Should I Pursue A Career As A Project Manager?

What, exactly, is a Project Manager? It’s a professional who manages a project!

Projects and programs are such integral features of normal business operations that project managers are frequently in high demand across many professional disciplines, both in-house and on a freelance basis.

If you’ve ever been responsible for an initiative from beginning to end, you already have project management experience, but maybe not under the official job title of Project Manager. If you want to assume that title with all its representations and required skills, step one is to mine your work history for projects you led or in which you participated and revise your resume to highlight them. You may consider searching for opportunities to assist current certified Project Managers to get a true foothold in that career path. Note the word “certified”. If you want a Project Management job you will compete with certified Project Management Professionals (PMP).

The Project Management Institute (PMI) has been cranking out PMPs for 50 years. The non-profit association provides a common language and globally recognized framework for its three million worldwide members, 100 million of whom are the “global gold standard” PMPs. A PMP certification requires a minimum of:

1.    A four-year degree / high school degree.

2.    36 months leading projects / 60 months leading projects.

3.    35 “contact” hours of project management education, specifically completion of the PMI’s PMP PrepCast is 40 lessons spread over 180 videos with topics like, “Aligning Projects with Organizational Strategy”.

4.    Reading and utilizing the 750-page PMBOK Guide & Standards.

5.    Passing a 200 question, multiple choice final exam.

6.    After earning the PMP, periodic credential renewal requiring continuing education.

While having a PMP certification as a project manager is absolutely helpful – it demonstrates discipline and achievement in your field – not every employer or project management role demands it. That said, it can certainly help provide a leg up in a competitive job market. And according to the PMI, certified PMPs earn up to 25% more than non-certified project management professionals.

Here are some pros and cons of careers as a project manager (PM):

Pros 

• PM are in high demand across all fields. Wherever there is business there are projects and project managers. The demand is always there.

• PMs are responsible for critical initiatives. The work has a direct impact on the company’s success.

• Due to the nature of the profession, project managers touch a wide range of areas of knowledge and specialization. A PM’s professional development and ever-expanding toolbox is built into the job.

• Through the course of working for different companies on a constant rotation of varying projects, PMs are exposed to new career opportunities while simultaneously learning the skills to qualify for them.

• The compensation can be quite competitive. According to PayScale, project managers earn a range of $49K – $113K per year, with an average of $74,420.

Cons

• Project managers have responsibility without authority. While the PM may be steering the ship, he or she does not get to chart the course. If that course is into an iceberg, the PM’s job is to flawlessly steer the ship into the iceberg on time and on budget as specified in the project  charter. It’s about convincing everyone that’s the correct course, and keeping them on track.

• The PM operates outside of normal structures that can be likened to an envoy sent to the Middle East to broker peace. The PM must be an expert leader, moderator, negotiator, diplomat, and influencer without having any direct power over the participants or way to enforce agreements. A steady temperament is required.

• The PM is most often responsible for executing other people’s ideas. The company has not hired you to solve your own problems; usually, the company has hired you to execute something that has already been decided. In this way, the PM is restricted to his or her marching orders.

• Get out the antacids. As a Project Manager, you are responsible for success and failure. If you’re an outside hire, you’re also the eternal scapegoat. This is a high-pressure job. If you do not thrive under those conditions, you may not enjoy it.

Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.