Senior IS Project Manager| Baycare Health SystemsClearwater, Fl, United States
I have been fortunate enough to have had a long and successful career as a project manager, and I am thankful for all of the opportunities.
For more than 1 year now I have been hearing that it is difficult for new PMPs to gain employment as a project manager, since they do not have any project management experience. Is this common in the globally or is this just my antidotal experience in my local community?
Please share your suggestions for new Project Managers!
I was once told that a closed mouth never gets fed, especially in North America. If you don't advocate for yourself, you will be overlooked and never reconsidered. I would start at the bottom as a project coordinator and ask for opportunities to join major projects. With gradual exposure, the opportunity will come over time. I would rather focus on being ready for that one chance and concentrate my effort than spread myself thin. Saving Changes...
Luis BrancoCEO| Business Insight, Consultores de Gestão, LdªCarcavelos, Lisboa, Portugal
Michael, I think there are two sides to this problem. New project managers need opportunities to demonstrate capability, but organizations also need reasonable evidence before placing consequential projects in inexperienced hands.
That suggests avoiding the binary of “no experience, no opportunity” versus simply giving someone a project and hoping they grow into it. Organizations can create progressively meaningful assignments: responsibility for a workstream, dependencies, stakeholders, risks or smaller projects, with bounded authority, appropriate support, feedback and escalation mechanisms. As capability becomes demonstrated, responsibility can expand.
I would also distinguish experience from capability. A previous Project Manager title is one source of evidence, but not the only one. Someone may already have exercised relevant capabilities through other roles without having held the title.
So perhaps the challenge is not only helping new PMs become more employable. It is creating pathways where real work provides opportunities to develop and demonstrate capability, while producing credible evidence for progressively greater responsibility. Saving Changes...
I don't wish to diminish the challenge you raise, but this sentence concerns me: "it is difficult for new PMPs to gain employment as a project manager, since they do not have any project management experience".
Assuming you are referring to those who have attained their PMP credentials, I'd question how they completed the application process if they lacked project management experience?
To address your underlying question, there are entry points into the profession such as roles as a project coordinator/analyst/control officer. One can also look to lead small initiatives within a functional role and then use the credibility you establish doing that to go for a PM role within your current organization.
Yes, this is a common challenge globally, not just in one local community. Many organizations want PM candidates to have prior project experience, creating the familiar “experience required to get experience” problem.
Today’s opportunities also look well beyond the PMP credential. Employers increasingly expect PMs to have a broad range of skills, including project management tools, data analysis and visualization, business analysis and product-related responsibilities. In many organizations, the PM role can overlap with that of a Business Analyst, Product Owner, Scrum Master or even Product Manager.
Another challenge is that some organizations expect 5–10 years of experience in the relevant field or domain before considering someone for a project manager position. This makes it difficult for someone who has newly earned a PMP to transition directly into a PM role.
And now, in the age of AI, the market has become increasingly competitive. Organizations are looking for PMs who can not only manage projects but also leverage AI, data, automation and modern collaboration tools to improve decision-making and delivery.
For new PMs, the best approach is to build hands-on experience through project coordinator or junior PM roles, internal projects, volunteering and supporting experienced PMs. Developing strong domain knowledge, business skills and AI capabilities alongside project management skills can make the transition much more achievable. Saving Changes...
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