PSPO vs CSPO Certification: What Fits Your Requirements?

A Product Owner is a key individual of the Scrum team. If the Scrum Master is the heart of the Scrum team, then the Product Owner is its brain. 

One question that is often asked by aspiring Product Owners is “What’s the difference between PSPO and CSPO?” 

It’s a question that requires deep analysis and we’ve penned this blog post to do complete justice. 

Without taking much of your time, let’s get started.

What is Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO) Certification?

Professional Scrum Product Owner (PSPO) is an entry-level certification training for aspiring Product Owners. 

The PSPO certification for the Product Owners by Scrum.org is recognized globally. Scrum.org has over 370 Professional Scrum Trainers(PSTs), and 100+ training partner organizations all over the globe with 2,95,000+ students and counting. 

Professional Certifications are universally recognized as 6,07, 000 people have been certified. Here are the learning outcomes of the PSPO certification- 

• Have a clear understanding of Product and Product Management
• Knowledge of the mechanics of Scrum
• Know how the Product Owner fits into Scrum
• Product Maturity with an emerging roadmap
• Successfully working with Scrum Teams and stakeholders
• Effectively managing the Product Backlog and maximizing the value of the Product
• Measuring the value of the Product in the market
• Product adoption in the customer space

Benefits of  Scrum Product Owner Certification Training

• 1Learn Scrum fundamentals: There is no other better way to learn Scrum than a Scrum certification. It helps you effectively discover the fundamentals, Agile principles, and best practices. For beginners, it will help you gain a thorough understanding of Product development using the Scrum framework.
• 2Lucrative opportunities: Scrum Product Owner-certified individuals can secure well-paying jobs compared to their non-certified peers.
• 3Develop a concrete understanding of the Scrum framework: The Scrum Product Owner certification provides a comprehensive understanding of the Scrum framework, values, practices, and principles. It provides hands-on scrum training which helps you understand the core Scrum knowledge and also how to apply it. The primary responsibility of a Scrum Product Owner is product value optimization as they decide the features to be built through the creation of user stories.
• 4Elaborate on the Product Backlog: The major responsibility of a Product Backlog is to prepare the list of tasks in the Product Backlog. Just like the Scrum Master, the product owner interacts with the Scrum developers often.
• 5The interface between clients and developers: The Product Owner certification enables Product Owners to act as a bridge between clients and developers. They will be able to communicate the needs of the customers to the developers to prioritize the tasks in the product backlog.

Why become a Professional Scrum Product Owner?

According to a LinkedIn survey, 94% of them stated that they would highly recommend family and friends to pursue the CSPO certification. 

Here are the advantages of becoming a CSPO-

• Transcend your career opportunities across all industry sectors.
• Master Scrum essentials and the scope of the product owner role.
• Maximize the value of your team's work and the resulting products.
• Interact with a global community of agile practitioners committed to continuous improvement.
• Access exclusive resources designed to help you succeed long after the class is done. 

Difference between PSPO and CSPO certifications

How to acquire CSPO & PSPO Certification?

The most important step is to pursue a course from a training organization recognized by Scrum.org or Scrum Alliance. Next, undergo the 2-day certification training.

After completing of the PSPO training and clearing the PSPO exam, you will be receiving the certification from Scrum.org. As for CSPO, there is no exam. You need to attend the 2-day CSPO certification training and after completion of the training, you will receive the CSPO certification. 

Follow these 3 simple steps to get Product Owner Certified

Step 1: Choose a Product Owner Certification Choose a Product Owner Certification of your choice. If you need help, get in touch with us and we will help you. 

Step 2: Undergo Product Owner Certification Training Undergo Product Owner Certification training at a time convenient to you. Get empirical and hands-on training for two days or more.

Step 3: Pass the Product Owner Certification Exam Attempt the agile certification exam and get certified by clearing it.

Eligibility criteria for CSPO & PSPO certification

The eligibility criteria for CSPO is to attend the 2-day CSPO certification training by Scrum Alliance. There is no eligibility criteria to fulfill to attend the PSPO certification training.

Basic knowledge of Scrum with real-world experience is good to have but not mandatory. 

What to learn to become a Skilled Product Owner?

Basic skills are a prerequisite for becoming successful in any job and Product Owner is no exception. Here are some of the skills- 

• Authority to do the work: The product owner must be empowered to take necessary and timely decisions and complete the project.
• Leadership: Right from the beginning, a product owner should lead the project. The product owner is the developer of the vision, team, and project.
• Decision-Making: The capability of making quick and authorized decisions is one of the preliminary skills of a product owner.
• Communication: Having excellent communication skills is of great significance for a product owner. They connect people with information.
• Delegation: The product owner should be aware of the skillset of their team members and hence guarantee smooth collaboration.