The demand for project managers today is high and will continue to grow well into the future. It is a well-paying, satisfying profession to pursue. The question is, how to get a project manager job. The short answer is: some education; lot of relevant experience; and an opportunity. Three stories are presented herein to illustrate some of the different approaches that have worked to get a project manager job. 

MY STORY

I earned a degree in mechanical engineering and then went on active duty for 2 years as an officer in the Army Corps of Engineers. My vision was to become a project manager. I learned leadership skills in the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) for 4 years while in college and then on active duty. The most important skill for a project manager is leadership. My experience in the Army filled that need.

After leaving the Army, I got a job as a design engineer in a large electronics company. I wanted to prove to myself that I was a good engineer. After 2 years, I left the company and joined a smaller materials handling company which focused on mechanical engineering.  After 2 years, the company closed their doors. I went back to my first company and stayed 1 year before an opportunity appeared in a small antenna company as the mechanical engineering manager. I stayed with the company for 5 years but decided to move on for more salary. I accepted a job as a mechanical engineering manager in a small magnetic design company. They concentrated on room temperature and superconducting magnets. I stayed with this company for 5 years until they went out of business.

At this point, I wanted a project managers job with more salary and authority (power). As it turned out, I accepted a program manager position in a small division of a large defense company. A program manager is responsible for multiple projects. This meant I exceeded my goal of a project manager job. The company specialized in underwater vehicles. After 2 years I was promoted to Director of Programs and then to Director of Operations. After 5 years, the company was bought out by another firm and I moved on.

I landed a job as a project manager in the first defense company I worked for and stayed with them until my retirement. It is difficult for a mechanical engineer to become a program manager in a large defense electronics company. Management preferred electrical engineers.

In summary, I learned leadership skills, gained technical design experience in multiple areas (electronic; material handling; cryogenics; underwater vehicle; large weldments; and others). I learned manufacturing operations, and did a lot of installation sin the field. In other words, I had an excellent broad background which made me well suited for a program and project manager.

I also discovered; it is easier to get a project management position by working in a small company. Getting to a project manager position in a large company takes more time.

NIEL’S STORY

I met Neil in a PMI (Project Management Institute) mentoring program that I was involved in.  Neil had an undergraduate degree and then had earned a masters degree in project management prior to me meeting him. He wanted to take and pass the PMI PMP (Project Management Professional) exam. My job was to help him study for it. For 1 year, I mentored Neil in project management.

Not just anybody can pass this test. The exam consists of 200 multiple-choice questions and it requires three years of previous working experience as a project manager (or five if you don’t have a four-year degree in project management, at least 4,500 hours of experience working on directing a project (or 7,500 if you don’t have a four-year degree), and 35 hours of formal education on the project management process. If your company states in writing you have been performing related project management tasks, then this count for years of experience.

Neil had been working for a few years in a state agency but not as a project manager.  His boss verified in writing that he was performing project management related tasks. This satisfied the years of experience requirement. Neil was qualified to take the PMP but knew very little about the practical side of project management.                                                     

Neil did take the test and passed it but still could not get a project management job. He eventually landed a planners (schedule) job on a project just to get his foot in the door. After a few years he did get a project managers job.

KAY’S STORY

Upon graduating from high school, Kay decided to forego college and study massage therapy. She earned her certificate and practiced her trade for 5 years before acknowledging that she could not make a living as a massage therapist.

Kay decided to study coding to become a front-end developer. She enrolled in one of the best boot camps and 10 months later earned her certificate. Her first job as a frontend developer gave her a salary of 78K. Three years later and jobs with 2 different companies she is earning a 6-figure salary and learning how to become a project manager

SUMMARY

What is the take-aways from these stories to become a project manager? They are:

• Three pathways to a project managers’ job are presented but there are others
• Some education, a lot of relevant experience, and an opportunity is required
• Leadership is the most important project management skill
• A PMP certificate on your resume is very important to getting project management interviews and a possible job
• Your chances are higher getting a project manager job in a small company
• Move companies if needed for larger salaries and promotions
• Do not fear switching careers to get there
• It takes time so be patient

Continually improve your skills and look for opportunities. Be a risk taker. Be persistent.

Bio:

Currently John is an author, writer and consultant. He authored a book entitled ‘Project Risk Management. It went on sale on Amazon in August 2019. He has presented several Webinars on project risk management to PMI. He writes a weekly column on project risk management for CERN. John also writes monthly blogs for APM. He has conducted a podcast on project risk management.  John has published numerous papers about project risk management on LinkedIn.

John earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering and MS in Engineering Management from Northeastern University. He has extensive experience with commercial and DOD companies. He is a member of PMI (Project Management Institute). John has managed numerous large high technical development programs worth in excessive of $100M. He has extensive subcontract management experience domestically and foreign.  John has held a number of positions over his career including: Director of Programs; Director of Operations; Program Manager; Project Engineer; Engineering Manager; and Design Engineer.  He has experience with: design; manufacturing; test; integration; subcontract management; contracts; project management; risk management; and quality control.  John is a certified six sigma specialist, and certified to level 2 EV