How Do You Become a Project Manager?

Project managers are a staple of the modern workforce

Project management has become a diverse and interesting field over the past several decades. Nearly every industry finds itself in need of a skilled project manager to oversee the planning and implementation of projects within their organization.

Highly trained project managers have become fixtures within modern technology, engineering, manufacturing, and construction businesses. These individuals possess skill sets that enable them to see the big picture, anticipate bottlenecks and roadblocks, and motivate a team to deliver on-time results for often demanding expectations. 

So who is a project manager? What skills do they have? What benefit do they bring to an organization? Let’s explore the value of the project management professional.

Who is a Project Manager?

Project managers are responsible for the planning, communication, and execution of a project. They are heavily involved in creating the project plan and take the lead from the beginning of a project all the way through to the end. These professionals typically aren’t involved in the actual production or task aspects of the project, rather, they guide workflow and ensure that the project has the resources it needs to be completed on time.

The role of the project manager serves to deliver the vision and request of the client. This requires consummate communication skills and familiarity with the industry that the client is working in. Combining these two attributes with strong leadership skills is what great project managers are able to do.

Project Management as a Career

We should begin our discussion about project management careers by saying that this is not a field that just anyone is well suited for. Many of the skills of project management can be taught but there is an enjoyment of leadership and organization that must be present in order to be successful in the role.

Beyond that, project management is, quite frankly, a difficult task. It requires focus, attention to detail, patience, good listening habits, and a willingness to adapt at the moment. Conflict is inevitable. Change is a given. Tough deadlines are ever-present.

The good news is that despite the challenges, project management can be exceedingly rewarding. Leading a team through a project to deliver quality results for a client is impressive and not something everyone is capable of. The other plus side is that over time, the experience can give a project manager momentum making them more and more efficient and able to recognize potential roadblocks earlier in the process.

With nearly every industry imaginable in need of project managers, another plus is that there is a career opportunity for knowledgeable and driven individuals who are in a field but maybe looking for an alternative to the on the ground aspects of engineering, manufacturing, or software development.

Project management Education, certifications, and qualifications

As project management emerges in the workplace as an essential position, opportunities for education, and certifications in the field continue to grow. There is a myriad of options for online degrees that are especially well suited for the full-time working professional as well. Additionally, project management certification programs can provide a great background in the mechanics of project management principles.

At the end of the day though, the most important qualification for an industry-specific project manager is an extensive knowledge of that field. This knowledge provides a base for the manager to communicate with everyone involved – team, client, and stakeholders – about the intricacies of the project in the industry’s own language.

Is Project Management Stressful?

Project managers are the center point of a project and in many ways are directly responsible for the success or failure of a project. This is a huge responsibility and with that comes great potential for stress.

The sources of stress for a project manager are as varied as the position’s job description:

• Impending and/or unrealistic deadlines and time frames.
• The difficulty of managing teams that are working virtually
• Conflict between group members within the project team
• Restricted resources
• Clients shifting expectations 
• Lack of clear and consistent communication from stakeholders

Project management certainly can be stressful but the good news is that there are resources available to help minimize stress and get back into an efficient and functional workflow.

For instance, developing great conflict resolution techniques or taking the time to prioritize the essential tasks can go a long way to refocus and destress. Another great tool is a project management software that can provide data-driven status updates and unparalleled organization. Project management software continues to improve and evolve and is capable of tracking and compartmentalizing tasks, resources, and timelines giving project managers the ability to momentarily step away from the project and come back with a fresh mind.

Skills of a good Project Manager

Due to the diverse nature of a project manager’s roles and responsibilities, these individuals need to possess equally diverse skills. 

Here are just some of the skills necessary to be a successful project manager:

1. Excellent communication: There is not a business leadership role where excellent communication skills won’t be necessary. A project manager’s ability – or inability – to communicate will impact every aspect of the project at hand. Project managers must be able to distill complex, grand-scale ideas to their core concepts so that the team members who are on the ground can understand how they impact the success of a project. On the other hand, project managers must be able to communicate the status of a project to stakeholders without dragging them down into the weeds of individual tasks that they shouldn’t be concerned with. Knowing their audience and communicating essential information is a requirement.
   
2. Leadership: This seems like an obvious skill set for anyone in a management position but leadership is not a skill that comes naturally to everyone. Leading a team is really the core function of a project manager. This involves communicating, listening, allocating, teaching, and inspiring the individuals who are collaborating toward a common goal. Leadership skills can be learned. While it may be poetic to assume that all leaders are born leaders, most individuals in leadership positions had to apply themselves and learn the ideas and theories behind leadership practices.
   
3. Budgeting and cost management: Project managers can only utilize the financial resources that are available to them. In order to secure funds for a project and be accountable, project managers are responsible for proposing budgets and then staying within the confines of the agreed-upon final budget plan. This takes considerable discipline as the likelihood of scope creep is ever-present in project implementation.
   
4. Problems solving – Experienced project managers can probably count on one hand the number of times that everything has gone exactly to plan in their career. The truth is that problems will more than likely rear their head during the course of any implementation. Project managers must be able to gather and process information and then discern the best course forward for the team. This is difficult enough but equally as important as arriving at a good solution is maintaining composure while working through issues. The team watches the project manager and takes cues from her. If the project manager is stressed, the team will be too.
   
5. Patience – Rushing through a project will only lead to mistakes and poor quality. A good project manager will be patient and play the project plan out as designed. This shouldn’t be taken to mean that patience will ensure that everything goes smoothing (see item number four above…) but it will help things go smoother.
   
   
6. Risk management – Project managers are tasked with minimizing risk as much as possible. Risk, unfortunately, is unavoidable in the project management world. While eliminating risk would be ideal, a project manager realistically strives to reduce it and its impact as much as possible. Much of this is done in the planning phase where these potential risks are identified and solutions are worked out preemptively. The better risk is managed, the more likely a project will be successful.
   
7. Task management – During the implementation phase, task completion becomes the name of the game. The project plan will include a set of key tasks that will move the team toward its goal. These tasks are often dependent upon one another so it is vital that they are completed in a timely manner. Project managers are responsible for tracking tasks and making sure they are moving along in a timely fashion. 
   
8. Adaptability – Client expectations, technology, and trends are all in a state of flux and a good project manager must be able to adapt to these changes. This is a skill set that doesn’t always come naturally however it can be a learned skill. What makes adaptability tricky is that change can be uncomfortable and requires project managers to step outside of the familiar territory they may be used to inhabiting. 
   
9. Active listening – Being a good listener goes hand-in-hand with strong communication skills but it is listed separately here because, as a skill set, it is that important. Project managers are the central contact point for almost everyone involved in a project. Clients, stakeholders, developers, and staff all communicate with the project manager at some point. It is essential that project managers listen closely with the intent of truly understanding what each of those groups’ concerns and challenges is. This has two primary benefits. First, it provides a clear understanding of what any problems clients and co-workers might be sharing. Second, it is an opportunity for the project manager to show how much they value those they work with.
   
10. Conflict management – Another unavoidable aspect of projects is conflict. It is bound to happen at some point. Keeping the team working efficiently is top of mind of project managers and strong conflict management skills can help head off any disagreements that might emerge as a result of misaligned expectations, changing client requests, or another other anticipated setback.

What are the key Functions of a Project Manager?

As mentioned before, the activities of a successful project manager are wide and varied. They are required to wear many hats in the course of a project. Here are just some of the functions that project managers will engaged in at any particular moment:

1. Developing a project plan: This is likely the first activity that the project manager will be involved in. Developing a plan for a project includes working with stakeholders and clients to determine the scope and timeline for delivering the final product as well as what the project team will need from those groups to be successful.
   
2. Developing and adhering to a budget: Funding resources go hand in hand with the project plan. In fact, these two items are very much intertwined. Clients and stakeholders will monitor the budget closely and it is imperative that the project manager respect and adhere to those guidelines.
   
3. Ensuring timely delivery: Getting the client the requested product in a timely manner is just as important as staying within budget. Project managers regularly check in with their teams to make sure that tasks and deliverables are moving along. 
   
4. Assessing and minimizing risk: A good project manager is constantly scanning the horizon for potential risk and working the mitigate it. This vigilance takes considerable effort and is a key function for a good project manager.
   
5. Managing communication: Project managers are the conduit of information between their team, clients, and stakeholders. They are responsible for being proactive and conveying successes, delays, complications, and status to all the groups involved.
   
6. Recalibrating: Not every project goes to plan. In fact, at some point, most project plans will need adjustments in response to change requests from clients, alterations to available resources, or staff limitations. Project managers need to be ready to make adjustments at the moment as any delay could cost the project both quality and time.

What are the Day-to-Day Roles and Responsibilities of a Project Manager?

The day-to-day roles and responsibilities of a project manager are closely aligned with the key functions of their position. Their daily tasks, not to be mistaken for the tasks outlined in the project plan, support their aim of providing oversight and leadership to the team. Some of the daily responsibilities may include:

• Implementing and directing each phase of the project plan
• Defining the scope of the project both to the team and stakeholders
• Provide consistent updates and document process
• Managing the expectations of the client and stakeholders
• Motivate and inspire their team to perform at the highest level
• Inspect the project tasks and phases for quality
• Make sure the team, and client, has the information they need
• Conduct regular staff meetings
• Maintain budget and costs

Project Managers are for today’s Organizations

The work of a project manager is absolutely essential in the workforce today. Individuals who are highly organized and effective communicators are needed in all areas of the industry to lead teams through complex projects. The work can be stressful but also very rewarding. These individuals are a rare breed in that they possess great organization and tactical skills but are also able to motivate and inspire their teams. Find the right project manager is an asset to any team in any industry.

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