A project manager (or PM) plays a critical role in a business as they manage the day-to-day duties of a project to ensure it’s executed successfully and on time. A project manager’s responsibilities range depending on the project but include overseeing the planning, execution, and delivery.
If you’re thinking about hiring a project manager for your business or want to join the project management profession and are wondering what to expect from the position, you’ve come to the right place. Here we’ll go over all the duties and responsibilities of a project manager.
What Does a Project Manager Do Day-to-day?
A project manager typically spends most of their day communicating, researching, and reviewing. A single project can involve many team members and contractors, some only at specific phases and others from conception to completion.
A project manager spends a lot of time emailing, calling, making or taking notes, providing critical information in the project management tools, or scheduling and attending meetings. A project manager must complete many tasks to ensure a smooth process and achieve optimal results. A project manager also:
-Writes risk assessment reports
-Manages the projects calendars
-Provides project updates
-Manages the projects’ budget
-Meets with leaders and provide project progress reports and updates on milestones
Project Manager Responsibilities and Duties
A project manager is responsible for the success of a project, especially complex projects. They oversee all aspects of the project to ensure every piece of the project gets completed timely and accurately. A project manager juggles many tasks at once and wears multiple hats to get the job done—they must look at the whole scope of the project.
Project manager’s work in many industries, from construction to software development. While the projects are very different, the responsibilities of a project manager are similar as they’re responsible for the completion of a project. The day-to-day duties of a project manager vary based on the industry and the specific project. So what does a project manager do? Let’s go over it all.
1. Project Initiation
At times a project manager begins working on a project in the initiation phase. The project manager defines the project’s objective, purpose, timelines, and desired outcome. They will identify key contributors in the development of each step of the project and who it will impact. They will determine a budget for the project and how it will get funded.
Sometimes the project manager isn’t assigned to a project until many of the answers in the initiation process are well underway. The project manager will be responsible for jumping in to understand the project’s objective, desired outcome, and the key stakeholders involved.
3. Project Planning
Once the project objections are outlined and approved, the next thing a project manager does is start the planning process. They will identify the specific tasks that need completing to reach each milestone.
The project manager works with key stakeholders to outline the project’s deliverables, timelines, risks involved, and communication methodologies. A clear project management plan helps the project manager oversee the project scope and quality to ensure successful completion.
The planning phase of a project continues throughout the entire project through each phase as things change or quality issues arise. The project manager is responsible for ensuring the most effective plan and processes are always in place.
4. Project Execution
Once all the project details are planned and any kinks are ironed out, it’s time to execute. A project manager will assign the work and oversee team members to ensure project tasks are completed according to the plan and on schedule.
Should any issues arise, a project manager will identify a workable resolution to solve them. When changes to the original plan are needed, the project manager will ensure all team members are on the same page.
4. Project Controlling and Monitoring
Throughout a project, the project manager plays the lead role and is responsible for monitoring its progress, including the timely completion of each phase, budget, and quality. The project manager maintains control over the project status, including any plans or budget changes, typically after approval from the executives.
Part of project controlling and monitoring includes keeping the team motivated and feeling valued for their contribution. Tensions and stress levels are high in some projects, so the best project managers keep the team positive and level-headed.
A project manager will check in with team members to ensure they handle their workload successfully and do not need to multitask to get their job done to meet deadlines. If an individual is overwhelmed, a project manager may reassign specific tasks to another capable team member.
5. Project Completion
During the project’s competition phase, the project manager ensures that any final steps or touch-ups are completed on time. They will review the work to ensure a successful end result before getting a formal sign-off or project completion. The project manager ensures contracts related to the project are closed and invoices get paid.
6. Project Reporting
Great project managers will complete a post-project summary or meeting to discuss any wins or lessons learned during the execution of the project. They will also get feedback and go over things that went wrong, what could have gone better, or what they could have done differently, so the entire team learns and improves for future projects.
Project Manager Skills
A good project manager wears many hats at times, so it’s imperative they’re flexible and able to handle anything thrown their way with ease. They need to be leaders confident in their abilities to get the job done successfully. Some of the skills you might see in a job description for excellent project managers have are:
-Strong attention to detail – With project management, the details matter. You should be asking yourself what assumptions you’re making that might affect the project, as well as considering all sides of the task. Strong attention to detail is a skill a project manager must have to achieve thoroughness and accuracy from conception to completion of a project.
-Leadership skills – A project manager plays the lead role in a project and must skillfully work on leading and motivating the entire team. This might involve team building work. A project can involve professionals of all levels, including executives and CEOs. A project manager needs to confidently take control since, essentially, they are responsible for the success or failure of the project.
-Problem-solving skills – Exceptional project managers proactively problem-solve and seamlessly fix problems before they arise. A project manager is responsible for negotiating any conflicts and challenges of the project details, which means they need to be an expert in adaptability. The ability to problem-solve quickly helps keep the project on schedule.
-Good communication skills – A project manager must be an excellent communicator as they are considered the leader of a project and responsible for communication between the entire project team. A project manager communicates through email, phone, text, and face-to-face with all of the key contributors of a project, so it’s essential they have superb verbal and written communication skills.
-Resource management skills – A project manager is responsible for staying on budget for the project. Most times, resources are limited, so a project manager must thoroughly plan out expenses, including time, money, and workforce, to get the job done on budget. Time management and managing risk are especially important.
What Training Does a Project Manager Need?
While no formal training is needed to be a project manager, it’s definitely preferred by hiring managers. There are so many moving parts to a project you need to possess some essential skills, so everything doesn’t fall apart.
First, many project managers have a bachelor’s degree in a field like computer science or business. There are many online classes that an individual interested in a project management career can take to learn what it takes to be an excellent project manager. Some courses offer a Project Management Professional certification at completion, and you may want to take courses in project management software to have a basic familiarity.
Project Manager Career Path
The life of a project manager is never dull, as project management is an exciting, complex position that keeps you on your toes. With the years of experience, knowledge, and soft skills a project manager gains, their career path can take them to higher positions such as senior project manager overseeing large projects, a director, or an executive.
A project manager is an in-depth career that’s in demand and expected to grow. Experienced project managers with strong attention to detail and exceptional people skills are sought after by many businesses and are highly marketable. A project manager position is an excellent career path that’s exciting and has room for growth.
All in All
So, what does a project manager do? The broad answer is a little bit of anything it takes to get a project completed on time, on budget, and successfully. The project manager’s role is the smooth running and success of a project which takes leading many moving parts and people.
A successful project manager is a proactive leader, a problem-solver, and has strong attention to detail. Since a project manager needs to communicate with all team members of a project, they must be excellent communicators to ensure everyone is on the same page throughout the project life cycle.
Sources:
Want To Be More Productive? Stop Multi-Tasking | Forbes
What Does a Project Manager Do? | Roles and Responsibilities | Northeastern