How to get into Project Management
A common question I hear frequently is “How do I get into project management?”. Typically it comes from individuals who are new to their career and are interested in becoming a project manager (PM), but folks looking to make a career change also consider it. After answering this question several times I figured I’d collect my thoughts on the answer and share them below. Hopefully they’re helpful!
Why are you interested?
The first thing I ask someone who expresses interest in becoming a PM (or anything else really) is why are you interested? There isn’t really a wrong answer to this, but understanding why someone wants to become a PM helps them figure out how to get there, or maybe helps them figure out it’s not for them. For example, wanting to become a PM to help improve the lives of under-priviledged people is different from wanting to be part of building something big.
Understanding their “Why” not only helps guide them in terms of where to apply their time and energy, but may also help determine which type of project management they should look into. For example if they want to be part of construction projects then Waterfall projects are likely a better fit. If they want to build the next Big App, Agile is likely a better fit.
One important thing to note is that while you contemplate your Why, you may determine Project Management isn’t for you - and that is OK! Discovering that about yourself is a very important thing, as it will let you focus on something else that you’ll get more excited about.
What project experience do you have already?
This question is a good way to baseline where someone is, and also helps figure out next steps. It’s also a bit misleading, as almost everyone has SOME kind of project experience.
Just out of university? I’m betting you’ve been part of a class or group project and had to navigate stakeholder management (e.g. your project team).
Ever done a home project? Many things we do at home are projects. Do you have a garden? Build Lego? Install your own gutters? All projects.
Never been part of an official project? I’d bet the team you were on had some projects going that you were aware of.
Been part of a project team, but not the PM? You’ve definitely picked up some bits and pieces of how projects work.
Knowing what experience you have is important as it helps you figure out where your knowledge gaps are. Personally I learned many of my PM skills by doing… which isn’t necessarily the best way. This gave me a deeper understanding of some of them (e.g. communication), but I was totally lacking in others (resource management). This required me to improve my general knowledge to first understand what I was missing, then targeted learning in those areas.
What options are available to you?
I’m still working on a way to instantly become a PM, so the next question I ask is what options are there? Some individuals are in a position where they can take extensive training courses at work to learn the skills, others have an intense job that limits their time, and others are between jobs for various reasons and have other restrictions.
There are certainly a LOT of different ways to learn PM skills, including, but not limited to:
School - Many universities / colleges offer certificates, or even degrees, in PM. I took a great community college course on PM, and it was also part of the masters program I was part of.
Paid online learning - There are a ton of online learning options for PM (instructing.com is a great one, and I have several Udemy courses on the topic). These can offer intensive courses, or packages to help improve skills. Some will also prepare you for certifications (more on those below).
Free online learning - There’s also a ton of free online learning (check out my youtube channel).
Books - Personally I learned a ton from various PM books (like this oneLINK NEEDED). For a relatively small investment (in dollars) and larger investment (in time) I picked up a lot of the basics.
Mentorship - Some company’s offer formal mentorship programs, and informal mentors are almost always available if you look around. I find these tend to be better if you’ve got a starting point, but can also help someone get into being a PM.
There may be more options out there, but taking time to understand what is available is crucial as it helps guide learning.
Entry level roles
Finding an entry-level job in Project management can be challenging, but there are a few titles or roles to look out for:
Project Coordinator - Coordinators tend to assist project managers by helping manage things like scheduling, documentation and more. This is a great way to get exposure to project management without being responsible for running the project.
Project Analyst- Analysts typically focus on specific areas, e.g. risk management, contracts, etc. This type of role may be easier to get into if you already have experience in that area, but it will expose you to project management in general.
One thing to keep in mind is that every company may call the job something different, so it’s important to read the job description.
Closing Thoughts
I thoroughly enjoy my time in project management. It’s helped me learn a ton of great skills, exposed me to some really interesting people and helped me grow as a person. It does, however, take some internal work to get into and to thrive in. That said, the time you spend considering this is more than worth it.
