Originally Posted by
robt
PRINCE2 is a project management framework. Six Sigma is a quality management / process improvement framework. They are quite different things. Personally, I don't believe either has significant value in themselves, but understanding them is a good idea to get a big picture of management processes. It's also worthwhile looking at things like failed project post mortems to understand why many of the principles exist and, importantly, why they are not applicable in many cases. Of the two, six sigma probably has the most intrinsic value because most project management methodology is a combination of voodoo and bureaucracy, whereas quality management actually has some solid foundations.
Putting aside intrinsic practical value, the real value is more likely in having the qualification in order to show to potential employers. In that case what matters more is the kind of job you're interested in. PRINCE2 tends to be considered valuable across whole teams (not just the PM) in the UK public sector, which is where it originated. Outside of that, it's perhaps useful if you want to be a PM (although many prefer PMBOK as it is more pragmatic and less prescriptive; they have about equal standing AKAIK although preferences will of course vary between companies and sectors). Six Sigma is more likely to be valuable if you are moving into QA or more senior management, since it is more process-oriented and less project-oriented.
You might also find if you are primarily doing software that something like Scrum is more valuable, but again it largely depends which industry you are in. That said I find "qualified Scrum Master" somewhat ironic whenever I see it on a CV, as it goes against the core principles of Scrum. It's just one in a long line of well-meaning processes to have been subverted by bureaucrats and HR departments that demand qualifications over experience.
Personally I'm qualified in none of them, but have read a lot about all of them and try to keep up with new ones as they come out, like Kanban. Ignoring on-paper qualifications, this gives me the best all-round view of lots of tools that can each be used on a per-project basis depending on things like the team, the client, constraints, etc. Just knowing a methodology does not in itself make you a PM. Even the most prescriptive of frameworks is still just a set if guidelines and templates that need to be adapted appropriately, at which point it's essential to understand how and when they should be used, or avoided. Whether this approach would work for you, I cannot say, but I think it's a good idea to do it anyway if you intend to manage actual projects. One of the core principles of the agile movement that is often overlooked, but applicable in all cases is "people over processes" or perhaps more accurately: adapt your processes to fit the people and not the other way around.
PRINCE2 probably has the worst reputation for being used as a blunt instrument by inexperienced PMs, resulting in a lot of project failures. That's one reason why it often doesn't carry a lot of weight outside the public sector, although a good PM is clearly a good PM even if PRINCE2 is the only thing they do. I've met PMs on all sides of this one.
My recommendation would be to buy a cheap introductory book on project management that is process-agnostic or covers a few of them. Read that to understand what is common to all of them and what differences each one emphasises, and go from there.
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