VMBoK Guide Update

By Robert Stewart, CVS-Life, FSAVE, PMP, PMI-RMP – Director of Education, SAVE International

The period for soliciting member participation is over, and over 100 participants have expressed their interest in the VMBoK Review Process. This is an excellent response and shows the interest and dedication to this important project!

The VMBoK Technical Committee will now begin the task of organizing the review teams into the 13 Chapter Sub-Committees. The VMBoK Technical Committee is trying to keep the Chapter Sub-Committee sizes manageable so it may not be possible for everyone to participate in every committee they signed up for. Participants will be receiving notification of which chapters they will be involved with and provided information confirming key virtual meeting dates and access information in the coming weeks. In addition, the full SAVE International Board of Directors and Certification Boards will be reviewing the entire draft VMBoK as a group.

There are a number of guiding principles that we will be asking participants to focus on throughout the process:

1. The VMBoK Guide is focused on identifying information covering theory, guidance and techniques that a SAVE International Certified Value Specialist (CVS®) should know.
2. The VMBoK Guide should present the information in a ubiquitous manner that is not industry specific and can be applied to projects, products, processes, services and organizations.
3. The VMBoK Guide cannot, and should not, include all VM techniques. It is important to honor the history of VM while respecting the need to evolve.
4. A key task of the VMBoK Review Process is to ensure that those that represent state of the art practice. Techniques that are not covered in the VMBoK Guide are still valid; however, they will not be part of the SAVE International certification process.
5. Techniques identified in the VMBoK Guide will identify the basic concept and application while leaving room for variation.
6. The VMBoK Guide will cover the basic information on related disciplines involved with cost, schedule, quality and risk without getting too detailed. The VMBoK Guide is not intended to compete with the professional practice guides of other organizations in these disciplines.
7. The VMBoK Review Process will strive to develop consensus while seek to reconcile differences. Compromises will invariably result.
8. The Function Analysis Guide will be reconciled with the VMBoK Guide to ensure that the information is consistent.
9. The revised draft of the VMBoK Guide that emanates from the Review Process will be professionally edited, typeset and illustrated. The focus of the review process should be on content.

We look forward to completing the VMBoK Guide Review Process and producing a high-quality document in the coming months.