Initially gaining buy-in from the PPM community to adopt and apply for RPP was a tough challenge for United Utilities. The Project Academy’s leading expertise came to the fore through a PM community briefings, enabling staff to engage with the process and decide if they wished to progress with their RPP application. The Academy’s RPP Fast Track Programme was adopted to support four cohorts apply for RPP with confidence. Together, we have achieved a success rate of over 90% resulting in a boost to morale, career recognition and ability to demonstrate capability to manage complex projects.
In parallel, The Project Academy designed and delivered a bespoke training programme for senior PM staff, who became UU’s Licence to Operate (LTO) assessors. We supported skills development, aligned to the new LTO scheme, enabling UU to undertake robust competence-based assessment and internal accreditation of PMs and Project Controllers at varying career levels. UU’s PM capability journey has been further enhanced by the adoption of the Academy’s online system, enabling the hosting of UU’s role profiles against APM’s Competence Framework and skills assessment.