the inputs, tools, and outputs. Quite a resource for any project manager.

What I like most about this book is that it uses a structured methodology to break down the entire project management process into components that encompass all the important issues, from scope, to activities and their duration estimates, to resource, to cost, and finally to change control management. You can easily find what you need here, with descriptions of the inputs you need to do a process, and the outputs you would produce. It also provides a general description of the state-of-the-art technology used for a process.

You'll be able to better plan, monitor and control any project with this book, so I highly recommend you purchase it. However, be aware that as a member of the Project Management Institute back in the early 90's I offered the approach that is used in the book to define the Project Management Body of Knowledge.

If you are studying forthe PMP, this is a must have purchase, with a decent price.

As others have mentioned, this book is essential for preparing to take the PMP and CAPM exams. However, this book was never meant to be used as a study guide, but rather a framework upon which the PMP and CAPM exams are based. In preparation for the PMP exam, I would recommend purchasing this book and skimming through it to generally understand the various Knowledge Areas and Process Groups. But, I would recommend using a true study guide to fully grasp the concepts - such as Eric Crowe's "How to Pass the PMP on Your First Try." Also, to truly determine your knowledge, you need to test your knowledge with practice exams which are readily available in various sites and books.

I have used the PMBOK multiple times after passing the PMP as a reference book and guide in my daily work in Project Management.

Ron Holohan, PMP MBA
www.pm411.org Project Management Host

Boring or not, this is a must have for PMP. There might be other books to serve as a short cut for PMP but this is the manual every PMP aspirant should be familiar with both to clear the exam as well as acquire knowledge.
When it is a matter of clearing the PMP or CAPM exam, no other book's view or interpretaion would matter, it is this book that counts! Go for it!

To be fair to this much maligned book, the editors did not intend this to be the kind of material that would be consulted on a regular basis. It was written to serve as the final word on things related to project management.

This metaphor should illustrate. If you wanted to learn the English language, you probably wouldn't read the dictionary, would you? Instead, you'd read some of the hundreds of English as a Second Language textbooks first and then graduate to reading regular books. Even better, you'd start practicing your fledgling grammar and vocabulary with English-speaking speakers.

Let's be grateful that our discipline is organized enough to have a "supreme" council. This is their work and I'm sure they did their best with this tome.

I'm just amazed that this book is the #1 rated project management book, and the #5 rated Leadership and Management book! I've had my copy for over 10 years and never cracked it open. That's like having the English Dictionary be #1 in literature! Yes, the dictionary is a valuable reference, but who among us has read that?!!

You cannot really read this book. You can use it as a reference, very comprehensive. Must read other book for learning the basics, then use this as a reference for comprehensive guide.

This book is absolutely mandatory to get a PMP certification, which is nearly a mandatory requirement for being a project manager. These days, it is difficult to get a PM job without this certification. And the only way to get it is by knowing this book from cover to cover no matter how dry and 'dictionary-like' it is.

That being said, it is not *that* bad. It is better than, for example, the CMMI 1.2 book. What is missing is why these practices are the "best practices" and why you would implement them - what the benefits would be. Also missing is any kind of comprehensible memorable writing style.

You're not going to pass the certification test by reading this book, but you can't pass without it either.

A very good book for PMs, since it is from PMI, they have covered most aspects of PM, however, no that much in detail, so not that good for early career PMs.

This is a very good book, you should read it if you want to know more about project management.
Es un libro muy bueno, se los recomiendo si estan interesados en la administracion de proyectos.

This book is pretty much the field manual. I had been working as a project manager for two years and learned a great deal just from the first few chapters of the book. Definately worth the investment.

I really, really wish I would have read through the amazon reviews before buying this book. It looks like a good idea and that it will an informative read. It's a piece of summary junk that provides no real value whatsoever.

Instead of actually trying to teach concepts in detail, the objective of this book appears to be the mere identification of concepts. If you're content learning about the concepts that exist, maybe this book is for you. If you want to actually know how things work and be able to do them yourself, go elsewhere.

This book was essential in my passing my PMI CAPM exam. I also have the CD version.

Don

It is absolutely great book to start PMP study with. It creates base for the CAPM course.

Whether you are tackling a large software implementation, an engineering construction project or something simpler, READ THIS BOOK!

Project management is much more important than one might think. A good project manager not only gets the project delivered on time and within budget, but does a lot of other things behind the scenes to make it successful. Project management goes well beyond planning, scheduling and budgeting resources. This respected book puts it all in one place. And is required reading for anyone seeking certification by the Project Management Institute.

If you are perusing the PMP or CPAM certification with PMI this is the one thing you need for sure. Lots of jargon defined. After the initial few chapters the language is easy enough to sort through and you can move at a much faster pace.

As far as content, the organization of the core information is very clear and logical. The focus on Process Groups and Knowledge Areas is helpful if you are working on projects with clients where organizational maturity is somewhat lacking.

Just about every project management class refers to this book so its essential. Text was a nice size. Books a touch floppy so would be best to own as a hardback.

Even though I did not take the exam, PMP is still a great framework for anyone how needs to manage projects, or wants to know more about project management. The breakdown of the content is very clear; you can use this CD-ROM as a reference, or you can verify the overall quality of your company's project management process compared with this framework.

Like many other reviewers, I do not find this Guide very well written. Nevertheless, It's the Standard, and every project manager ought to have it. It does present a lots of good information, and it is the only reference you need to prepare for the CAPM exam. However, if you are using this Guide for the exam, to use some Study Guide in addition to this book will be a good idea.

I understand everyone's frustration with the PMBOK. The challenge with the PMBOK is that one has to understand that this is NOT a teaching book, rather it is a catalogue of the parts of Project Management. Because PMI is THE authority on Project Management, one simply must accept it for what it is: PMBOK's usefullness is primarily for passing the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam, and again, it doesn't matter what the truth is so much, what matters on the exam is the "PMI'isms" mostly found in the PMBOK for the exam.

To learn and tie the components of PMBOK together there are very good TEACHING books are out there, my favorite come from RMC, Rita Mulcathy, et al.

I have helped many through the PMP and the PMBOK *must* be the starting place to pass the exam. I encourage all my 'students' to read it TWICE, (both are painful!!) the first time through simply gain the overall perspective of this CATALOGUE of PM Parts, the second time through see how the parts fit together, the PROCESS GROUPS and the KNOWLEDGE AREAS, how they fit together in THE MATRIX and then the second dimension of how they SEQUENCE.

Most of the successful candidates on the PMP can recreate this matrix, PROCESS GROUPS / KNOWLEDGE AREAS from rote memory immediately before the exam (on the blank sheets they give you) and the 150+ inputs/tools techniques/outputs and their order of sequence --no small task, but the PMP is worth it.

Again, the PMBOK is the essence of PMI and PMP. No real value in being critical of it, but take it for what it is, a tool, and make yourself a PMP from this material. (Actually, once you see what the PMI has done here one can take a prespective to appreciate the succinct, no nonsense way they assembled the info. . .

Much better than the 2nd edition; better and detailed explanations for most of the processes.

This is necessary today for a project management professional. However, one should note that if one signs up to be a member of PMI, they provide a softcopy on a disk for joining.

I found the actual guide easier to read than the study guides.

Amazon had the best price of all, and with FREE shipping and no taxes, it made it even better.

Unless you are taking a project management class or studying for the Project Management Certificate through PMI, I wouldn't suggest this book. The book only covers the basic concepts of project management.

This book is really like a document of standards and one can figure out that it's a product a big committee of experts. It lacks good examples and perhaps is meant only for passing the PMP exam. I wonder how much can be used in real life.

This book is not covering the current version (Version 3) of the PMBOK. The description refers to the 2000 version, which is Version 2. A lot has changed.

This book is really like a document of standards and one can figure out that it's a product a big committee of experts. It lacks good examples and perhaps is meant only for passing the PMP exam. I wonder how much can be used in real life.