“Project Management is the new MBA. It’s about communication, of fully utilising every resource and ultimately delivering outcomes for the organisation. A well trained project manager gets the job done…taking a doodle on a whiteboard through to a product on the shelves”
Alistair Knapp, Director, Architecture and Design
It wasn’t long ago that the image of ‘Project Managers’ was one which was decidedly dowdy… of cardigan wearing backroom operators, hunched over GANTT charts and kept well away from the more glamorous areas such as marketing or HRM.
How times change! Nowadays, Project Management is seen as a fast track up the career ladder, with demand for qualified practitioners far exceeding supply and salaries on an upward spiral. Even in an employment market heavily impacted by COVID-19, a recent search on Seek.com.au showed more than 21,000 jobs related to the words ‘project management’. Seek reports an average salary of $130,000/annum, and an expected 6.5% growth in positions through to 2024.
Learning how to effectively manage a project is becoming seen as an essential and transferable skill, and is becoming increasingly in-demand across a wide range of industries. Your knowledge of project management means that your employer can look to you to be part of, or deliver, the various workplace projects that are necessary in organisations.
It’s the transferability of skills that is driving the boom in project management study. Project managers are required in the vast majority of workplaces, including in the Government sector and small-to-medium enterprises. Although quite common in the IT field, project-oriented work is also common in the business service, oil and gas, finance and insurance, manufacturing, construction and utility sectors—all over the world. A career in project management could take you anywhere, including the capacity to work as a consultant and be your own boss.
Project management is a skill that enables you to operate at a higher level, as it incorporates so many of the key aspects of teamwork and leadership. Being able to effectively organise and carry out high level projects and holding qualifications in this area can help you advance your career, to the point that many organisations consider project management to be CEO training. Both roles have similar challenges and requirements: working with and for investors, project teams and clients—as well as dealing with many of the same pressures and financial restraints.
If this is of interest to you, you may want to consider Lexis Training’s BSB41514 Diploma of Project Management. This course develops the skills and knowledge to lead a project from conception to completion, encapsulating skills including budget setting, progress tracking, managing development, leading communications and providing inspirational and effective team leadership.