Getting your first project management role can be difficult and challenging, especially if you have no prior experience in this field. Not only are you competing against others who have years of experience under their belt, often your first opportunity might be for a junior level position (or even entry level). This could deter you from taking the leap and making the decision to change careers.

But whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to make a move within your current industry after learning the basics of project management, it’s possible to get into project management without any prior experience. Let me show you how. From my experience, it has truly been a rewarding and lucrative path. One that I continue to invest in, and learn everything I can about the best project management practices.

How did my journey in project management start?

About eight years ago, I was trying to get into project management. I was in college, getting an education since that seemed like the logical thing to do. When the time came to apply for jobs, I noticed that pretty much every role required some level of experience. How could I apply for an entry-level job when I didn’t have the 2–3 years of experience the roles require?

There are plenty of project managers out there who have gotten started somehow. But how? I was frustrated and discouraged. It had been six months and I was turning down roles because I didn’t like them, they didn’t pay what I thought I was worthy of, or didn’t have a project management title that I felt I had worked to earn (oh my young & naive expectations).

During an interview, I was asked about my experience. Luckily for me, I had worked in a family business, as well as volunteered, so I knew how to leverage those skills and relate them to the role of an operations analyst. I talked about the skills and how they would help me work with the clients. Even though I didn’t have a “project manager” title in the past, I could still mention my skills. And suddenly, it appeared to me that I had more experience than I thought.

Desperate to make more and start my career, I accepted the role as an operations analyst, which didn’t have any of the things I thought I wanted in a role. However, what it did have was experience doing PM-like work and it was with a company I felt I could grow for my entire career. Being an operations coordinator meant helping small self-storage facilities set up their accounts (between 20-40 at a time) based on the needs of their business and provide training and support. Other duties included reporting and account retention and intended working with other cross-functional teams.

Read more: PMI Named Top Skills for Digital Project Managers

Taking initiative

While the work was challenging, I knew I wanted more hands-on experience running projects. I explained to my boss during my review that I really enjoyed what I was learning in class and was hoping that there was other work that allowed me to manage and lead. She found a few internal projects for me to work on with different team members. She also reached out to the company’s project management team and began having me sit in on their meetings and act as a liaison between the company’s PM team and our department. I was thrilled she was really trying to help me grow, but I did wish it had all happened sooner.

Eventually, I was in search of a new role outside the company. My desire for a more focused project management role was the leading factor. I also realized that the company was large, and moving up within the organization would take way too long for my liking. Plus, PM’ing wasn’t huge here. If that is the type of work I wanted to do, I had to move on.

Becoming a project manager

I found another company and received an offer as a Project Manager. The offer promised a bigger salary than before and had great benefits. In my new role, I was officially a “Project Manager.” Finally. My techniques in the interview process were just like before, and they worked again.

I spent the next few years working for this private company, but unlike before, I consistently got huge wake-up calls when it came to what it takes to live, breathe, and be a PM. As an implementation project manager, I helped clients replace their archaic & outdated paper systems (in most cases) with a cloud-based compliance system. This role meant working with many cross-functional teams on the client side and internally to deliver results.

Reliving these 4 years, where on earth do I begin?

Four years as a Project manager

I spent the first year or so getting familiar with my role, the company, and the software. As an implementation manager, the role was much more “involved” than a traditional project manager role. About a year in, I got a small raise. My boss started asking questions about my decision to start an MBA education and what type of projects I enjoyed (cookie cutter, small, straightforward projects vs. complex projects, requiring extensive critical thinking). I answered the former but ended up with the latter when realizing that I was good at problem solving and collaboration. Moreover, if I wanted to be a standout, I needed to take the road less traveled. The hard one.

I think that’s what she wanted to hear, and probably what she saw in me all along. I started getting more out-of-the-box projects, but nothing I felt was too crazy. When some game-changing projects were about to begin, it was time to speak up. I started insisting on complex projects. If you want examples of some complex projects I managed and worked through many of the challenges, check out my article and video series here.

But soon the stress began to get to me. I was working full-time and going to school at night, getting more training in business and project management. However, it didn’t go unnoticed. By now I had received a 20% raise and was feeling pretty good.

Becoming a Senior Project Manager

Going into year two I received more insane projects, and it felt amazing to knock them out of the park, though they often came at a cost of my time. There were days I was at work by 7 am, only to leave at 11 pm, and return bright and early the following morning. Also, days where I encountered something new and stressed about unfamiliar territory and keeping everything afloat. I really had to lean on my boss (who is a great mentor and friend to me) to help me navigate the waters and really refine my skills. I like to think she is a big reason behind why I am often told that I am good at what I do.

Another year, I was promoted to Senior Project Manager.

I decided to start studying for my PMP because my earning potential would soon outgrow the company. It was about that time I really turned on my self-study. It was also about that time when my new supervisor of the year left and I officially became a co-team lead. It was rough for a bit because I was responsible for the staff, my own workload and getting the PMP.

Life started to take a major turn just before my four-year anniversary with the company. I wanted to be in business for myself, and so I started working on my own company with my boyfriend. I made the decision to freelance full-time and leave my role. It turned out to be the best decision. The PMP certification came in handy and I was being offered roles where my hourly rate was doubled.

In as little as 6 years, my hourly rate had doubled twice.

And that is what I want for everyone reading this. I’m 27 years old and making more than people 10+ my age with twice the experience that I have. It is possible. Here’s how:

Transferable skills

Assess your current skills and showcase them. If you want to become a project coordinator or project manager, it is important to display skills that a project manager has. Even if you’ve never had a “project manager” title.

If you can show how your current skills translate to skills a project manager needs, you suddenly have more experience than you thought. Be sure it’s on your resume, too.

Good examples of transferable skills are organization, leading teams, communication, planning meetings, etc. Check out this transferrable skills worksheet here to get you started!

Please note that I am not suggesting just listing these on a resume, but being able to speak to how you have experience in these areas from previous roles.

Ask to be on new projects

Often times, even if you are not currently a project manager, companies have project management roles or ongoing projects where you can join as a resource. This is a great way to experience and get foot in the door.

When I worked at U-Haul as an Operations Analyst, I managed a number of small storage facility account setups. They were projects, but in comparison to what PMI considers a project, nothing majorly complex (e.g. no project documents, limited stakeholders, typically no harsh timelines or budgets). It gave me exposure.

Meanwhile, I talked to my manager. I expressed that I was getting training (next point) but wanted more experience in project management. She gave me some projects to lead within our department and invited me to the U-Haul project meetings that expanded organization-wide so I could see how things were done and act as a liaison and take back any key information our team needed. Boom! Experience and exposure.

Get training

If you are looking to make a career out of project management, get training. It can be a degree, certificate, or a few intros to project management classes. New skills open up new opportunities. Plus, certifications through Project Management Institute (PMI) require 23-35 hours of educational contact in project management depending on the certification. Head to this post, where I describe my life after getting PMP certification!

Additionally, if you’d like an introduction into project management to learn from me, I do have an affordable, self-paced course called “Realistic Guide for Managing Your First Project,” which helps professionals Understand Project Management in the real world. Check it out here.

Get a mentor

I remember seeing this advice when I was getting started. For me, it came naturally in the workplace when I found someone who believed in me and what I was capable of. This happened to my business partner too.

A mentor doesn’t have to be limited to your workplace. You really just need someone that wants to see you succeed, and can help you get there. Don’t hesitate to check out forums like reddit>mentors and network with those you admire online to start building a relationship. Reach out to me! I offer a 20 min complimentary 1:1 session to get us started.

Now that I have shared my path, it’s my hope that your journey into project management can be a lot smoother of a ride than mine was. Good luck!

You may check project management as well as other jobs on https://jooble.org/.

Illustration: Copyright © Oksana Drachkovska

The post How to Start a Project Management Career with Zero Experience appeared first on PM Column.

As someone who has been interviewed in the field for over a decade and also done my share of interviewing other project managers, I can say these are the top interview questions that are asked in project management-related interviews. In addition to the types of questions that are asked, I dive into the reasoning behind why the questions are asked and examples of how you can nail your response (mine included below).

Being prepared for your interview is essential and having your own examples to these common questions can set you apart from other candidates. 

Furthermore, interviews are not solely based on the questions the interviewer asks the interviewee, but also on the questions you ask your interviewer. Interviews are a two-way street to finding a good fit that is mutual among both parties.

Who is ready for some examples? Let’s dive in!

#1. Tell me about yourself.

This is a very common question that interviewers ask to start an interview. The best way to respond is to give a brief background on some or all of the following: professional history, personal education/training, career highlights, and a great closing.

How to answer:

I have been in project management for over a decade now and have both an educational and a professional background in various industries leading and managing projects to success. Over the years, I have worked for small private companies leading small initiatives to lead enterprise-wide implementations for large corporations and government agencies. Project management has always been a career I wanted and chose to be in and it’s one I continue to invest in and plan to continue growing in for the foreseeable future.

#2. Tell me about a time you had an upset customer, and how you handled it.

Interviewers know that customer conflict and issues will always be a part of the workplace, especially for any role in customer service, or role that is client-facing. What they want to understand here is twofold, 1) you have dealt with an upset customer before, and 2) you were able to provide some sort of support to the customer or resolve the issue completely. The interviewer is looking for insight to your behavior and interpersonal skills. The best way to respond is to look at your actual experience and find a good example to articulate that clearly and concisely shares how you proactively took steps to hear what the customer was saying and take specific actions to see the concern through some sort of resolution that gives the customer a certain level of confidence in you, the team and the company.

How to answer:

#3. What is the most important skill for a project manager to have?

A lot of answers work for this question, it just needs to be justified and make sense.

How to answer:

My favorite way to answer this is with a quote:

“The P in ‘PM’ is as much about people management than it is project management.” – Cornelius Fitcher 

And I wholeheartedly agree. As project managers, we are leading the people doing the work. We are motivating the people that do the work. It’s all about the people. There is no project, without people there to do the work. If we can build solid relationships with our teams, we can lead projects to success.

Continue reading: How to Start a Project Management Career with 0 Experience

#4. What is the most challenging project you have worked on and why was it challenging?

Employers know that not every project is a walk in the park, what they want to understand is your process for owning challenges and working through them.

How to answer:

I once was assigned a project working with multiple government agencies that worked together to certify businesses to work on state contracts. The objective of the project was to move all their current certifications in their directory online. The project meant building out the application online, moving existing certifications, updating the online portal, and communicating with all the external vendors. Though the scope of work was challenging enough, there was a huge time constraint because the old certification system was being shut off within 8 weeks of the project starting. My company promised that we would deliver. To me, the expectation of the project wasn’t realistic and would pose many logistical and quality issues and regardless of my concerns, I was asked to make it happen. In addition to the large scope of work, I was working with three different state agencies that had to agree to how things were done and all of the stakeholders had challenges agreeing with one another and had their own challenging personalities.

With a good deal of planning and strategy, the work was completed with days to spare, however, the project did see some of the concerns I communicated come true. Weeks, if not months were spent after the project launch addressing a lot of the shortcomings of rushing a project with unrealistic expectations.

#5. What tools are you familiar with or prefer to use to manage projects?

This question is typically asked for two reasons: 1) Are you familiar with the tools the company uses or requires? 2) What tools have you used, that maybe we could use at our company? Be prepared to answer what you like and do not like about the tools you mention.

How to answer:

There are several tools that I have used in my time as a project manager. A good portion of my team is using Jira, Smartsheet, and Slack, with the majority of my project planning and scheduled maintenance taking place in smart sheets. One of the things I like most about smart sheets is the ability to see all my projects at a high level and drill into each individual project as needed. It’s a central repository for all project stakeholders to access all project documentation in real time. A cool project related to this tool that I worked on, was some of the management reporting capabilities that certainly gave our leadership teams insight into what areas of our projects caused the most delays and really opened our team up to address areas of improvement.

Read on: 7 Project Scheduling Tools of the Highest Caliber

#6. Describe how you implement projects.

The interviewer is looking to get a sense as to whether or not you have experience and the logic around how you implement projects. If you know the type of methodology the company uses, it is best to use that in your example.

How to answer:

When I first get a project, I like to meet with relevant stakeholders to review the charter, sow, etc and ensure I’m aligned with the goals of the project once I am formally assigned during the project initiation. 

As I move into planning, I like to begin working on my project plans and leverage my team and other subject matter experts for input where needed. From there, I plan a kickoff to formally start the project with all relevant parties.

Once we get into executing the work, I make a point to check in with the team to ensure the work we planned on is getting done. If at any point we need to revisit plans or deviations, we make a point to address those things asap to determine the next steps, get buy-in, and re-baseline when needed. Once testing is complete and deliverables are verified we transition to the final project stages.

As part of the close-out process, any open procurements are closed, lessons learned are documented and the team ensures complete knowledge-sharing activities before archiving project documents and formally closing the project. 

#7. Tell me about a time you experienced conflict with a team member and how you solved it.

Interviewers ask these types of questions to gain insight into your behavior and your interpersonal skills. Avoid complaining, blaming others, or saying you have not experienced conflict. Instead, focus on sharing high-level details that lead to a positive outcome.

How to answer: 

I was working on a project with a tight timeline. The technical project manager of the development team shared a date the work would be complete. I followed up during the time period when work was being done to ensure the work was underway and we were going to hit our target date. I was assured that we were. As we came upon the due date, I was informed the date was being pushed because the developer had more questions and had other work. At this point, we were too far in to backtrack with the customer as the due date was the next day.

The conflict came down to the technical manager telling me one thing and in reality, the work wasn’t going to be done. I explained my frustration as the customer-facing project manager and what this means to the project and the company expecting monetary gains as a result of the project being completed. I explained that in the future, I need honest and realistic communication even if it isn’t what I want to hear so I can manage expectations accordingly and the information should come asap. Further, I let him know that I understand we are all busy and all have a lot on our plate and that I respected his desire to protect his team. 

We both had valid points. Ultimately, there was company impact here so the issue had to be escalated to a decision maker to determine whether work would be moved off the developer’s plate to hit my project’s target, or if we were going to go back and talk to the customer and the potential downstream impacts we would face.

#8. Tell me about a time you managed a difficult contractor or stakeholder.

Similar to questions #2 and #7, the interviewers ask these types of questions to gain insight into your behavior and your interpersonal skills. Avoid complaining, blaming others, or saying you have not experienced a challenging contractor or stakeholder. Instead, focus on sharing high-level details that lead to a positive outcome.

How to answer:

I was once hand-selected to work as the project manager for more of a pet project for a large government agency. Typically, the CEO did the whole project himself, but this time he wanted to hand off some of the work to me as the project manager. He was going to do more of the technical work behind the scenes so they got used to working with someone other than him.

The challenge lies with the fact that he is a busy CEO. He had a particular way he wanted to operate, have the project managed, and had specifics in mind on how he envisioned communication. Further, this type of working relationship where we were working together, was different from our normal boss, subordinate relationship.

To complicate things even more, this client had a highly customized system that was not part of our standard feature set – – so I didn’t have the normal level of comfort with the product that I typically had with the suite of modules I had grown to master in my role as an implementation project manager.

There was a lot of friction, a lot of last-minute preparing for calls, or spur-of-the-moment meetings where I had to drop everything and redirect my attention. Similarly, I managed projects differently, and had my own communication style and own work commitments within my portfolio of work. 

This was neither of our normal work dynamics with our respective teams. To work together successfully, I learned what times worked best to communicate with the CEO and his preference for the medium used to communicate. It made my life easier. I gave friendly reminders when I needed something to do my part in and learned to feel comfortable assigning work. I began to learn his style of reporting and we were able to work more collaboratively after adapting to this type of collaboration. 

Bonus! Questions to ask your employer!

• What attributes does someone need to be successful in this position?

• What skills are you missing that you are looking to fill in a new hire?

• How would my performance be measured?

• What does the onboarding process look like?

• Is there anything we’ve discussed today that you’re concerned with, that perhaps I can reassure you on?

Nailing an interview doesn’t have to be hard, it just requires a little preparation. On top of understanding the common questions asked in project management-related interviews, it is also key to understand the company and the person interviewing you as much as possible.

Now go out there and crush your interview. 

To follow Echo and get more of her tips, mentoring, and career guidance, you can subscribe to her newsletter here! 

https://www.echowoolf.com/email-list-opt-in

Or Join the Women Leading Tech community for weekly live streams on topics such as project management, career development, and career transition into tech!

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The post Hire or Get Hired: 8 Project Manager Interview Questions (Answered) appeared first on PM Column.

Understanding the ins and outs of the project management world, you can get a rewarding income plus a plethora of opportunities over the next decade. Guess what is even better than that? These skills span across industries and continue to exceed the career outlook year after year.

Project management can take on many forms. Simply put, projects are one-time activities that set out to achieve a specific objective. Think of it like building a house, moving data to a new system, or designing/developing a website.  

As project managers, we tailor the project by using the necessary processes, tools, and skills to accomplish project goals. It is both an art and a science. And project managers can get paid the big bucks to understand how to mesh the two realities and still get the job done. 

I think most PMs would agree that project management can be a learned skill (via trainings, certificates, etc.), but a lot of it comes from on-the-job training such as shadowing and being mentored.

Checkout podcasts we’ve been featured on discussing this topic:

Plus, check out this podcast by Elise Stevens with me here.

Trend 1: There aren’t enough qualified PM’s to fill the millions of roles organizations need to fill

This is excellent news for anyone looking to make a career in project management. Part of the reason there are so many open roles, is due to the aging talent closing in on retirement. Now is the time to polish up your skills!

New skilled talent is needed to bring value to organizations through proactive risk management, consistent results, cost reduction, increased efficiencies, and improved customer and stakeholder satisfaction.

Top leaders at organizations know that the future is based on the projects they take on. Those leaders want to make sure their companies are getting ROI on the funds they pour into technology. To accomplish that, skilled project managers are needed who can filter communication to the right stakeholders, uplift the project teams, and realize the benefits the project set out to accomplish.

How to get qualified:

• Project Management Institute (PMI) Certifying Organization  
• PMP Certification Value
• Local community college for online or in-person classes
• Online training from PMI, Udemy, Coursera, etc.
• If you’d like to learn from me, I have a course on Udemy, “Realistic Guide for Managing Your First Project” focused on Understanding Project Management in the real world.

Trend 2: More emphasis on soft skills vs. technical skills

Almost any project management role looks for some technical skills. But even more so, the soft skills (which are a little harder to wrap your hands around). Soft skills are learned and developed through participation. Examples of those much-needed project management soft skills include:

• Leadership
• Strategic and business management mindset
• Change management and organizational development
• Communication
• Team building and conflict resolution
• Facilitation
• Adaptable and unflappable qualities 

Here are some different approaches to acquiring those highly desired soft skills:

Gain intentional experience

Often times, even if you’re not currently a project manager, companies have project management roles or ongoing projects where you can join as a resource.

This is a great way to gain experience and get a foot in the door. Talk to your manager, express interest in wanting to gain more experience in project management. They may have some projects for you to lead or assist within the department, or perhaps within the broader organization. Boom! Experience and exposure.

Get a mentor

Is there someone in your organization you admire, or perhaps roots for you and your success? Ask them. It can be the easiest way to find someone to learn from and shadow.

A mentor doesn’t have to be limited to your workplace. You really just need someone that wants to see you succeed and can help you get there because they have some experience.

Trend 3: Projects impacted by AI and Data Intelligence

There is a lot of new technology that organizations want to implement both internally and externally. With trends indicating there will be more AI and data intelligence disrupting within organizations, PMs should understand at a high level the benefits these technologies will offer and what it means for project managers.

AI is already present in the world around us, think Siri, Google Home, etc. These technologies take the input from a person and use it to take action which could be as easy as a quick analysis or providing an answer.

As it relates to project management, we could see in the realm of software AI assisting with resource planning, scheduling, running scenarios to increase decision making, and providing logical-based outcomes that can help with things like risk identification.

Tools like this can help run additional scenarios and help to predict potential outcomes, however, the data outputs can only be as good as the data inputs that are available. In some ways, this can be an asset to PMs, but AI cannot solely be relied on to replace the role of a project manager. AI cannot take the “people aspect” out of project management. As we’ve already discussed, the need for PMs will continue to grow. Job security should not be a concern.

Organizations will still need PMs who can apply critical thinking to the project/job roles, can be a valued leader, build, and sustain relationships with stakeholders…. You know, those awesome soft skills referenced above. Yes, they’re not going anywhere.

Trend 4: Diversity of thought and process

Embracing hybrid approaches & methodologies

Projects span across industries, vary in size, and all have their unique cultures. Applying the same methodologies just doesn’t make sense. As a project manager, understanding the different approaches and when they work best can make the flow of the project smoother and help achieve the goals sooner.

In more recent years, the idea of agile methodologies has become popular due in part to the flexibility, reduced risk as the project progresses, and the ability to provide value throughout the project rather than at the end, unlike the waterfall approach.  

Many companies embrace a hybrid approach that takes advantage of the benefits of each and leverages those methodologies when it makes the most sense.

Working with diverse teams

Diversity is a topic that will continue to be trending in project management. It won’t be just the diversity of thought and approach, but also the diversity of talent.

Companies all across the globe will continue to see talent, much of which will come from overseas. According to PMI, there will be an increase in qualified resources in China, India, and USA.

Blending diverse talent, with a diverse background will help offer more innovation within projects. Further, with all the information that’s consumed during projects, that information can be digested and evaluated more fully leading to better project outcomes.

Some of the challenges with this trend will fall on the shoulders of project managers. They’ll be at the forefront of the effort to help teams learn what each other has to offer while overcoming various challenges.

Project management will continue to move in the direction it has been. Fast and in high demand. For project managers, this means you can expect many job opportunities and will have the upper hand when it comes to negotiating. 

For employers, it means they should invest in their current talent via certs, training, degree, etc., and, more importantly, keep the talent by placing emphasis on job satisfaction, offering challenging/fulfilling work, and understanding the employees’ goals and how to offer them a path that helps get them there.

The post Why Project Management Isn’t Going Away (+ 4 Industry Trends) appeared first on PM Column.

What exactly is the PMP certification?

PMP certification is a globally recognized gold standard offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI). Experienced project managers can apply for this credential and be well on their way to increase their earnings. According to PMI, those credential holders earn on average 20% more than their counterparts.

As we’ll explore later, a higher salary is one of the top reasons business professionals chose to sit for the exam.  For those who look into the exam and its requirements, many find that the preparation and the exam itself are no easy feat. In fact, according to various sources, the initial pass rate is somewhere around 50-60%.

Why do professionals get PMI’s certification?

Is a better salary the only motivating force leading professionals to sit for the exam? I wanted to know. So, I engaged with those who were already certified and those aspiring PMPs on Reddit and asked them myself. As it turns out, they all were willing to sacrifice their time and money to take the exam. They all had very similar hopes and goals such as:

• Increase marketability
• Be considered for promotions
• Stand out from other applicants
• Achieve personal goals
• Find more flexible and versatile roles that would allow traveling
• Salary increase
• Payoff debt

And I admit, my reason to take the exam was similar. Well, that and the fact that I love project management!

Is the PMP certification worth it?

The other day I was surfing Reddit, reading through the news about PMP. I came across a popular discussion as to whether you can be successful as a project manager without the PMP certification, and most answered, “yes.”

There were a number of users sharing their success stories on how they moved up in their career to senior level project managers and even directors.

Others thought obtaining a certification didn’t make a person a true PM. After all, it’s only passing this one test.

Truth be told, I wholeheartedly agree with the latter.

You do not need a certification to be a good project manager. Nor does having a certification mean you’ll magically become a good project manager.

In my time as a PM, I have worked with and for certified project management professionals who could not manage a project to earn for a living.

So why do people even bother taking the time for this expensive and difficult exam in the first place?

Aside from the reasons I came across interviewing a few dozen project managers as I noted above, there seemed to be an overall consensus that most of the professionals saw that those benefits were realized in a relatively shorter period of time in comparison to transitional degrees and other certifications out in the market. Which brings us to the value of the PMP and its return on investment (ROI).

Recommended reading: Are Project Management Certifications Worth Your Time & Money?

ROI for PMP Certification

I spent about, $1,800 dollars to take the exam. This included exams costs, tools, and resources I used (click here to see which tools I used, and my thoughts on each of them).

Since passing the exam back in November 2017, I’ve worked as a contractor and an employee. Both with a rate much higher than the 20% increase PMI suggests the PMP certification is worth on average.

You’re probably thinking to yourself – more than 20% – and calculating what a 20% increase would mean in your situation.

I hope you are. Smiling as you run the numbers. Starting to imagine what that kind of benefit and that money can do for you, your family, and your family’s lifestyle.

To truly show you the value the PMP certification has had on my career, I am going to share real numbers with you, which is a bit uncomfortable. Yet, I believe in the certification so much I want you to see what it’s been worth to me personally.

As an employee, I went from making $35 per hour to $48 per hour, which is a 37% increase.

Similarly, as a contractor, I went from making $35 per hour to $68 per hour which is a 94% increase.

So yes, the $1,800-dollar investment was worth its weight in gold for me personally.

Life after passing the PMP exam

The PMP certification has allowed me to have a more flexible schedule, travel all over the world, and make more money than I ever made. Yet, it is not the end game for me.

For some, the PMP is. It is the end all, be all. For me, it was just another personal and professional goal I wanted to reach.

One thing I’ve come to learn while studying aspiring PMP certified individuals, is that they’re motivated and ambitious, taking it to a whole new level that many do not understand. That’s why the road doesn’t end here.

My journey is now set to improve the core skills that will allow me and others to reach their full potential, the skills that I think transform someone from a good project manager into a great one. I’ll continue focusing on mastering “The Art of Project Management.” The skills that make a difference in everyday life as a project manager for scenario’s like:

• A new stakeholder telling you that your presentation is pointless and how she isn’t sure why your company conducts business the way it does
• How to handle a key executive and a sales associate who sell an unrealistic promise to clients they expect you to deliver
• Trying to get 4 different stakeholders to agree to project requirements, each with their own agenda of what’s right and more so “who” is right

The PMP certification has been a wonderful tool, one that I find myself leveraging every now and again. I think it is important to note that in no way did it teach me how to handle those actual scenario’s I’ve had to face over the years as a project manager. I want to be better at that type of project management as well.

For those of you considering to jump to study for the PMP or see the value in soft skills that really make project managers flourish, be sure to subscribe to Echo’s newsletter here. From time to time, she posts some great content about PMP preparation and soft skills project managers need to solve different work scenarios.

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IT projects involve a lot of technology and a lot of change. Change itself is difficult, especially when those using the technology have been accustomed to the same process for years. Transitioning to something new can be a huge learning curve. It takes the comfort out of the process by starting all over.

Some of the best project managers out there are familiar with the challenges in IT project management and know exactly what to do to combat those effects (mitigate risks, build lasting relationships). They’re natural born leaders and leverage some of their innate abilities as women to make these types of transitions more doable and less scary. But how?

Reason #1: Risk Management

Because there are gender differences in brain activity involved in measuring risk, women often think twice before making decisions. They are naturally very risk-averse which makes them better at risk assessment in a project environment. Even with added stress, they continue to make more thorough decisions when the scope and budget are under concern. Evolutionary speaking, it’s an innate ability for women and comes almost naturally. According to CIO, a 2007 survey of experienced U.S. project managers shows that female PMs significantly outplay their male counterparts in meeting schedule and budget. Female PMs also tend to give up fewer projects than men.

“To be fair, it is the lack of clear-eyed risk assessment that derails so many projects, and not men in particular. It’s just that we men display this kind of bravado-induced blindness way more often than women. The good news is that this difference between genders seems to decline as men age.” – Ronald Bisaccia, CIO

Why this skill matters

The Project Management Institute, the governing body of project management certifications, places an emphasis on risk as one of the core knowledge areas a project manager should master through the PMBOK.

A lot of emphasis is placed on determining potential risks, assessing the impact and game planning how to prevent the risks from being realized leading to a more successful project. Making rash decisions and/or not spending enough time to thoroughly evaluate project risks can impact the projects time, cost, resources, scope, etc. as the project progresses through the project life cycle.

Reason #2: Building Relationships

Nurturing relationships is another innate ability of women. Their natural warmth and empathy towards others is a strong suit that can make project stakeholders more comfortable in times of change, and women do it instinctively.

Cornelius Fichtner, a professional in the industry, says, “The P in ‘PM’ is as much about people management than it is project management.” Probably, anyone who has worked in the project management in a general sense believes this to be true. Even more so when working in IT project management and introducing new technology, processes, and change.

Why this skill matters

As mentioned above, the same governing body, PMI, also touches on managing or engaging stakeholders and developing project teams. While this is a skill covered in the material, it’s also a soft skill that can become a challenge for many. Naturally, it’s a given only for few. The art of project management can be summarized, in my experience specifically, as mastering the people aspect of managing projects.

It is important to note that the male counterpart is equally as capable of mastering risk management and relationship building skills in project management. These key skills are simply more instinctual for women. Women can easily leverage them in the workplace, compared to other learned skills.

How to Fill the Gaps in the Two Areas

It takes a lot to be a thought leader in project management. In general, there are a ton of skills to master to separate yourself from the good project managers, in order to become a great one. If you can play off your natural strengths as a woman in IT project management, you’re halfway there.

Fill in the gaps by shadowing the one-of-a-kind professional out there or taking on the challenging work. As a result, having those around you’ll most likely think, “how does she do it all so well?” And soon, you’ll find yourself making the work you do effortless.

Illustration: Copyright © Oksana Drachkovska

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