http://www.pmforum.org/library/editorials/2007/PDFs/Pells-8-07.pdf
PM WORLD TODAY EDITORIAL
August 2007
The Seven Natural Phases of a Project Management Career
By David L. Pells
About 25 years ago, some five or six years into my career as a project management
professional, I was befriended by a retired professor from the University of California at
Berkeley. When I told him that I was planning to prepare a technical paper for a
project management conference, he stated something like, “That’s a good idea. It a
normal sequence to begin writing and presenting papers at conferences; publishing is a
natural step in your career.”
In the years since then, and as I consider the phases of my own professional
development and career (and those of many others that I have known), it has occurred
to me that there is a very natural sequence of steps or phases in most professional
careers. This is especially true in the project management field. While there might be
little new here for experienced project managers, I believe it can be very useful for
those just beginning, to have an idea about what is in store or what they should plan to
do. In my own case, I was often impatient to advance. I think that some guidance
regarding career planning might be very helpful for younger professionals.
Now I would like to suggest the following seven phases in a project manager’s career.
1. Learning. Continuing from university, every professional must learn his or
her “profession” through on-the-job experience, continuing education,
seminars, workshops and in-company training. Initially this often involves
learning some technology-based technical or functional skill. A certain level
of knowledge and understanding naturally leads to a role on a project team,
the next step in learning project management. The learning process must
continue throughout one’s career, but it is most important at the beginning.
2. Contributing – as member of a Project Team. Few people become a
project manager without first working on a project team as an individual
contributor. It is here that we begin to learn the value of professional project
management, and various aspects of teamwork, communications and other
PM-related activities. If one focuses on project management, it is possible to
advance to team leader, cost account manager, task manager or another
leadership role on the project, before becoming a formal project manager.
This often depends on the industry and organization, but it is natural to
progress from individual contributor to leader, based on experience and
knowledge.
Published in PM World Today - August 2007 (Vol. IX, Issue VIII)
PM World Today is a free monthly eJournal. Free subscriptions available at: http://www.pmworldtoday.net Page 1
3. Leading – as Project Manager. Although project management is always a
team-based process, the role of project manager often focuses authority and
responsibility in a single position, even if only for reporting purposes. Project
manager is the next logical step in a PM career in most organizations. It
often begins with a small project. Based on performance, one can advance to
managing ever larger projects. Strategic or mission-critical projects are
normally assigned to the most experienced project managers, usually with
10-15 years of experience.
4. Creating Change – as Portfolio, Program or Corporate Manager. After
leading projects initiated by others for several years, most project and
program managers reach a point where they are involved in the creation or
selection of projects. As a senior project manager, program manager or
company executive, one has the opportunity to create change, to add value to
the organization. In most organizations, this is approaching the zenith of
one’s career, when influence is highest and potential impact the greatest.
5. Sharing Knowledge. Based on experience and knowledge gained from
actual projects, it is natural for professionals to consider opportunities for
sharing with others. The sharing process can include authoring of articles,
technical papers for conferences, white papers for the company or books. Of
course, sharing knowledge and information is a normal requirement from a
technical standpoint during the implementation of project management. But
here I am talking about sharing the knowledge gained from years of
experience. Mature PM professionals should seek opportunities for sharing
their knowledge; for some organizations, this is also a desirable process of
maintaining organizational knowledge and capacity.
6. Contributing to the Profession. I believe it is also natural and necessary
for professionals to return something to the profession itself. Generally this
means volunteering in professional bodies, on committees, or in elected
positions. Many opportunities exist for such contributions, at the local,
regional, national and international levels. After gaining the benefits of
professional organizations over the course of one’s career, it is only logical
that something should be returned eventually. It is a necessary step for both
individual careers and the profession itself, and professional bodies depend on
these contributions. And while many young persons volunteer and participate
in professional organizations, the experience, knowledge and wisdom of more
experienced professionals are also needed.
7. Advising/Mentoring Others. Finally, I believe it is a duty of all mature
project management professionals who are reaching the ends of their careers
to consider advising, mentoring and teaching younger people. After all, isn’t
this how we pass on our knowledge and experience, our stories from real
Published in PM World Today - August 2007 (Vol. IX, Issue VIII)
PM World Today is a free monthly eJournal. Free subscriptions available at: http://www.pmworldtoday.net Page 2
projects and programs? This is a natural process and phase to be considered
by us all as we get older.
These it seems to me are the main stages in a professional career – to learn,
contribute, lead, create change, share one’s knowledge, return something to the
profession, and mentor younger professionals.
In summary, and to paraphrase the above, here are the phases that I have experienced
and seen among my friends and colleagues:
1) Leave university and go to work for an organization with projects, accepting a
functional or technical position working on one or more projects, and begin to
learn something about project management;
2) Gain experience and advance to a significant project team member position;
3) Advance to leadership position, either as a task manager on a large project or as
manager of a small project; continuing advancing to project manager position,
on series of larger and more important projects;
4) Advance to program manager, portfolio manager, director or executive, with
some influence over selection or prioritization of projects and resources;
5) Share knowledge and begin to grow one’s professional reputation, by publishing
papers or a book, as author or contributor;
6) Become active in a Project Management professional organization, get involved
and make contributions to the profession, as you gain understanding of your own
career and professional position; and
7) Begin to advise or teach younger PM professionals, either formally or informally,
directly or indirectly.
Along the way, we might add more university degrees, training certificates, professional
qualifications, certifications, licenses, titles, etc. These all help, with regard to finding
good projects to work on and for earning more money. But there is a natural sequence
of steps, milestones and phases. This is the main point. I hope it is a useful message
for younger professionals who are just beginning the journey.
Good luck on your projects!
David L. Pells
Managing Editor
PM World Today
www.pmworldtoday.net
www.pmforum.org
Published in PM World Today - August 2007 (Vol. IX, Issue VIII)
PM World Today is a free monthly eJournal. Free subscriptions available at: http://www.pmworldtoday.net Page 3
David L. Pells
Managing Editor PM World Today
David L. Pells is the Managing Editor of PM World Today and of
www.pmforum.org one of the world’s leading online sources of project
management news and information. David is an internationally recognized
leader in the field of professional project management, with over thirty years’
experience in project management related activities and positions. His
professional experience includes a wide variety of programs and projects,
including engineering, construction, transit, defense and high technology, and
project sizes ranging from several thousand to ten billion dollars. He served
on the board of directors of the Project Management Institute (PMI®) twice,
and was awarded PMI’s Person of the Year award in 1998 and Fellow Award in
1999. David can be reached via email at: editor@pmforum.org
Published in PM World Today - August 2007 (Vol. IX, Issue VIII)
PM World Today is a free monthly eJournal. Free subscriptions available at: http://www.pmworldtoday.net Page 4
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