Is Project Management a Profession? Yes. Here is the Proof

Project management as a profession can be a rewarding career path. The Project Management Institute (PMI) estimates the average project manager's annual salary at $115,000.

Every industry and organization needs the services of a qualified project management professional. Project management statistics show that the global economy needs to hire 25 million new skilled project professionals by 2030.

If you are wondering if now is the best time to jump into the project management profession, the answer is yes. The demand for project management skills will keep increasing, making building a career in project management a lucrative one.

Let’s get started.

Defining a Project Manager. The Roles and Responsibilities

The project manager position is one of the nine essential roles in project management. This individual is primarily responsible for managing projects from start to finish with the support of project team members and other relevant stakeholders.

According to a PWC survey, 97% of respondents agreed that the project manager role is essential to business performance and organizational success, while 94% agreed that the project manager enables business growth.

Here are the key roles and responsibilities of project managers.

1. Project Planning

Project managers plan and manage projects, irrespective of their sizes. Even if they are managing small projects, they still need to properly plan for project success. Poor planning is one of the causes of project failure.

Good project managers know how to write realistic project plans, define the project’s scope, set time estimates, and allocate available resources to the right team members.

They work with different stakeholders to create a clear and concise plan for executing and monitoring the project throughout the project management life cycle.

2. Create and Lead Your Project Team

Project managers are responsible for recruiting project team members and leading them to meet the project’s goals. The best project managers know how to assemble a capable team and provide the needed guidance, training, coaching, and motivation needed by the team.

Communication and leadership qualities are needed to build and maintain a successful team. Brief each team member about their roles and create clear expectations.

3. Monitor Project Progress and Set Deadlines

Whether the project manager is managing multiple projects or a single one, monitoring progress is crucial. You are responsible for creating the project timeline and ensuring that the project follows the set schedule.

A good project manager should always track the project’s progress, anticipate delays, and make contingency plans ahead to prevent defaulting on the set deadlines.

After getting a delivery date for the final project from the client, set mini-deadlines for different tasks to better accommodate late turnovers.

4. Conflict Resolution

Many project managers lack the essential leadership skills needed to resolve project issues that arise. Successful project managers have great problem-solving, adaptability, and conflict-resolution skills necessary for ensuring the project stays on track with the original plan.

Scope creep is one of the issues that can cause a project to exceed its set deadline and budget. Every project manager should plan for every possible change in the project’s deliverables.

5. Manage Project Budget

Budget management is an essential project manager role. Good project managers know how to manage project resources effectively and ensure that the project costs stay within the set budget.

You can complete a project within the expected timeline and meet your client’s expectations. But if the project exceeds the set budget significantly, it can still be classified as a failure.

Successful project managers regularly review the project budget at each phase of the project life cycle to prevent and tackle budget overruns.

6. Evaluate Project Performance

After delivering the project successfully, the smart project manager doesn’t call it a day yet. This professional gathers data gotten from the project management processes and uses it to identify areas that need improvement.

Check your project expenditures and team performance and compare them with the critical success factors (CSF) you set at the early stages of the project’s life cycle.

Congratulate your team members for the areas where they performed excellently and reward members that excelled during the project.

Why Do Some People Think Project Management is Not a Profession?

Is project management a recognized profession, like doctors, engineers, and lawyers? Many project management professional associations agree that it is a profession.

The largest professional body representing project management practitioners, the Project Management Institute (PMI), classified project management as a profession multiple times in its ethics code.

Other associations, like the International Project Management Association (IPMA), also refer to project management as a profession.

Yet, there are people, including scholars, that think that the concept of project management as a profession is misleading.

Let’s start by defining the word “profession” first. A profession is a paid vocation or occupation that requires mastering a set of skills and knowledge through practical experience and formal education.

Based on this definition of the profession, project management falls into this category. Project managers are paid and learn essential project management skills and knowledge from formal education, certifications, and practical experiences.

Like every other profession, project management has several professional bodies like the Project Management Institute (PMI) and the International Project Management Association (IPMA). These bodies offer project management certifications for interested candidates.

For example, the PMI offers Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) certification and Project Management Professional (PMP).

However, some argue that project management is not a profession. Here are their reasons.

Project and Program Management is a Process, Not a Discipline

Project management covers every aspect of human life. Let's take accounting services as an example. Doing taxes for a client is a specific project, while the offered accounting services are a program (a collection of projects)

In this sense, we are all project managers, just that some individuals are making a living from becoming certified project managers. Since managing projects cuts across all disciplines, it can’t be termed a separate discipline but rather a process used to achieve a goal.

Project Management Knowledge Body is Based On Generic Knowledge

The body of knowledge of project management is generic and difficult to define or control.

A body of knowledge should be unique and distinct from other professions. For example, the medical professions have a robust body of knowledge not found in other professions.

Falls Short When Compared with Other Professions

If you want to measure project management with other professionals like medicine and law, it falls short.

Project management is more of a profession than an electrician, which many consider a paying skill, but it is nowhere near the universally-acceptable professions like medical doctors.

Why Become a Project Manager

Becoming a project manager can be a lucrative profession, but that’s not the only reason to choose a project management career.

Here are the top reasons why you should become a project manager.

Growing Demand for Project Managers

The best time to become a project manager is now. According to PMI’s Talent Gap report, the global economy will need over 25 million new project professionals by 2030.

Before you go into project management, find out what skills, methodologies, and certifications are going to be in high demand.

Knowledge of multiple project management frameworks like Agile, Lean, Critical Path Method (CPM), Critical Chain Project Management (CCPM), Kanban, Scrum, and Waterfall is vital for success. You can rise to become a project management office manager.

Rich Job Opportunities in Every Industry

There is a high demand for project and program managers in every industry. Every organization with multiple projects to execute needs to hire trained project managers to improve the chances of success.

The most popular industry for project managers is the IT industry. However, you can find lucrative job opportunities in the business sector, finance, insurance, construction, manufacturing, oil and gas, and transportation industries.

Competitive Salaries for Project Managers

Although salaries vary based on industry, experience, qualifications, and organization, project managers earn competitive salaries.

According to Zippia, an entry-level project manager earns $64,000 annually, while the median project manager’s annual salary is $91,578.

Gain Project Management Skills for Your Projects

Becoming a project manager or passing through different certifications gives you the needed project management skills to manage your tasks and projects successfully.

You develop soft skills like communication, leadership, teamwork and collaboration, time management, negotiation and conflict resolution, and problem-solving skills.

That’s not all. You learn technical or hard skills like planning and forecasting, task management and resource management, process management, risk management, and budgeting.

Career Paths, Industries, and Average Salaries

Career Paths	Industries	Median Salaries
Construction Project Managers	Construction	$93,370
Energy Project Managers	Energy	$70,031
Engineering Project Managers	Engineering	$94,440
Software Project Managers	Software Development	$86,372
Information Technology (IT) Project Managers	Information Technology (IT)	$142,530
Healthcare Project Managers	Healthcare	$75,474
Pharmaceutical Project Managers	Pharmaceutical	$89,453
Marketing Project Managers	Marketing	$59,916
Consulting Project Managers	Consulting	$104,347
Finance Project Managers	Finance	$75,894
Legal Project Managers	Law	$86,866

Prominent Project Managers to Become Inspired

There are many great examples of project managers who successfully manage complex projects.

Project management history shows that PM as a discipline didn’t start until the 20th century. As a result, some examples here didn’t use the name “project manager” because it wasn’t an option. However, one thing unites these examples. They had great project outcomes.

1. George E. Mueller, PhD

Dr. George Mueller was an associate administrator at NASA (The National Aeronautics and Space Administration). He was responsible for recruiting top military talents to run the Apollo project in the 1960s that successfully landed the first man on the moon.

The Apollo project had a multi-billion dollar budget. Like every other project, it faced challenges like engine failures and budget costs. However, thanks to the leadership of Dr. Mueller and his gang of interstellar innovators, Apollo II was a success.

2. Baron Haussmann (né Georges-Eugène Haussmann)

Baron Haussmann (né Georges-Eugène Haussmann) was in charge of the dream project for any project manager. His assignment was huge, to modernize Paris. Napoleon III was the project sponsor.

Haussmann recruited a cross-functional team that had engineers, builders, and architects to redesign the city. His team solved waste management and hygiene issues. This project was risky and expensive, cost billions of dollars, and lasted for twenty years.

Is Project Management for Everyone?

You are mistaken if you think project management is just for project managers. While you may not bear the title of “Project Manager,” you will still face some projects you need to manage.

If you have ever organized a social gathering like a school reunion or managed the renovation of your home, you’ve managed a project before.

More non-project managers are seeking project management training than ever before. Smart organizations are enrolling their employees and not just their managers into programs that teach project management skills and abilities.

What do these organizations know that others don’t? They recognize project management is a universal tool that helps you complete a project successfully while sticking with the predefined budget and timeline.

Everyone should know the basics of project management to successfully initiate, develop, and complete projects that fall under their care.

How to Become a Project Manager

Two types of project managers exist: the traditional project manager and the accidental project manager.

The “traditional” project manager is an individual that acquires a degree or qualification in project management. This individual takes project management as a career.

On the other hand, the “accidental” project manager is someone who manages projects but doesn't pursue a career in project management.

Accidental project managers can be product managers managing the development of new products and digital marketers planning a campaign.

What do these two types of project managers mean for someone trying to become a project manager? It means there are multiple ways to become a project manager.

How to Become a Project Manager Without a Qualification

You can become a project manager without qualifications. You already have some experience managing projects, no matter how little.

Here’s how to become a project manager without a degree.

• Improve Your Project Management Knowledge: According to the PMBOK Guide, there are 10 project management knowledge areas. Learn these areas to become a more balanced project manager.
• Seek More Project Management Experience: You need the experience to manage projects successfully. Even after mastering the key project management knowledge areas, you need to test your knowledge on projects. You can volunteer to manage projects to gain vital experience.
• Learn from Mistakes and Others: Learning is a continuous process in project management. You will learn the job from past projects, your mistakes, and from other project managers. If you have a seasoned project manager in your organization, pick ideas from them.
• Learn from Project Management Courses: You can become a project manager by taking online project management courses you will find on the best online course platforms like Thinkific and LearnWorlds.
• Use Project Management Software: Project management software tools are best friends with accidental project managers. They are a ready guide that can help them develop project management experience. With project management software, you can manage projects without spending much time and resources.

How to Become a Certified Project Manager

The best way to become a certified project manager is to add a formal project management qualification to your CV.

Even though you don’t need to get a degree or certification in project management to become a project manager, getting it is a great way to show expertise to employers.

If you want to build a successful project management career, attract more job opportunities, and earn more, you need to get these qualifications and certifications.

Here’s how to become a certified project manager.

• Earn a Bachelor’s Degree: You don’t need to earn a project management degree to become a project manager, but earning it can give you an edge for job opportunities. Bachelor’s degree holders find it easier to earn the PMP certification.
• Determine Your Specialization: Do you want to be a general project manager that can work in a variety of industries? Do you want to specialize in a field and earn more? You can specialize in industries with high project management demands, like information technology, construction, transportation, health, and real estate.
• Pursue Certification: Earning a project management certification is necessary to become a certified project manager. Some of the best PM certifications include the Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM), Certified Scrum Master (CSM), Certified Project Manager (CPM), and Project Management Professional (PMP).

Project Management in the Future

Project management is growing rapidly and adapting to emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology.

The growing importance of remote teams, automation, and digitalization will have a great impact on the future of project management.

Already, many project managers are using digital technologies to track project progress. In the future, you can expect digital project management to become even more mainstream.

Expect project managers to use automation software to automate many project management processes for faster execution. Research shows that about 80% of project management tasks will be automated by 2030.

Future project managers will need greater technical skills and some knowledge of AI, cybersecurity, robotics, blockchains, and other new technologies.

What project management framework will dominate the future of PM? Is Agile Project Management the Future? Although Agile approaches deliver more return on investments than Waterfall, it’s not the future.

The future is adaptive project management that uses hybrid approaches (combines Agile and Waterfall management methods).

FAQ

Do You Think Project Management is a Profession?

Project management is a profession. Traditionally, being a professional means you get paid to work. For example, professional basketball players get paid while amateurs don’t, even if they are as skilled as the professionals.

Like other professions in law, accounting, and medicine, project management has professional associations focused on developing the knowledge and capability of the profession.

But here’s the difference between project management and other professions. Top project management associations like the Project Management Institute (PMI) don’t control the right to practice as a project manager.

Despite this limitation, many organizations are recognizing project management certifications gotten from these associations. The demand for professional project managers will keep growing.

Sources

1. Earning Power: Project Management Salary Survey—Twelfth Edition
2. Insights and Trends: Current Portfolio, Programme, and Project Management Practices
3. Talent Gap: Ten-Year Employment Trends, Costs, and Global Implications
4. Project Manager Salary
5. 9 Project Management Career Paths: Industries, Salary, and More
6. 10 Jobs in Project Management: Industries and Salaries
7. What, When, Why, and How? A Comparison between Agile Project Management and Traditional Project Management Methods
8. Gartner Says 80 Percent of Today’s Project Management Tasks Will Be Eliminated by 2030 as Artificial Intelligence Takes Over

Explore Further

• 13 Essential Components of Project Management
• 5 Smart Project Management Examples to Inspire You at Work
• What Is a Technical Project Manager?
• 22 Project Management Best Practices
• 17 Best Project Management Books
• 11 Project Management Principles for Successful Projects

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