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Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Certification

Drive Growth Through Uncontested Market Space

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About Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Certification

Overview

In today's crowded markets, businesses constantly face intense competition. Blue Ocean Strategy offers a powerful methodology to break away from the red ocean of bloody competition by creating new, uncontested market spaces. Certifying in Blue Ocean Strategy with APMG International and the Blue Ocean Strategy Awards demonstrates your expertise in this transformative approach, enabling you to:

  • Systematically Identify New Opportunities: Learn to recognize and unlock new market spaces for growth.
  • Innovate Value: Develop compelling offerings that simultaneously achieve differentiation and low cost.
  • Lead Strategic Transformation: Equip yourself with the skills to drive significant change and achieve breakthrough results within your organization.
  • Gain Global Recognition: Earn an internationally recognized credential that validates your proficiency in Blue Ocean Strategy.
  • Access Exclusive Resources: Benefit from tools, platforms, and case studies that support effective strategy development and implementation.

The APMG International Blue Ocean Strategy for Action certification empowers individuals and organizations to systematically create new market space, making the competition irrelevant. Developed in collaboration with the Blue Ocean Strategy Awards, the official Scheme Owner and sole training provider, this certification provides a robust framework and practical tools for identifying opportunities, innovating value, and successfully implementing Blue Ocean Strategies across any industry. 

To emphasize the fresh, practical value we bring, here are a few points to distinguish "Blue Ocean Strategy for Action" from pure theory:

  • Operational Framework: We have transformed the strategy into an operational framework, similar to how SCRUM operates for agile project management, but applied to strategy formulation and execution.
  • Action-Oriented Tools: The certification focuses on deploying actionable tools and processes that teams can use immediately to drive results, rather than just understanding concepts.
  • AI Integration: Our approach explicitly integrates modern technology. Specifically, our platforms (like Blue Ocean STARTER) embed specialized Blue Ocean Strategy for Action AI agents to assist users in their strategic journey. 

The official Blue Ocean Strategy for Action certification training is provided exclusively by the Blue Ocean Strategy Awards, the official Scheme Owner and sole training provider for this certification. Training is available through various formats. Please contact the Blue Ocean Strategy Awards directly for course availability and registration.

A group of people gather around a conference table reviewing printed strategy charts, maps, and graphs, with laptops and coffee cups on the table and an ocean view through large windows behind them.

Who is Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Certification for?

Types of organizations: 

  • Startups
  • SMEs exploring new directions
  • Large corporations introducing Blue Ocean Strategy
  • Public sector organizations seeking efficiency gains

Typical Departments:

  • Strategy
  • Business Development
  • Innovation Teams
  • Marketing
  • Product Development

Benefits

For Individuals

  • Gain Unmatched Expertise in Market Creation: Master a systematic, actionable framework for value innovation. Learn how to stop competing and start creating new, uncontested market spaces.
  • Enhance Professional Credibility & Global Recognition: Earn an internationally recognized credential from APMG International, validating your specialized skills in strategic innovation and positioning you as an expert.
  • Drive Tangible Strategic Change: Develop the practical, hands-on ability to lead and contribute to transformative initiatives. You will be able to build and analyze strategy canvases, identify non-customers, and help formulate new value curves that deliver measurable results.
  • Unlock New Career Opportunities: Position yourself as a forward-thinking strategic expert, opening doors to key roles in strategy, innovation, business development, and entrepreneurship.

For Organizations

  • Unlock New, Profitable Growth: Equip your teams with a proven, systematic methodology to identify, create, and capture new demand in uncontested market spaces, driving sustainable and high-profit revenue streams.
  • Escape the Red Ocean of Competition: Shift the organization's focus from costly, head-to-head competition over existing demand to making the competition irrelevant. This frees up resources and protects margins.
  • Build a Culture of Innovation: Foster a shared language and a structured process for innovation across the company. This empowers employees at all levels to challenge assumptions and proactively discover new opportunities for value creation.
  • Achieve Sustainable & High Performance Development: By simultaneously pursuing differentiation and low cost (Value Innovation), the organization can break the value-cost trade-off, creating a powerful strategic profile that is difficult to imitate and enhances adaptability for future market shifts.

Success in 1 2 3

Over 2.6 million people in 192 countries have an APMG certification. Our certifications are used by 80% of the FTSE 100 and a third of the Fortune 500 and S&P 500, and are proven to deliver better outcomes.

Select your certification

APMG certifications can advance your career, build your confidence and help you transition into a new field. Browse our careers section for inspiration or visit our certification pages for details of what you’ll learn and how you will benefit from certification.

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Choose your learning style

APMG is not a training provider. Please contact accredited training organizations listed on our website for prices, languages and dates. Alternatively, you can self-study for an exam directly through APMG.

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Pass the exam & receive a certificate

When you are ready to take your exam, book an online timeslot yourself with APMG, or your training organization may organize this for you. If you pass your exam APMG will issue you with a digital badge for you to share!

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Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Certification levels

Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Foundation Digital Badge

Blue Ocean Strategy for Action Foundation

Understand how to systematically create new market space.

Read more

FAQs

If you booked your exam directly with us, you will have 12 months to sit your exam which cannot be extended. If your exam was booked by a Training Organization, then you will need to reach out to them directly to request an extension to your expiry date.

  • The structure of the examinations depends on the level of certification.
  • Generally, entry-level examinations (Foundation Certifications) have a range of 40 minutes to 60 minutes to complete a multiple-choice exam, which may include 40 to 60 questions.
  • Practitioner examinations can range from 90 minutes to 120 minutes with an average of 80 complex multiple-choice questions.
  • The required score to pass an examination varies from one certification to another. You can find more information listed on the product page under exam details, to learn more about a particular examination.

  • Most training providers include the exams with their courses.
  • Self-study candidates can book and take the exam online from anywhere, with a proctor monitoring via webcam, microphone and desktop.
  • After booking, you'll receive a registration email to schedule your session through the Candidate Portal, with exams available 24/7.

PMI Professional Development Units (PDUs) are either: Education or Giving Back to the Profession. You can earn PMI Education PDUs by attending non-PMI provider courses if they align with the PMI Talent Triangle® skill areas. Visit the PMI website for details on PDUs, how to record them and required documentation.

Please contact us via email addressed to customerservice@apmgroup.co.uk. Please review our policies before submitting your written feedback.

Unfortunately, no. Only Accredited Training Organizations and their registered partners are authorized to use these logos. If you do not fall under these categories and would like to request permission to use the logo, please contact the APMG-International Service Desk (servicedesk@apmg-international.com).

However, successful candidates are able to share and display their digital badge publicly.

Some certifications do not require training in order to take the exam however, for most certifications, training is advised. 

For some certifications individuals also have the option to self-study in preparation for the exam and, when they are ready, can even take the exam from the comfort of their home or office.

You can find details of our self-study exams, available to purchase, via our public exams portal.

Most, if not all, of our certifications come with at least one Sample Exam to help participants prepare for their exam. Access to the Sample Exams can be located on our website.

If you are sitting the examination through an Accredited Training Organization, the cost of the exam is generally included in the course fee. Please ensure you confirm with your training provider that the exam is included in these costs. 

If you have selected a self-study option, please note that APMG-International uses a global pricing model for all exams. The examination fees for candidates attending a public exam centre are determined by the location where the exams are administered.

To find out the costs in your region, please refer to our examination portal or contact the APMG-International Service Desk (servicedesk@apmg-international.com).

Candidates will be able to claim their digital badge and electronic certificate from the APMG Candidate Portal within two business days of their exam result being issued.

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If you have a query about this certification or want to know more about training send us a message via this contact form. We would love to hear from you!

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