Project Management

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Seeking Guidance Transitioning Into Formal Project Management

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Anonymous

Hi everyone! I’m in Ohio and looking for some guidance as I take the next step in my project management career.

I recently completed the 35 hours of project management education required for the PMP exam and plan to spend the next few months preparing for it. I’ve worked as a grant project manager for several years, managing complex projects involving multiple stakeholders, budgets, timelines, deliverables, and reporting requirements. I also have over 20 years of experience in healthcare and public health.

My challenge is that I came into project management through experience rather than through a formal PM environment. I haven’t had much exposure to established PM methodologies, standardized processes, dedicated PM software, or working alongside experienced project managers in a PMO. I have always been given projects and just had to figure out how to manage them. 

I’m hoping to bridge that gap rather than start over. I’d especially like to find an organization where I can apply my existing project management experience while learning more formal PM practices, tools, and processes from experienced project managers. I would like to find a really good mentoring organization.

Does anyone have recommendations for organizations in Ohio (or remote) potentially open to hiring experienced professionals transitioning into more formal PM roles? I’d also appreciate suggestions for mentoring opportunities, resources, or other ways to gain this type of practical experience.

Any guidance or suggestions on where to start would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
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Sharon Cuevas CVS Health Little River, SC, United States
I am in a similar situation. I have completed a Project Management Certification by Google and have passed my CAPM exam. Even "entry level" positions for a job leading to project management like project coordinator requires 3 years experience. How do I find a position to break into project management?
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Lissette Indhira Pimentel Sosa
Community Champion
Program Manager| HARPER SRL Santo Domingo / Distrito Nacional, Dominican Republic
I wouldn’t look at this as starting over. You already have experience managing stakeholders, budgets, timelines, deliverables, and reporting. What you are adding now is more structure and formal terminology around work you have already been doing.
I would look for mentoring opportunities and roles where you can work alongside other PMs or within a PMO. I would also continue preparing for the PMP, since that process can help you connect your existing experience with more formal project management practices.
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Tiffany Roche Project Management | Business, Ecommerce, Marketing, & Technical Operations Cary, NC, United States
I’m making a similar transition, although from operations/technical project work rather than healthcare. I recently earned the CAPM, and one thing I’ve found useful is thinking of the certification as a way to formalize and translate work I was already doing, rather than treating myself as someone starting over.
I also wouldn’t limit the search to titles like Project Coordinator. I’m seeing relevant work under titles such as Implementation Specialist, Project Analyst, PMO Coordinator/Analyst, Project Specialist, and various operations or transformation roles. Those can be a better bridge for someone who already has substantial stakeholder, budget, timeline, deliverable, and reporting experience but wants more exposure to a formal PM environment.
For me, the bigger challenge has been finding organizations willing to distinguish between “new to formal PM methodology” and “new to managing projects.” Those are very different things. With several years of project management plus 20 years in healthcare/public health, I would definitely emphasize the latter rather than positioning yourself as entry level.
I’ve also been deliberately getting more hands-on with tools and formal workflows so I can demonstrate that I understand how the work is structured in a PMO, even when my earlier experience didn’t use that terminology.
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Stelian ROMAN Project Manager| MicroSafety Carlingford, New South Wales, Australia
"My challenge is that I came into project management through experience rather than through a formal PM environment." That is the right path. Studying for PMOP will provide the "formal knowledge".
One good side effect of the PMP study is that you need to read the whole book, including activities that you may not be exposed to yet, like formal risk management or procurement,

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