SMaP

What SMaP does

SMaP (Société française pour l'avancement du Management de Projet, also branded IPMA France) is a French non-profit professional association (association loi 1901 type, SIREN 798979183) founded in 2006 and headquartered at 140 Bis rue de Rennes, 75006 Paris. It operates as the official French representative of IPMA (International Project Management Association), the federation of 70 national PM associations, and serves as a member of ICEC (International Cost Engineering Council) and AACE International. The association delivers internationally-recognized project management certifications, training-organization labeling, expert working groups, and networking programs to individual practitioners, enterprises, and training organizations in France.

The core product surface consists of IPMA certifications at four levels (A: Director of Project/Portfolio at €2,530; B: Complex Project Manager at €2,090; C: Project Manager at €1,680; D: Project Associate at €440), three ICEC specialty certifications (Planning, Cost Control, Estimation at €440 each), and an SMaP Change Management Certification at €1,280, all evaluated against the IPMA ICB4 framework of 46 competence elements. Beyond certifications, SMaP runs the IPMA Training Labellisation service (currently 21 courses and 26 programs labeled globally), expert working groups (ESCO for cost engineering across Escofin/Escoplan/Escorisk; DIPRO for project direction across Transformation & Change Management, PMO of Tomorrow, AI & PM, and Project Innovation), and the Young Crew international networking program for professionals under 35, integrated across 50 countries.

SMaP's business model rests on three revenue streams: per-certificate fees (€440–€2,530 with separate eligibility, exam, and interview components), annual membership (provided free with new certifications, generating recurring engagement), and licensing-style fees for training organization labeling. Go-to-market blends enterprise field sales (on-demand certification sessions at client sites across Renault, Thales, Alstom, CNES, Orange, COLAS, Orano), individual inside sales (collective sessions held throughout the year with free first-year membership), and event-driven community engagement (ESCO/DIPRO seminars, webconferences, monthly newsletter La Lettre de la SMaP). Marketing is distributed across the smap-asso.eu content hub, LinkedIn, YouTube, and the international IPMA federation channel.

Name

SMaP

Legal name

Société française pour l'avancement du Management de Projet (SMaP)

Website

https://smap-asso.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

SMaP (IPMA France) is a French non-profit professional association that delivers IPMA and ICEC project management certifications, training-organization labeling, expert working groups, and networking programs to individual practitioners, enterprises, and training organizations across France.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Certification Services

NAICS

Business Associations (813910), Professional and Management Development Training (611430)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Project, Program & Portfolio Management Certifications (EDAAANAB)

Keywords

• Project management certification
• Professional certification services
• Cost engineering certification
• Training program labeling
• Learned society activities

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Certification Fees: Fees for IPMA certification exams at four levels (A: €2530, B: €2090, C: €1680, D: €440), ICEC specialty certifications (€440 each), and change management certification (€1280). Eligibility fees, exam fees, and interview fees are charged separately. Renewals and extensions available at reduced rates.
2. Membership Dues: Annual membership provided free with new certifications. Members gain access to member area including conference videos, newsletters, bibliography, and preferential rates for events.
3. Training Organization Labeling: International labeling service for training organizations to certify their programs align with IPMA ICB4 competency framework. Provides international visibility through IPMA website publication.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

SMaP is a French professional association that issues IPMA-aligned project management certifications across four levels (A, B, C, D) and ICEC specialty certifications in Planning, Cost Control, and Estimation, plus a Change Management certification. Beyond certifications, SMaP labels (labellises) training organizations against the IPMA ICB4 competency framework, operates expert working groups (Esco for cost engineering and Dipro for project direction), runs the Young Crew networking program for professionals under 35, and delivers seminars, conferences, and knowledge resources for the French project management community.

Product overview

SMaP (Société Française pour l'avancement du Management de Projet) is a French professional association serving as the IPMA France representative. The organization operates as a unified portfolio of professional development services rather than a software platform. The core offerings consist of certifications (IPMA Levels A through D covering project direction and portfolio management, plus ICEC specialty certifications for Planning, Cost Control, and Estimation), training organization labellisation aligned with IPMA standards, expert working groups (Esco focusing on cost engineering and Dipro on project direction), the Young Crew international networking program for professionals under 35, and knowledge resources including conferences, seminars, publications, and white papers. The certification portfolio represents the primary structured service offering, evaluated against the ICB4 competency framework, with annual membership benefits including access to member resources, discounted event participation, and working group involvement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IPMA Level A Certification (Director of Project / Portfolio Director) Highest-level certification for project directors and portfolio managers managing very complex and strategic projects. Evaluation includes a report presentation to a jury of 2 assessors for two hours, covering direction of projects, programmes, and portfolios. Priced at €2,530 ex-VAT (extension €790).
• IPMA Level B Certification (Complex Project Manager / Portfolio Manager) Certification for complex project managers and portfolio managers. Evaluation comprises a 3-hour written exam with 30 open questions (or an oral exam of at least one hour) plus a report presentation to 2 assessors. Priced at €2,090 ex-VAT (extension €580).
• IPMA Level C Certification (Project Manager) Certification for project managers managing projects of moderate complexity. Two pathways: written exam with workshop, or written exam with project report presentation. Priced at €1,680 ex-VAT (extension €370).
• IPMA Level D Certification (Project Associate) Entry-level knowledge-based certification with no prerequisites. Includes a 3-hour written exam with mini-case, open questions, logical reasoning questions, and multiple-choice questions; available in French and English. Priced at €440 ex-VAT (student price €140 including VAT).
• ICEC Planning Certification Specialty certification for project management professionals seeking recognition of planning competencies, based on a knowledge assessment. Priced at €440 ex-VAT.
• ICEC Cost Control (Coûtérance) Certification Specialty certification recognizing competencies in project cost control and cost engineering. Priced at €440 ex-VAT.
• ICEC Estimation Certification Specialty certification for cost estimation and economic evaluation, consisting of estimation and economic evaluation problems. Priced at €440 ex-VAT.
• SMaP Change Management Certification Certification for project professionals recognizing competencies in change management, complementing the IPMA technical certification track. Priced at €1,280 ex-VAT.
• IPMA Training Labellisation International labeling service that certifies training organizations' programs align with the IPMA ICB4 competency framework, providing international visibility through publication on the IPMA website and competitive differentiation.
• Young Crew Network International IPMA network for project management professionals under 35 years old, providing integration into a global community with approximately 100 events per year across 50 countries.
• Seminars and Conferences Educational events including ESCO seminars (cost-engineering topics) and DIPRO seminars (project direction topics), plus webconferences on project management methodologies and practices.

Named customers7 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IPMA (International Project Management Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSMaP is the official IPMA France representative, federating 70 national project management associations worldwide. SMaP delivers IPMA certifications (Levels A, B, C, D) based on the ICB4 competency framework and participates in international IPMA events including the World Congress and Young Crew network.
• ICEC (International Cost Engineering Council)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSMaP is a member of ICEC which federates over 40 associations for promoting and sharing cost control best practices. SMaP delivers ICEC certifications in planning, cost control, and estimation specialties.
• AACE InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAACE International is a worldwide association fostering exchanges in the cost control community and defining methodologies for advancing the discipline. SMaP maintains referral relationship with AACE for cost engineering professionals.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• ICEC (International Cost Engineering Council): Federating body of 40+ national cost engineering associations that defines certification standards adopted by SMaP. Acts as both parent framework provider and indirect peer in the cost engineering certification market.
• PMI (Project Management Institute): Global leader in project management certification (PMP, CAPM, PMI-ACP) and the dominant credentialing body worldwide. PMI is the principal competitive counterpart to IPMA-aligned certifications such as those issued by SMaP in France.
• PeopleCert (PRINCE2 / AXELOS portfolio): Owns and administers PRINCE2, the dominant methodology- and certification-driven PM framework in Europe. Competes with IPMA-aligned credentials for enterprise training budgets and is the principal methodology alternative to SMaP's offering.

Emerging players

• IIBA (International Institute of Business Analysis): Global body issuing CBAP and ECBA certifications in business analysis — an adjacent discipline frequently bundled with project management. Competes for the same corporate training wallet share that SMaP targets via IPMA certifications.
• AACE International: Global cost engineering association affiliated with SMaP via referral relationships. Offers certifications and methodologies overlapping with SMaP's ICEC-aligned cost estimation and control credentials.

Regional players

• ASPE (formerly ASPE-SDVPM): Historical French-language PM association that operated in adjacent French-speaking and Latin markets prior to its merger with SMaP. A former direct competitor that has consolidated into SMaP's ecosystem, illustrating the consolidation dynamic in French PM credentialing.

Direct peers

• APM (Association for Project Management): The UK IPMA member association, issuing IPMA-aligned certifications and providing chartered project professional credentials. Closest direct functional peer to SMaP, also an IPMA-affiliated national body in a mature PM market.
• GPM (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Projektmanagement): Germany's IPMA member association, with its own four-level microCERT credential track. Operates as a national IPMA member and is structurally comparable to SMaP in scale, governance, and certification-driven revenue mix.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC6vuupkFoilwBYfv2KP0w1Q
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smapasso

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SMaP