Dear Colleagues, a questions always crosses my mind about the project management career. Do I need to pursue the PM as a pure career path which will be worked across all industries, or the project management is just an additional skills and qualification in my own industry say construction? I hope that the majority contribute with the answer to share the ideas Saving Changes...
Senior Projects Manager | Field & Marten AssociatesNew Westminster, British Columbia, Canada
Omar,
Project Management can be applied globablly and to any industry / field so when you pursue a PM career, you can’t limit it to one industry but you can tailor the processes to suit the projects your are working on. Having expertise in certain industry like construction is a plus as it will be an asset for you in managing your projects. You do not need to be a technical expert but it is always advisable to know the bare minimum technically and it will help you make sense of the cost estimates, durations, change orders and so on. So the question you should be asking is: Do you want to limit your field expertise to construction or diversify and expand it to other industries. Hope thsi helps ! Saving Changes...
Dinah YoungProject Manager / Software Asset Manager| Prince William CountySpringfield, Va, United States
I would suggest you begin in your career path. This is where you expertise is, so you can focus on learning all about project management. Once you become comfortable and proficient, you can expand across different industries. Saving Changes...
2) It is good that you have mentioned that you are determining the career
path for yourself and this is the correct one.
3) A balance of ( technical management skill+ leadership skill + business_strategic management) which called as (PMI talent triangle) is needed for modern PM.
BR,
Mansour Saving Changes...
Shweta PaiScrum master| ResMedHalifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
What I 'd like to add here is that you need to figure out the value chain in order to be successful as a PM. There would be different teams within your group that you would have to interact with and you might get requirements from product groups that might be organized differently. Understanding these processes is key. This will help you drive important conversations and steer your team's success. With experience in different industries, you can apply and suggest a different perspective, making you very valuable. Infact, I would go ahead and say that sometimes, it is not just industry but two different companies in the same industry might function very differently. You have to understand how i.e. value chain to be successful. Saving Changes...
Janvier NdayisabaManager| Fuzzy International General TradingDar Es Salaam, Tanzania, United Republic Of
I think Rami explained well, I also believe that some particular knowledge in a particular industry is an added value to the PM while PM can be applied in any field Saving Changes...
You could pursue it as a career, or compliment almost any other career with valuable project management skills that are used in almost every other job. Saving Changes...
Matthew LoducaSenior Program/Project Manager| AT&TBallwin, Mo, United States
Omar, I think starting out, it is not important which domain you choose, But eventually choose you must. As PMs we bring a whole host of soft skills to the table that translate across industries, but you don’t develop the industry knowledge if you flit from one industry to the next just developing your PM skills. When applying for an IT PM role, who is the likely hired candidate, 1 with 10 years in IT PM or one with 1 year in 10 different domains? As PMs we rely on experts for the technical industry knowledge, but when you have 10 years in an industry you add extra value for your client. Switching between industries between assignments means you have to learn a whole lot of industry.culture and general knowledge each time and the client generally has to pay for that ramp. A few people pull off multi industry project management(compar d to those in a single industry), but you always have to start with one. See how it goes. You may find it is your passion or the offer to stay on after the first project is to good to pass up. Saving Changes...
Pench BattaEnterprise Lean Agile DevOps Coach /SAFe Program Consultant (SPC6)| Capgemini, Inc.Bentonville, Ar, United States
Great insights from everyone! Thanks for sharing! Saving Changes...
Hi Omar, Great question. I agree with our colleagues who shared their insights. Though eventually you can utilize PM skills across all industries, it helps to apply PM skills in your current industry and position first. Then afterwards you can apply PM skills to other industries in the future, as your career path provides opportunities. If you have not yet applied to begin PMI's PMP certification, I recommend viewing requirements, and make sure now that the tasks you are working on now, and in the near future, can meet the criteria. Then start creating your PMP application, and decide which PM education you would like. If you have follow-up questions, just let us know. Thanks for the question, and have a great day. Saving Changes...
John A. WilliamsOwner| JAW Consultancy | The PragmaticionerNootdorp, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
If you pursue a PM career, start in the industry/domain you have knowledge of and feel comfortable in. Once you learned the ropes you will know where your exceptional strengths are, where you make the difference. Then you can expand to other industries/domains and get yourself assisted by a specialist in your week field. E.g. if you go for an IT project in which domain you have little experience but you have excellent soft skills, make sure to engage an IT architect as your right-hand advisor. Saving Changes...
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