In a nutshell, a project manager is someone who oversees a company’s venture, being involved in every step of the way from planning to execution, budgeting, problem-solving, and more. Project managers are still high in demand, and is one of the most promising careers there is.
As a project manager, you’ll be heading a team, delegating and assigning tasks to your teammates, and keeping track of their progress. You will need to set deadlines, manage resources, assess the risks involved, anticipate problems, and ensure that the project is completed within the allocated time and budget.
Like any career, you’ll need a combination of many skills to thrive as a project manager. You will need keen organisational skills, effective time management skills, and exceptional leadership skills. In addition, project managers will also need to be effective problem solvers, good communicators, reasoners, and a number of other soft skills. The requirement for this kind of a varied skill set also means that he/she will have to perform a number of tasks to get the job done.
Project management does not have a specialised degree, as most courses have project management as a module. You’ll find this in a number of B-School’s curriculum. Technical colleges, especially the construction, engineering and information technology colleges, have project management as a module too, albeit at a more introductory level. You can typically get into project management with a degree in any subject.
The Project Management Institute (PMI), located in Pennsylvania USA, is the only institute that offers a certificate program for aspiring project managers, irrespective if their educational qualification and skill level. The program is known to be rigorous and comprehensive, having been set by experienced project managers themselves. PMI also has training centres in a number of Indian cities such as Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, and Hyderabad among others.
Project Managers find work across a variety of sectors such as engineering, construction, IT, marketing and more. Today, project management is one of the top skill sets demanded by companies across the globe. And the best part of doing your job, is that you’ll be making a significant impact on the company. If your project is highly successful, you’ll not only be rewarded heaps and bounds, but it will also throw the company into the spotlight, all thanks to you!
