Project Management
Whether you’re a project manager or your work involves project-related duties, completing a project management course with GetSmarter will equip you with the latest technical, people, and management skills you need to successfully complete projects.
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Register for a project management course
Being able to successfully complete a project on time, in scope, and within budget – the three traditional deliverables of project management – has always been in demand. However, the current speed of technological innovation, which has led to an increased desire for connection, digitization, and integration, has put an additional strain on project and program managers worldwide.
A survey of nearly 500 project management practitioners from 57 countries showed that 35 percent of organizations completed more than 50 projects with a high focus on business improvement and transformation in 2019. The increased pressure on the industry resulted in a higher global demand for people with sound project management skills. Additionally, the face of project management is shifting. The modern project manager has to operate very strategically, collaborating with business leaders, leading teams, engaging with stakeholders, and managing uncertainty. The project manager of today partners with the business as it deploys benefits that support the organization’s overarching strategy quickly and incrementally.1
The high demand for experienced project managers becomes even more apparent when one considers that organizations around the world continue to experience difficulty in delivering projects on time and within budget. This is often the result of a lack of collaboration among team members, poor conflict management skills, inadequate resources, inefficient time management, unrealistic expectations, lethargic stakeholder involvement, and inexperience on the project manager’s part.2
Project managers who fail to keep their skills updated risk falling behind. In turn, those who invest in developing their project delivery leadership skills are able to future-proof their careers. Join one or more of GetSmarter’s online courses, designed by faculty and subject experts from leading universities, to keep your project management skills current. Thanks to the high quality of the project management training materials, a course in project management will help you remain relevant in a dynamic business landscape while safeguarding the success of your projects.
If you’re entering the world of project management for the first time, choose from GetSmarter’s portfolio of foundational project management courses and gain skills across the spectrum of project management. If you’re an experienced project manager, and wish to upskill, the advanced project management courses are ideal. With specializations in agile, traditional, and hybrid project management, you can curate your own learning path with a flexible online learning model.
All GetSmarter’s project management courses are accredited by the Project Management Institute and offer professional development units (PDUs) on completion to help you achieve and maintain your project management professional (PMP) credentials. These courses are ideal for professionals who serve in any project-orientated capacity (not just project management).
What is project management?
Project management is the practice of applying knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to a project’s tasks to ensure a project’s objectives are successfully achieved within the stipulated timeframe and budget.3
The project manager’s role is vital to the planning, development, monitoring, controlling, and smooth execution of projects. Responsibilities include everything from forming project teams to creating the structure and timetable of the project. Without effective project management, the risk of failure is high.4
Project management careers
The demand for project managers has always been high. However, as their role evolves in response to changes in the workplace and world, so do the skills needed to be successful in this career.5 Most project professionals transition from other business areas and gain access to a career in project management through lateral skills development.6
Project professionals typically earn above-median salaries, with the highest salaries paid to project managers in Switzerland, the United States, and Australia.7 The average South African project manager also earns three times the nation’s median salary.8 Additionally, project management practitioners in possession of PMP certification – a universally recognized qualification that indicates a certain level of skill7 – earn 22 percent higher median salaries than those without the certification.10
An experienced, well-established project manager can expect a relatively easy transition into more senior positions such as chief operating officer, where the people skills, business acumen, and assets gained in a project management career could stand them in good stead.11 Other roles include those of program manager, program director, executive manager, and portfolio director, among others. If the project manager doesn’t already have sound business management experience, developing MBA skills would be advantageous as it offers the training needed to succeed in these roles.
Skills required for a career in project management
A well-rounded set of business capabilities, people skills, and technical know-how is required if you’re interested in a project management career. Successful project managers have mastered these skills:
- Change management: The ability to help a business and its employees change from their existing state to the desired state12
- Negotiation skills: Bargaining with another party or parties to create and claim value13
- Conflict management. The ability to resolve conflict and disagreements within a team or other stakeholders14
- Effective communication: Knowing how to listen to and communicate with superiors, colleagues, and staff through written, verbal, and nonverbal communication15
- Leadership skills: Agile, inclusive leadership skills to manage a team that could be diverse, widespread, and multigenerational16
- Teamwork and collaboration: The ability to engage and collaborate with key stakeholders towards the common goal of project completion17
- Planning and strategic thinking skills: Effectively organizing and prioritizing tasks, making decisions, and monitoring costs18
Being acquainted with project management software such as Microsoft Project and Jira will help you improve the control and management of projects, and getting to grips with collaborative tools that support teamwork and project delivery will stand you in good stead.19
Ongoing project management training is an important strategy that ultimately helps to increase organizational project capabilities.20 Building these capabilities requires a commitment to continuous professional development by both the individual and the organization.
By taking one of the project management online courses on offer from GetSmarter, you’ll gain the people, process, and technical skills you need to initiate, track, manage, and implement new projects successfully. While earning PDUs, you’ll also be equipped with in-demand skills that can be used in every sector. Improve your advancement potential, secure career longevity, and validate your knowledge with a certificate from a leading institution.
Sources
1(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
2(Apr, 2020). ‘7 common reasons for project failure’. Retrieved from ProProfs Project.
3(Nd). ‘What is project management?’. Retrieved from PMI. Accessed June 8, 2020.
4Hawley, J. (Aug, 2019). ‘A project manager’s qualifications and career path’. Retrieved from Investopedia.
5(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
6(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
7(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
8(2020) ‘Average salary in South Africa 2020’. Retrieved from Salary Explorer.
9(Nd). ‘Project Management Professional (PMP)’. Retrieved from PMI. Accessed June 12, 2020.
10(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
11Hawley, J. (Aug, 2019). ‘A project manager’s qualifications and career path’. Retrieved from Investopedia.
12Heathfield, S. (Jan, 2020). ‘Change management’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
13Shonk, K. (Mar, 2020). ‘Top 10 negotiation skills you must learn to succeed’. Retrieved from Harvard.
14Doyle, A. (Jun, 2019). ‘Conflict management: Definition, skills, list, examples’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
15Doyle, A. (Nov, 2019). ‘Communication skills for workplace success’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
16Marcus, B. (May, 2019). ‘What are the most important leadership skills for the future?’. Retrieved from Forbes.
17(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
18(Dec, 2019). ‘10 project management skills for successful project managers’. Retrieved from KissFlow.
19(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
20(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
Register for a project management course
Being able to successfully complete a project on time, in scope, and within budget – the three traditional deliverables of project management – has always been in demand. However, the current speed of technological innovation, which has led to an increased desire for connection, digitization, and integration, has put an additional strain on project and program managers worldwide.
A survey of nearly 500 project management practitioners from 57 countries showed that 35 percent of organizations completed more than 50 projects with a high focus on business improvement and transformation in 2019. The increased pressure on the industry resulted in a higher global demand for people with sound project management skills. Additionally, the face of project management is shifting. The modern project manager has to operate very strategically, collaborating with business leaders, leading teams, engaging with stakeholders, and managing uncertainty. The project manager of today partners with the business as it deploys benefits that support the organization’s overarching strategy quickly and incrementally.1
The high demand for experienced project managers becomes even more apparent when one considers that organizations around the world continue to experience difficulty in delivering projects on time and within budget. This is often the result of a lack of collaboration among team members, poor conflict management skills, inadequate resources, inefficient time management, unrealistic expectations, lethargic stakeholder involvement, and inexperience on the project manager’s part.2
Project managers who fail to keep their skills updated risk falling behind. In turn, those who invest in developing their project delivery leadership skills are able to future-proof their careers. Join one or more of GetSmarter’s online courses, designed by faculty and subject experts from leading universities, to keep your project management skills current. Thanks to the high quality of the project management training materials, a course in project management will help you remain relevant in a dynamic business landscape while safeguarding the success of your projects.
If you’re entering the world of project management for the first time, choose from GetSmarter’s portfolio of foundational project management courses and gain skills across the spectrum of project management. If you’re an experienced project manager, and wish to upskill, the advanced project management courses are ideal. With specializations in agile, traditional, and hybrid project management, you can curate your own learning path with a flexible online learning model.
All GetSmarter’s project management courses are accredited by the Project Management Institute and offer professional development units (PDUs) on completion to help you achieve and maintain your project management professional (PMP) credentials. These courses are ideal for professionals who serve in any project-orientated capacity (not just project management).
What is project management?
Project management is the practice of applying knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to a project’s tasks to ensure a project’s objectives are successfully achieved within the stipulated timeframe and budget.3
The project manager’s role is vital to the planning, development, monitoring, controlling, and smooth execution of projects. Responsibilities include everything from forming project teams to creating the structure and timetable of the project. Without effective project management, the risk of failure is high.4
Project management careers
The demand for project managers has always been high. However, as their role evolves in response to changes in the workplace and world, so do the skills needed to be successful in this career.5 Most project professionals transition from other business areas and gain access to a career in project management through lateral skills development.6
Project professionals typically earn above-median salaries, with the highest salaries paid to project managers in Switzerland, the United States, and Australia.7 The average South African project manager also earns three times the nation’s median salary.8 Additionally, project management practitioners in possession of PMP certification – a universally recognized qualification that indicates a certain level of skill7 – earn 22 percent higher median salaries than those without the certification.10
An experienced, well-established project manager can expect a relatively easy transition into more senior positions such as chief operating officer, where the people skills, business acumen, and assets gained in a project management career could stand them in good stead.11 Other roles include those of program manager, program director, executive manager, and portfolio director, among others. If the project manager doesn’t already have sound business management experience, developing MBA skills would be advantageous as it offers the training needed to succeed in these roles.
Skills required for a career in project management
A well-rounded set of business capabilities, people skills, and technical know-how is required if you’re interested in a project management career. Successful project managers have mastered these skills:
- Change management: The ability to help a business and its employees change from their existing state to the desired state12
- Negotiation skills: Bargaining with another party or parties to create and claim value13
- Conflict management. The ability to resolve conflict and disagreements within a team or other stakeholders14
- Effective communication: Knowing how to listen to and communicate with superiors, colleagues, and staff through written, verbal, and nonverbal communication15
- Leadership skills: Agile, inclusive leadership skills to manage a team that could be diverse, widespread, and multigenerational16
- Teamwork and collaboration: The ability to engage and collaborate with key stakeholders towards the common goal of project completion17
- Planning and strategic thinking skills: Effectively organizing and prioritizing tasks, making decisions, and monitoring costs18
Being acquainted with project management software such as Microsoft Project and Jira will help you improve the control and management of projects, and getting to grips with collaborative tools that support teamwork and project delivery will stand you in good stead.19
Ongoing project management training is an important strategy that ultimately helps to increase organizational project capabilities.20 Building these capabilities requires a commitment to continuous professional development by both the individual and the organization.
By taking one of the project management online courses on offer from GetSmarter, you’ll gain the people, process, and technical skills you need to initiate, track, manage, and implement new projects successfully. While earning PDUs, you’ll also be equipped with in-demand skills that can be used in every sector. Improve your advancement potential, secure career longevity, and validate your knowledge with a certificate from a leading institution.
Sources
1(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
2(Apr, 2020). ‘7 common reasons for project failure’. Retrieved from ProProfs Project.
3(Nd). ‘What is project management?’. Retrieved from PMI. Accessed June 8, 2020.
4Hawley, J. (Aug, 2019). ‘A project manager’s qualifications and career path’. Retrieved from Investopedia.
5(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
6(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
7(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
8(2020) ‘Average salary in South Africa 2020’. Retrieved from Salary Explorer.
9(Nd). ‘Project Management Professional (PMP)’. Retrieved from PMI. Accessed June 12, 2020.
10(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
11Hawley, J. (Aug, 2019). ‘A project manager’s qualifications and career path’. Retrieved from Investopedia.
12Heathfield, S. (Jan, 2020). ‘Change management’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
13Shonk, K. (Mar, 2020). ‘Top 10 negotiation skills you must learn to succeed’. Retrieved from Harvard.
14Doyle, A. (Jun, 2019). ‘Conflict management: Definition, skills, list, examples’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
15Doyle, A. (Nov, 2019). ‘Communication skills for workplace success’. Retrieved from The Balance Careers.
16Marcus, B. (May, 2019). ‘What are the most important leadership skills for the future?’. Retrieved from Forbes.
17(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
18(Dec, 2019). ‘10 project management skills for successful project managers’. Retrieved from KissFlow.
19(Nov, 2019). ‘The future of project management: Global outlook 2019’. Retrieved from IPMA, KPMG and AIPM.
20(2020). ‘Earning power’. Retrieved from PMI.
