3 Focus Areas for Your Career Management Plan

Following 20 years at a large Canadian telecommunications firm, Bruce established the project management consulting firm Solutions Management Inc (SMI). Since 1999, he has provided contract project/program management services, been a source for project management support personnel and created/delivered courses to over 7,000 participants in Canada, the United States and England.

  Career Development   New Practitioners  

I was recently at a large university campus delivering a two-day course in project cost management. Almost every participant was either taking the course to enhance their existing career—or approaching a potential early retirement and looking to enhance skills that would be useful as they move into their next career (perhaps via consulting). Very few were in the early years of full-time employment.

While the participants were doing exercises in their breakout groups, I went for a short walk around the campus. Everywhere I went, I witnessed individuals or small groups diligently studying and working on assignments related to their field of studies. Unlike my group, the average age was likely under 20 years old—and I suspect almost none of them were employed full time.

Additionally, I doubt very few would be hired into the role of project manager. They might, however, secure their first career posting and migrate toward becoming a project manager.

Later, I reflected on the similarities and differences between the demographics. I pondered the three categories below, focusing on how a very new project manager grows their career versus a PM in the later stages of their career:

1. Continuously develop new strategic and tactical skills

• For the new PM: Despite probably being introduced to project management fundamentals during undergraduate studies, the …

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