Association for Project Management

The Association for Project Management (APM) is a United Kingdom-based professional organisation serving people and organisations involved in project, programme and portfolio management. It describes itself as a professional body rather than a commercial project-delivery company, bringing together individual practitioners, employers and other organisations connected with the discipline. Its work covers professional membership, the development and recognition of project-management capability, knowledge sharing, and representation of the profession. APM originated in 1972 as the United Kingdom branch of INTERNET, an international project-management association that later became the International Project Management Association (IPMA). The branch was created after a group of project-management specialists attending an IPMA-related seminar in Zurich were inspired to establish a UK organisation. Its first meeting took place in London in May 1972. Early membership was reported to have reached 78 within the first month, with an annual fee of £1 at the time. Among the figures associated with the founding group were Jack Grimshaw, Dr Jim Gordon and Dennis Gower, although the organisation is generally described as having been established by a wider “pioneering seven.” During the 1990s, the international organisation INTERNET adopted the name International Project Management Association, while its UK branch became known as the Association for Project Management. This naming change helped establish APM as a distinct national professional body while retaining its historical connection with the international project-management community. For many years APM also served as the United Kingdom certification body for IPMA. That relationship changed on 1 March 2025, when APM began operating independently alongside IPMA rather than as an IPMA member association and certification body. A major institutional milestone came on 6 January 2017, when APM received a Royal Charter. The charter formalised its standing as a professional institution and marked a significant step in the organisation's development. APM is also a registered charity, reflecting its stated public-interest role in advancing project-management knowledge and professional standards rather than operating solely for commercial gain. APM's community includes more than 42,000 individual members and over 470 corporate members, making it the largest professional body of its kind in the United Kingdom according to the cited reference material. Its audience spans project and programme professionals, employers, educators, students and stakeholders in sectors where structured delivery of change and investment is important. The organisation's activities include professional community building, publishing and sector engagement. It has also collaborated with IPMA and Elsevier on the International Journal of Project Management. APM formerly co-owned part of the journal and transferred half of its shares to IPMA to support the international association's long-term revenue generation. The organisation's head office is in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire. In the contemporary UK professional landscape, APM's positioning rests on institutional recognition, membership scale, professional standards and the development of project-management practice. Its 2017 Royal Charter and its post-2025 independent operating position are central to understanding its current identity.

The Association for Project Management traces its origins to the early development of organised project-management practice in the United Kingdom. In 1971, project-management specialists attending an international seminar in Zurich were motivated to establish a British branch of the organisation then known as INTERNET. The group is remembered as the “pioneering seven.” The UK branch held its first meeting in London in May 1972, beginning APM's institutional history. Jack Grimshaw was the original chairman, and Dr Jim Gordon and Dennis Gower were among the other individuals associated with the founding group. The early organisation operated on a modest membership model: annual dues were set at £1, and membership reportedly reached 78 within a month. This early activity positioned the UK branch as a professional community for people seeking to share methods and experience in a field that was becoming increasingly important to engineering, construction, government, information technology and business change. In the 1990s, the international association changed its name from INTERNET to International Project Management Association. The UK branch correspondingly adopted the name Association for Project Management. This transition gave the British body a clearer national identity while preserving its links with the international project-management network. APM subsequently became an important UK institution for professional development and, for a period, acted as the United Kingdom certification body for IPMA. APM's institutional status was strengthened when it received a Royal Charter on 6 January 2017. The charter represented a formal recognition of the organisation's professional role and was a defining turning point in its evolution from an association into a chartered professional body. APM is also a registered charity, aligning its activities with the wider public interest in improving project and programme delivery and developing professional competence. The association expanded its community to include individual and corporate members. The cited reference describes more than 42,000 individual members and over 470 corporate members, making APM the largest professional body of its kind in the United Kingdom. Its work has included professional membership, standards and guidance, events, knowledge dissemination, and certification-related activity. These functions allow it to serve both practitioners and organisations that employ or sponsor project professionals. APM has also participated in the international knowledge infrastructure of the profession. It collaborated with IPMA and Elsevier in publishing the International Journal of Project Management. APM formerly held half of the journal's ownership, but transferred that share to IPMA as a contribution intended to support IPMA's long-term revenue generation. This episode illustrates the organisation's continuing relationship with the international project-management community even as its national institutional identity developed. A further structural change took effect on 1 March 2025. APM ceased operating as an IPMA member association and certification body and instead operated independently alongside IPMA. The change did not erase the historical relationship between the organisations, but it established a more independent basis for APM's governance and professional activities. APM's headquarters are in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire. Its present identity combines the functions of a membership organisation, professional institution, registered charity, knowledge publisher and advocate for project, programme and portfolio management in the United Kingdom.

• 2025

  Independent operating relationship with IPMA begins

  [1]Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org

  From 1 March 2025, APM operated independently alongside IPMA rather than as an IPMA member association and certification body.

• 2017

  Royal Charter granted

  [1]Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org

  APM received its Royal Charter on 6 January 2017.

• 1990

  National organisation adopts the APM identity

  [1]Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org

  During the 1990s, INTERNET became the International Project Management Association and its UK branch became the Association for Project Management.

• 1972

  UK branch established

  [1]Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org

  The new UK branch held its first meeting in London in May 1972 and began building a national professional membership community.

• 1971

  Founding initiative begins

  [1]Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org

  A group of project-management specialists at an international seminar in Zurich was inspired to establish a United Kingdom branch of INTERNET, the organisation that later became IPMA.

A UK professional institution and registered charity focused on advancing project, programme and portfolio management through membership, professional standards, capability development, knowledge exchange and representation.

• Membership

  Professional membership

  APM's membership community serves individual project, programme and portfolio professionals as well as organisations. Membership provides the institutional framework for professional networking, access to knowledge and participation in the UK's project-management community. The cited material reports more than 42,000 individual members and over 470 corporate members.

• Professional standards

  Professional standards and knowledge resources

  APM develops and shares professional knowledge for project, programme and portfolio management. These resources support the development of common terminology, professional capability and good practice among practitioners and organisations operating in project-based environments.

• Certification

  Certification and professional recognition services

  Certification and professional recognition have formed part of APM's role in the UK project-management profession. APM formerly acted as IPMA's UK certification body; from 1 March 2025, it operated independently alongside IPMA rather than in that member-association and certification-body role.

• Publication

  International Journal of Project Management collaboration

  APM has collaborated with IPMA and Elsevier on the International Journal of Project Management. The association formerly co-owned half of the journal and later transferred that share to IPMA to support the international body's long-term revenue generation.

• 2025

  Move to independent operation alongside IPMAStrategy

  Background

  APM had historically been connected to IPMA as its UK member association and certification body.

  Action taken

  From 1 March 2025, APM operated independently alongside IPMA rather than in its former member-association and certification-body capacity.

  Aftermath

  The change established a more independent operating relationship while preserving the organisations' historical connection.

  Source

• 2017

  Pursuit and receipt of a Royal CharterOther

  Background

  APM had developed from a national branch of an international project-management association into a major UK professional body and registered charity.

  Action taken

  The organisation received a Royal Charter on 6 January 2017.

  Aftermath

  The charter formalised APM's standing as a professional institution and became a defining part of its organisational identity.

  Source

1. 1Association for Project Managementen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Association for Project Management official websiteapm.org.uk