3 Skills You Need to Progress Your Project Management Career

As project managers adapt to a landscape that is shifting toward a more agile approach with expanded roles that include not just project but portfolio management, some project managers might find themselves lacking important skills needed to thrive in their jobs.

Meeting expectations in this changing landscape requires far more than attention to detail, an understanding of project management tools and an ability to motivate your team toward a deadline. Here are three skills that will set successful project managers apart and that can be applied in any industry and any size company:

1. Strategic and Analytical Thinking – Project Managers must be able to evaluate their projects and portfolios against broader business goals and determine how they might adjust the project plan and resources to achieve more impactful results. This often means seeing beyond the project to understand how it interrelates with projects across teams and divisions as well as making strategic, analysis-driven recommendations.
2. Diplomacy and Relational Skills – The project management world has become both global and virtual, and as such the role of the PM is often as a facilitator across cultures, time zones and work styles to ensure seamless integration. Project managers have to navigate and resolve team conflict, deal with ambiguity in virtual teams, and adapt from one project to the next as teams transform.
3. Communication – Both of the above skills require a third, which is the ability to effectively communicate across all levels of the organization. This goes beyond well-written emails, memos and project reports. Successful communicators will be able to deliver a compelling presentation to management demonstrating how their project plan adjustments will impact business goals. They should be able to facilitate teamwork even in a virtual world. These skills require a commitment to training and practice.

Interested in hearing more about trends in project management or improving your PM skills with the goal of career advancement? Consider a Master’s in Project Management or a Project Management Certificate from Western Carolina University, a top-ranked, accredited online MPM program.