Build Your Career in Project Management

By Rudy J. Watson, PhD

Department Chair

September 05, 2024

Career |
Business

In today’s job market, there’s a high demand for trained, talented project managers with problem-solving, risk-management, communication, leadership, and other skills that organizations need to support their strategic objectives.

As large numbers of professionals from the Baby Boom generation reach retirement age, the demand for talented project managers is growing. Firms are increasingly willing to boost compensation and benefits, rather than risk not having enough capable people to implement their projects.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, through 2033 there will be an annual increase of approximately 77,000 project management specialist jobs. This represents a growth of 7 percent, which is faster than average.¹

An article in Forbes predicts that more than 25 million project managers will be needed around the world.² According to the Global Project Management Job Trends 2024 report from the Project Management Institute (PMI), the most sought-after opportunities will be in the industries of government, IT, and the energy sector.³ �ʲѱ�’s Job Growth and Talent Gap report states that by 2027, employers will need 87.7 million individuals working in project management-oriented roles.⁴

Project Management: A Changing Field

Another contributing factor to the demand growth is the changing role of project managers in all sectors. Because project managers are uniquely situated to monitor the effect that policies, processes, and systems have on organizational outcomes⁵, they’re increasingly being included within senior leadership teams. Today’s project managers are not only implementing strategic projects, they’re also helping to develop strategy and bring innovation to the organization.

In-Demand Skills: Communication, Collaboration & Strategic Thinking

With project managers becoming more integral to leadership teams and implementing strategic initiatives, this bodes well for those who possess and maintain in-demand project management skills, including the ability to manage people, resources, multiple stakeholders, budgets, and project planning. It requires the development of what the PMI Pulse of the Profession® 2023 report identifies as “power skills.”⁶ In this report, project managers were surveyed and asked which skills they believed to be the most important to success. The results, in order of importance, were communication, problem-solving, collaborative leadership, and strategic thinking skills.

The outcome of the survey is consistent with the three areas of the PMI Talent Triangle,⁷ which represents the combination of skills possessed by successful project managers and is an effective roadmap for anyone desiring to become one. The Talent Triangle focuses on power skills, business acumen, and ways of working—skills that enable project managers to be adaptive and flexible in a rapidly-changing business environment.

Power Skills: Project Management Tools for Productivity

According to an article in Disciplined Agile®, power skills are separated into essential skills and leadership styles.⁸ To be competitive, one must focus on enhancing communication skills, the ability to work in and manage teams, and the ability to solve complex problems. One must also exhibit empathy and emotional intelligence in managing conflict and negotiating effectively.

In addition, it’s important to be trained in different leadership styles and to discern when and why a particular style will be the most effective—as well as when to be the facilitator and when to be a team member. Being a servant-leader does not preclude the need to use, at various times, a supporting, transactional, or transformational leadership style.

Business Acumen: Understanding Industry, Legal, and Regulatory Environments

Business acumen helps ensure the project manager understands and incorporates the business objectives into their decision-making. To bring value, a project manager must not blindly follow the stated direction without recognizing the impacts of actions and changes in the environment that affect the project outcomes.

This requires knowledge of applicable business models and organizational structures that align with strategic objectives, the ability to analyze competition in the market and assess customer satisfaction, and an understanding of the industry in which you operate, including legal and regulatory compliance factors and the business environment in general.

Ways of Working: Innovate, Adapt, and Deliver

With the role of the project manager expanding toward a more strategic one,⁹ project managers need to develop their ability to influence and collaborate. They must have the foresight to adapt and improve processes to ensure their organizations are agile and constantly implementing innovative solutions that are relevant and demonstrate value, rather than simply “managing” projects to completion.

Project managers are crucial to fostering culture change within an organization, because the driving force is the need to be effective. This means that the delivery of business value at a higher level and with greater speed is the foremost objective.

Keeping your project management training up to date may involve attending conferences and webinars or staying current via pertinent publications and articles—and, of course, applying these skills in the workplace. In some cases, however, it may require obtaining additional degrees and certificates and/or maintaining existing professional certifications.

Master’s Programs in Project Management

The online Master of Science Management: Project Management program at 91ֱ�� of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC), is designed to give you the knowledge and skills you need to be a successful project manager. The program is accredited by the . Courses focus on risk management, project cost, communication, and supply chain management. You can learn how to manage teams, track projects, and make best use of the latest industry knowledge.

If you’re pursuing a career in project management within the information technology (IT) field, UMGC offers our online MS in Information Technology with a specialization in project management to help you gain advanced IT management skills while building expertise for your project management certification exam. Coursework combines general business management and IT skills with a robust combination of foundational and advanced project management expertise.

For those who’ve completed industry certification exams or prior project management coursework, UMGC offers transfer credit to save you time and money. You can transfer up to 18 credits toward either master’s degree.

Certificate Programs in Project Management

Earning an undergraduate certificate or graduate certificate in project management is a time- and cost-saving way to build your unique combination of skills and gain marketable credentials quickly. If you decide to pursue your master’s degree afterwards, you may be able to apply credit from these courses to help you earn your degree faster.

You can complete the undergraduate certificate with 18 credits or the graduate certificate with only 12 credits. Plus, UMGC allows you to transfer up to 9 credits toward an undergraduate certificate, and up to 6 credits toward a graduate certificate in project management.

UMGC also offers PMP prep courses to help you achieve your education and career goals.

UMGC is an accredited state university and a member of the 91ֱ�� System of Maryland. Since its founding in 1947, UMGC has grown to become the largest public university and the No. 1 transfer destination in the U.S. With more than 175 classroom and service locations worldwide, online and hybrid courses, lifetime career services, and no-cost digital course materials instead of textbooks in nearly every course, UMGC lets you advance your education wherever you are—and whenever you’re ready.

Continuous education and being a lifelong learner are the keys to keeping your project management skills honed for future opportunities. UMGC provides multiple ways to advance your education toward achieving your next success.

¹ "." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. May 2023.
² "." Forbes. Nov 10, 2023.
³ "." Project Management Institute. 2024.
⁴ "." Project Management Institute. 2017.
⁵ "." C+S Magazine. Aug 13, 2024.
⁶ "." Project Management Institute. 2023.
⁷ "." Project Management Institute. 2024.
⁸ "." Disciplined Agile. 2024.
⁹ "." Project Management Institute. 2024.

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