I ran across a blog post from a project manager looking for a new full-time position who asked the question: “…is coming up through the technical ranks of QA or programming really required?… Isn’t a cultural and behavioral fit more important long-term?”
This was way over my head, so I called one of our instructors Dave Caccamo (a MA and PMP with three decades of experience in engineering, economics and project management), who teaches a variety of our project management courses (including our Project Management Professional Exam Boot Camp, Applied Project Management, and Hands-on Power Excel for Project Managers). He has loads of experience working with project managers all over the world, and here were some of his thoughts:
“Just like a doctor, even if you have your MD, I’m not going to let you touch me unless I know you have the experience to back it up.
Some technical knowledge is always going to be important, but it needs to be in combination with real-world experience and a PMP (Project Management Professional) to really be ideal.
Previous project management experience, that may not apply to the specific technical problem of the company you are dealing with, demonstrates you have, indeed, dealt with technical issues in the past, and are capable of handling them in the future.
Those with too much technical experience and not enough project management experience can be harmful to a company because they aren’t going to look at that ‘big picture’ and may not be as in tune to the company culture. So, yes, the cultural fit is vital, but you can only express that if you are able to get an interview.
Once you’re in the interview, your experience and cultural fit will speak for itself. But it’s passing through the resume filter that will be the big hurdle. In today’s competitive job market hiring managers are looking at more resumes then ever, and if they don’t see PMP, at least some tech experience, and other specific qualifiers, then you aren’t going to make it to the interview process.”
If you’re ready to take the next step in your career and ensure that you land that next Project Management position, take our course The Project Management Professional (PMP®) Certification Exam Boot Camp and master the material needed to obtain PMI’s PMP certification.
Stay in the now! An overwhelming majority of material covered in the PMP certification exam will be taken from the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK). Check out the article A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK), 4th edition to stay current with process terminology.
I agree that the PMP credential is critical to get in the door. One of my clients, a well-known satellite company, had an I.T. job fair in which 700 applicants submitted their resumes. In order for the manager to even begin the screening process, he took the resumes of people who had PMPs and put them on the top of the pile. The Project Management Institute recently did a study of over 35,000 project managers. They reported that a PMP credential earned 10% more in salary. Over 10 years, this increase amounted to over $100,000 more money for PMPs than project managers with only experience. Clearly, getting a PMP credential is a smart career and financial move.
Tiffany, Yes! Great example, and one that we are seeing more and more everyday! What are your thoughts on the debate on whether or not a Project Manager needs to also have advanced technical skills? Is that really the priority of the role? Or is it to find those who do have those skills and be able to delegate?
Accordingly to the Project Management Institute, a PM does not need to have advanced technical skills to be an excellent project manager. My experience says this is true if the PM is only performing PM duties and has team members with the technical experience for delegation and consultation. As a PMP, I have helped over 50 companies in a variety industries plan their projects successfully, and I didn't need knowledge of their industries to do that because my clients possessed the technical expertise. However, as a trainer of project management, I know that most of the time, PMs are also team members. Therefore, as a team member they must have the technical knowledge to be successful in that role. The key is to ask the right questions. Sometimes, it’s easier to identify those questions if you have technical knowledge. Yet there is huge value when someone without technical expertise asks objective, important questions that techies would not have asked because of their assumptions.
It’s interesting the duel role that the PM must play, both as a member of a team, and as an observer. These are great insights Tiffany, thank you!
For many years and increasingly so, companies want multi-skilled employees and do not necessarily see project management as a full time endeavor. They would like to have individuals that can do business analysis, development, testing, even system, database, and network administration if possible – in other words, a jack of all trades, someone capable of filling in or fully performing all aspects of the SDLC if necessary. This means that absolutely, project managers, like the head of a company who has risen through the ranks, should have had actual, broad and deep experience in all areas. This includes the traditional human resources, finance/accounting, sales and marketing, operations, etc. Companies want the greatest bang for their buck and also expect the PMP certification in along with all the other areas. It is a tall order but it only starts here. I also have seen many additional qualifications desired such as to be multilingual, have an MBA from a top school, and have specific experiences in sometimes obscure software packages. That is simply the nature of project management today and companies will look sometimes for many months interviewing literally many dozens of candidates over easily six or more months before making an offer.
Steve, great observation! It makes since that companies are looking for someone who can juggle multiple roles. But can anyone ever really be all things to all people? It almost sounds like the role of the PM is becoming more of a company leadership roll and less project focused?
Steve,
The profile of a successful PM is the same as a successful general manager. It includes solid P&L experience, strong resource management skills, a deep understanding of scheduling and a strength in making data driven decisions. I think the PMP certification is basically a first filter. It is a way to seperate a huge number of candidates. From there hiring managers then look for specific domain experience (experience in an industry or with tools specific to an industry) after domain experience a hiring manager will look at years of experience as a Project Manager. I do believe though that with the scope of projects larger companies are more open to having specialized project managers compared with forcing their General Managers or Operations Managers to add Project Manager to their skill sets. The smaller a company gets the more likely that both BA responsbilities and Project Responsbilities with fall on General and Operation Managers