IPMA
IPMA and HERMES: what is the difference?
Anyone looking for a project manager in Switzerland or planning further training comes across two terms: HERMES and IPMA. One could take them for two competing methods. That is a misunderstanding. HERMES and IPMA answer different questions and are on different levels.
Two questions, two answers
HERMES answers the question: what must be produced in this project and when, and who decides? HERMES is the project management method of the Swiss Federal Administration. It defines phases, milestones, roles, tasks and outcomes and provides templates.
IPMA answers the question: what must a person be able to do in order to lead a project successfully? IPMA's Individual Competence Baseline (ICB4) describes 29 competence elements in three areas: Perspective, People and Practice. It explicitly does not prescribe a method.
| HERMES | IPMA (ICB4) | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | method | competence standard |
| Publisher | Federal Chancellery | International Project Management Association |
| Subject | the project | the person |
| Regulates | phases, roles, outcomes, decisions | knowledge, skills and abilities |
| Evidence | Foundation and Advanced certificate | certification level D to A via the VZPM |
| Tested for the certificate | knowledge and application of the method | from level C competence and experience, with report and interview |
Both standards refer to each other
The two standards are built to complement each other. Their own statements show this:
- The HERMES reference manual assumes that those involved already have project management training or sound practical experience. HERMES regulates what is expected. How to lead a project is learned, according to the Federal Chancellery, in training and practice.
- The ICB4 says it stands alongside other standards that concentrate more on processes. Suitable methods and tools can be defined by the organisation. The person chooses from them what fits the situation.
HERMES thus provides the structure, IPMA describes the abilities of the people who work within this structure.
Where the two meet
Many competence elements of the ICB4 have a counterpart in HERMES. Some examples:
| ICB4 competence element | Counterpart in HERMES |
|---|---|
| Strategy | alignment with the benefits, study and execution order |
| Governance, structures and processes | roles, milestones and releases by the project sponsor |
| Compliance, standards and regulations | legal basis analysis and ISDP concept |
| Project design | choice of scenario and approach, traditional or agile |
| Risk and opportunity | task “Manage risks” in the Project management module, at the project sponsor's request additionally a higher-level risk management in project steering |
| Stakeholders | Project management module: winning stakeholders for the project and informing them, plus the role of user representative |
| Procurement | Procurement module |
This allocation is my own comparison of the content of the two standards. It comes neither from HERMES nor from the ICB4.
It also becomes clear where HERMES says little: on personal and social competences. Leadership, conflict and crisis, negotiation or self-reflection are not regulated by HERMES. That is not a shortcoming but intentional: a method defines procedures, not behaviour. This is exactly where the ICB4 comes in.
What this means in practice
- For project sponsors: Anyone looking for a project manager should check both. Knowledge of HERMES shows that someone masters the structure required in public administration. An IPMA certificate from level C upwards shows that leadership competence has been independently assessed.
- For project managers: The ICB4 is suitable as a grid for one's own development. It shows which abilities a method presupposes but does not convey.
- For organisations: Introducing a method is not enough. In my assessment, projects fail less often because of missing templates than because of missing decisions, unclear roles or unresolved conflicts. These are topics of the ICB4.
Conclusion
HERMES or IPMA is the wrong question. HERMES gives the project a form, IPMA describes what the people in it must be able to do. In Swiss public administration and among its partners the combination therefore makes sense: common terms and procedures through HERMES, assessed leadership competence through IPMA.
Further reading: HERMES main page · IPMA project management: competence instead of method
Sources: IPMA Individual Competence Baseline, version 4.0, German edition · HERMES Reference Manual Project Management, 2022 edition (in German) · HERMES Online, Project management module (in German) · HERMES Online, task Manage risks (in German) · eCH interview with Martin Schwaar (in German) · VZPM, IPMA certification system (in German)