- It's no secret that project managers are in high demand. Most organizations rely on them to oversee, plan, and organize their biggest projects. Different strategies are employed to identify and assess the project's needs. Project managers are tasked with creating timelines, budgets, skillsets, meetings, and reports for stakeholders.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that project managers should increase their employment rate by six percent by 2024 and by 33 percent by 2027. This holds true globally, entry-level project manager salaries in Australia are a higher-than-average $116,227 per year. As a result, project managers are well-positioned to grow their careers.
The position of a project manager is almost common in every company.
Have trouble finding entry-level project manager jobs? This guide will help you.
This article investigates the highest-paying entry-level project manager jobs. It offers insights into the necessary skills and experiences to become an entry-level project manager.
What Does a Project Manager Do?
A project manager's role in the workplace cannot be understated due to the irreplaceable value they provide to the organization. A project manager leads projects in almost every workplace. Among the core responsibilities of this employee are to design and monitor projects, update stakeholders, and perform other related tasks. Companies will not be able to meet their goals without the harmony brought by this role.
In addition to IT, manufacturing, oil and gas, finance, insurance, utilities, retail, and construction, there is a significant demand for project managers in a broad range of industries. A project manager's performance in these industries is hugely beneficial to the company's bottom line.
Often, it is said that CEOs and project managers face similar challenges. Both have to deal with deadlines, risks, and losses and work with investors, teams, and customers. Effective project management can drastically alter a business' fortunes, just as a good CEO can.
What steps should you take to start a project management career? Let's talk about how to land your first entry-level project management job.
Project Manager Skills
Entry-level project managers could be recent college graduates or career changers. As an entry-level project manager, you don't generally need prior experience. Still, you do need to know the basics of project management.
You'll need a few key skills no matter what industry you choose to work in. Effective communication and people management skills are required from a successful project manager. In addition to handling stressful activities, you will need the ability to plan, coordinate, and execute. It doesn't end there. The skills you'll need to succeed will be discussed in depth below.
Communication: Project managers need to effectively communicate their visions, missions, goals, activities, and ideas. A project manager needs good interpersonal skills to spearhead projects effectively. Furthermore, they should be able to confidently present and interact with different stakeholders.
Leadership: A project manager needs to be able to lead both people and projects. They must communicate effectively with their team. Project managers should also be proficient at planning and executing.
Negotiation: Project managers must possess the ability to negotiate with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders. In many cases, communication skills will play an important role in the effectiveness of your negotiations.
Risk Management: No project is risk-free. Fortunately, managing risks and developing strategies can reduce risks. To be a successful project manager, you should be able to manage different risks in a project and, if they're unavoidable, communicate the issues clearly.
Budget Management: A good project manager must understand budgets and the ability to identify hidden costs.
Technical Writing: Sometimes, a project manager is required to do technical writing in product specifications, draft deliverables, communicate updates regarding new issues, and more. Delivering this information to stakeholders and superiors in text form is vital.
Research: A project manager is also expected to understand the field in which they specialize. This will allow them to assist others by asking the right questions and offering solutions.
Industry Knowledge: An effective project manager understands the industry and company's needs in which they work and makes well-informed decisions about their projects.
Along with these skills, a project manager must also have interpersonal skills, time management, conflict management, contract management, critical thinking, task management, and quality management (the role of quality assurance in project management can not be underestimated!)
Entry-Level Jobs in Project Management
Before landing your first project management job, you should look for an entry-level role related to the position. Project coordinators, project assistants, testers, junior business analysts, event organizers, and finance assistants are some examples of these roles. Learn from these beginner roles so you can chart your path toward a high-level position in project management. The following entry-level project management jobs range across different fields:
It is the responsibility of the project coordinator to make sure that the schedule, budget, and details of a given task are organized. Whenever changes to the project plan are made, they communicate with different departments. Moreover, they plan meetings for project managers, organize reports, and provide updates.
Project Coordinator Responsibilities
Communicating with their team and project stakeholders.
Managing budgets.
Managing the project from start to finish.
Schedules are managed and updated by project schedulers. As a general rule, you'll be doing a lot of administrative and documentation work. In addition to gaining the necessary experience in managing the schedule of the staff, it can be a natural transition from staff management to project management.
Project Scheduler Responsibilities
Creating a work breakdown structure.
Managing team schedule.
Determining project resources.
The responsibilities of an assistant project manager are to assist the project manager in a variety of tasks, including organizing and attending meetings, tackling smaller parts of the project, and helping to lighten the workload on the project manager. Most project assistants graduate to project management roles.
Assistant Project Manager Responsibilities
Project planning and implementation assistance.
Analyzing data as required.
Conducting administrative duties.
Junior business analysts are trained to gather, validate, and document various system requirements and information. Essentially, they serve as the interface between end-users and software developers, evaluating and verifying the capabilities of the system. Employees in this position gain valuable experience in the business analytics field, which can lead to management roles.
Junior Business Analyst Responsibilities
Analyzing business processes.
Providing support for project implementation.
Implementing custom solutions.
Event organizers coordinate and manage every aspect of an event, also known as coordinators or specialists. Their responsibilities include conceptualizing theme ideas, planning budgets, booking venues, managing logistics, liaising with suppliers and clients, and providing post-event reports. This position is a great stepping stone to advanced project management positions across various industries.
Event Organizer Responsibilities
Identifying client needs and ensuring customer satisfaction.
Organizing facilities and details for the event.
Managing the project from start to finish.
Keeping track of an organization's finances is the responsibility of a finance assistant. In addition to entering data into databases, they prepare financial statements, process invoices, and support other employees throughout all accounting processes. Naturally, financial assistants graduate to senior positions and even get to manage large-scale projects.
Financial Assistant Responsibilities
Update financial spreadsheets with daily transactions.
Manage project budget.
Work closely with management.
Advanced Project Management Jobs
After gaining enough experience, you might be able to attain mid-to senior-level project management jobs. Below, we've listed a few advanced project management jobs that may match your skillset.
IT project management is the most lucrative career path in the field. As an IT project manager, you will be responsible for managing all IT operations projects through the implementation and development phases. Additionally, you will be responsible for setting IT goals, overseeing IT processes, and ensuring that each project has the resources it needs to succeed.
IT Project Manager Responsibilities
Define IT objectives.
Direct process development.
Ensure adequate resources are available to complete projects.
You will be responsible for supervising and monitoring engineering projects as an engineering project manager, which will lead to project success. Your responsibilities include handling the scheduling of engineering projects and overseeing the purchase of all needed materials.
Engineering Project Manager Responsibilities
Plan engineering projects.
Ensure project completion.
Coordinate material purchases.
This person's role is also known as a project management office manager. As the team manager, this individual ensures that each member of the team executes their duties correctly. Moreover, they supervise them to make sure that they meet certain deadlines and benchmarks.
PMO Project Manager Responsibilities
Monitor projects until they are completed.
Make sure project managers complete their tasks.
Make sure managers and clients work together smoothly.
It is the responsibility of the construction project manager to manage the company's physical and administrative tasks related to the construction project. Prior construction experience is frequently required for this position. These construction professionals also manage the planning and logistics of construction projects and ensure that the projects are completed on time and within budget.
Construction Project Manager
Ensure construction projects are completed on time and within budget.
Manage project logistics.
Ensure timelines are met.
A project manager in this position is in charge of helping clients improve the efficiency of their business processes. The company provides clients with advice on best practices for project management. It introduces project management tools like project management software and documents and offers solutions to inefficient processes.
Project Management Consultant Responsibilities
Advise clients on best practices for project management.
Manage the project's implementation.
Develop solutions to problems related to efficiency.
Managers in this role supervise all marketing and advertising projects. The marketing manager plans the company's marketing campaigns and collaborates with the marketing director to ensure that projects are successfully completed.
Marketing Project Manager Responsibilities
Oversee marketing and advertising team.
Plan marketing campaign.
Collaborate with marketing and advertising departments.
Tips For Entry-Level Project Managers
Indeed, the roles of a project manager in project and contract management tend to vary. Project managers need a wide variety of skills and work-related experiences to be successful at their jobs. But what do you do if you're new to the job?
Many tools and insights can guide you through the project management process. Below, we've compiled the top tips to help you navigate as a PM in any industry:
Understanding that mistakes can happen is important. Keeping pace with them is what is important.
Take the time to evaluate risks before you begin a new project, and divide your project into smaller tasks, so it's easier to manage.
You should familiarize yourself with project management jargon before your first day.
Develop your interpersonal skills as well as your technical skills. Learn to communicate more effectively, strengthen your leadership abilities, and develop your presentation skills. Your career will benefit from these skills.
Additionally, you must always be prepared to adapt. There will never be a perfectly planned project.
If you want to specialize in project management, our project management software may be your first step towards a successful career. Have trouble deciding on a direction? Our blog post library has tons of useful information to help you decide. Let's make this happen!
Conclusion
The project management field is a good choice if you like organizing, planning, and solving problems in a variety of settings. Today, project management is one of the most competitive fields in the world. The profession provides a wide range of job opportunities at an above-average salary. Despite its demanding and stressful nature, this career is also very promising and offers a good job outlook.