Are you a project manager or not?

The work never ends!

Many of us in the project management field got our start before there was such a thing as a project manager. In fact, many folks today are probably working in the role of project manager, but don’t have that title.

That may be just fine, or not. It all depends on where you want to go in your career and how you want to get there.

The field of Project Management

For those interested in project management as a field, learning the processes and the knowledge areas and participating in professional organizations is an important part of career development. If you’re serious about project management as a field, you’ll develop an understanding of risk management, stakeholder management, change and the creation of charters, scope statements, and other project documents . Getting good at requirements development and management as well as teams and meetings is also a good idea.

Career development

If project management is your calling, you’re probably already following some of the best practices such as charters, scope definition, change management, stakeholder and risk management, and compiling lessons learned.

As you grow in your project management skills, you’ll want to start documenting your experience, regardless of your title. If you decide to test for your credential, you’ll want your experience easily documented for your application for the test. Starting earlier is better than trying to remember.

The title

If you make the commitment to be a project manager, then you may want to have a talk with your management about your job title. Although not required, having the words “project manager” in your title helps with credibility.  If you’re a manager that has direct reports as well as managing projects perhaps there is a hybrid title you could settle on.

PMP versus PRINCE2

There is a great deal of conversation around the necessity or desirability of getting your credential – whether it’s a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM), Professional Project Manager (PMP) or the PRojects IN Controlled Environments (PRINCE2) designation. I’m not convinced one is better than the other. It seemed that CAPM and PMP is more common in the U.S. and PRINCE2 more common outside the U.S. As a professional, you’ll have to determine what is best for you.

Do a little research. Check out the number of job postings that require one or the other. Learn the differences in the salaries and the job descriptions. Find out the requirements and make a decision that’s best for you.

Basic project management for non-project managers

If you’re a manager with direct reports who also happens to manage projects, schooling in the specific points of practice of project management may not hold any interest for you.  There are a few specific parts of the process you may want to  make sure you incorporate into your projects. Delegating some of these tasks helps with the work.

• Insure you have a project charter and that it’s agreed upon by your stakeholders.
• The definition of “done” as agreed upon by the stakeholders.
• A schedule for the work that includes who’s responsible
• A list of the risks to the project, just in case.
• Regular team interaction for status.
• An ongoing list of action items and lessons learned.

These six items go a long way to good management of projects. If you’re a manager that isn’t interested in project management as a field, ask for someone in your organization to take on some of the project management tasks as a growth opportunity. It’s a great way to motivate your staff to learn new skills.

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Are you doing the job but don’t have the title? Is that a problem for you or are you fine with that? Let us know in the comments.