Project management can be challenging, but it’s also an exciting, dynamic field. To ensure your long-term success, and to differentiate yourself from other managers, you need to acquire the right skill set.
To give you an idea of what we mean, here’s a project management skills list that you can consider as you begin working on developing what it takes to enter this field or expand your career.
Project Management Skills
- Project Manager Technical Skills (“Hard” Skills) Form the Foundation for Success
- Soft Skills Can Also Help You Excel in Project Management
- Become Certified in Project Management to Prove You Really Have What It Takes
Project Manager Technical Skills (“Hard” Skills) Form the Foundation for Success
As a project manager, you need to know how to be a leader and inspire others to work hard at achieving a common goal. In addition to that, you need to have technical skills to be able to harness the power of the latest tools that can make your job easier, and make you a more effective leader too.
Some of the main project manager technical skills you should aim to develop include:
- Budgeting and cost management – Being able to foresee expenses, calculate costs, and stick to a budget are necessary if you want to lead a project. The right tools will help you run a project from start to finish without going over the budget that you or your boss have set. Examples of popular cost management software include Hubstaff, Trigger, and Avaza.
- Scheduling and time management – As a manager, you need to be able to schedule and track the steps involved in taking a project from start to finish. You also need to designate team members to tasks and establish deadlines to ensure everything is completed on time. Some of the top tools used in this area include Scoro, Asana, and Toggl.
- Team building and management – You can’t complete a project all on your own, so other important skills are team building and team management abilities. You need to build a team that will be capable of completing the tasks you give them, and you need to lead, inspire, and motivate them. Being able to recognize people’s strengths, and knowing how to assign tasks appropriately, will help you lead projects successfully.
- Task management – The purpose of task management is to keep every member of your team up-to-date while working together in a collaborative manner. It’s also used to minimize mistakes while improving productivity. Software can help you get it all done, and a few good examples are ClickUp, Monday.com, and Smartsheet.
- Stakeholder management – When working as a project manager, you have to do more than just direct and supervise your team, you also have to work with other managers, clients, and stakeholders. Therefore, it’s important to know how to understand everyone’s expectations, establish and convey your objectives, and report on progress as you move through a project’s life cycle.
- Risk management – Identifying, assessing, and mitigating risk is an integral part of successfully managing a project. The goal is to become so good at recognizing risks in advance that you’re able to avoid them and keep your project moving along smoothly. This involves performing qualitative and quantitative risk analysis.
- Agile – Agile is a method that allows you to break a project down into manageable steps so you can boost productivity and improve collaboration amongst team members. There are several Agile frameworks that you can choose from, and some of the most popular options for project managers include Scrum, Kanban, Crystal, and XP.
Soft Skills Also Help You Excel in Project Management
When it comes to the project management skills needed to be effective at leading teams, there are several “soft skills” that will help you reach your goals.
In addition to general leadership abilities, it’s also helpful to be proficient in the following areas:
- Communication
- Negotiation
- Conflict resolution
- Critical thinking
- Creative thinking
- Problem solving
- Active listening
- Coaching
- Collaboration
Other project management skills required to go far in this career have more to do with your personality type. For example, if you exhibit the following traits, you’re more likely to do well:
- Social
- Confident
- Goal-oriented
- Motivated
- Open-minded
- Adaptable
Become Certified in Project Management to Prove You Really Have What It Takes
There are several certifications offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI). For example, if you’re fairly new to project management, you can become a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM). Or, you can advance your career by becoming a Project Management Professional (PMP).
Why bother getting certified? As you work on preparing to pass the exams for these certifications, you’ll develop a wide range of skills that will make it easier to elevate your career.
RMC Can Help You Become a Talented Project Manager!
From courses that prepare you for project management certifications to those that let you get your PDUs to maintain certification, RMC is here to help you reach your highest potential and stay at the top of your game.
Contact us to learn more about how you can acquire the project management skills and competencies that will set you apart from the rest.
Sources:
https://www.strategyex.co.uk/blog/pmoperspectives/15-skills-project-managers-will-need-2015/
https://www.projectmanager.com/blog/project-management-skills
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