Any project like development of a website, mobile app, online platform or something else, is created thanks to the efforts of an entire team. Each team member is an expert in their field and handles their own tasks. The main role, in this case, is assigned to the project manager – the key person who takes overall responsibility for the project. PM organizes the work of project members, ensures productive interaction between the development department and the client, monitors compliance with deadlines and anticipates possible outcomes of the project.
Learn everything about working as a Project Manager in the first person: read the interview with our Project Manager, Darya Mantsevich.
Hello, Dasha!
Today we wanted to raise an up-to-date topic: project management. We’re interested to hear your attitude to the profession and history from personal experience.
Please describe your typical working day, what does it consist of?
To begin with, record all your tasks for the day so as not to keep anything in your head. It’s a crucial part of the day, because if you don’t write it down, you can lose or miss something.
Next, I distribute tasks by priority. Time management is one of the most important skills for this position, as it seems to me. I definitely check instant messengers and email. In the morning I need to sort out messages from customers and the team.
My advice – don’t forget to check your Google Calendar in terms of scheduled meetings!
More detailed overview of the Project Manager profession can be found in the article “Top 8 Project Manager Skills: hard and soft skills to put in your resume”.
Why do you love this job? Why project management?
At some point while working in a similar position, I realized that I could easily find a common language with development teams. Of course, there are also complex cases, but this only makes it more fascinating. We are all different so I need to build the right communication with each member, find an approach and motivate.
Also, teamwork inspires me. By working together, we unleash the potential of the project and the team to the fullest extent.
And my favorite thing is the variety of tasks. You won’t get bored here, *laughs*. New cases always appear, different clients, requests, and specialists meet.
What personal qualities does this job require from you? What would definitely be difficult without?
Of course, these are stress resistance, time management, communication skills, the ability to work in a team, responsibility, intelligence, organization, strategic thinking and determination. In fact, these are only some of the important qualities, in my opinion.
In this position, it will also be useful to have leadership and determination.
Could you say that you would become a Project Manager at the beginning of your career path?
Without any goal and effort put into it, nothing would have happened. But, I had a desire to develop my abilities in this direction. While still working in a related field, I wanted to try myself in this position, because I felt like I would like it.
Tell us, what demotivates you the most about being a PM? Do you have any personal life hacks for dealing with this?
There are various difficult situations that can snowball at one moment, and, of course, all of this takes a lot of energy.
At the beginning of my journey, I took all of that closely to my heart, but over time I began to approach situations with a cool mind and perceive information more calmly. I am reassured by the thought that since this has happened before and everything was resolved, then it will be resolved now.
For myself, I realized that all such cases should be taken as a useful experience. So, I guess it’s also important for a PM to be fastidious.
Whose side should the project manager be on – more on the client’s side or the team’s at critical moments? Did you have any internal contradictions in this regard?
This is a very interesting question (a smiley face here). My actions in critical situations are as follows: I always put myself in the shoes of the team and try to understand the reason for the incident and, of course, in the shoes of the client in order to understand his complaints and feelings.
It is important for me to communicate with the team and understand the situation. And then communicate with the client to fully analyze everything and make a decision that will be optimal for both parties.
What career paths are there for PMs?
There are quite a lot of them, from this position you can grow further, for starters, this is obvious growth: junior – middle – senior PM. You can further grow into PMO or Head of Project. Often, Projects move to the position of Product Manager. If you like to work more with a team, then there is an opportunity to develop into the position of Scrum Master. There is also such an option as Delivery Manager.
What do you see as your mission, your role in the company?
I like to use my skills and knowledge in working with clients, smoothing out controversial situations and bringing value to the company. Essentially, a Project Manager is a coordinator who provides communication between all project participants and ensures that everything is moving towards a common goal.
My task is to correctly process and convey information, monitor the productivity of developers, and make decisions based on the opinions of the customer and the team.
A very underrated benefit of a good PM is the ability to maintain team spirit and help everyone on the project feel important. With this approach, the company will have more long-term projects and mutually beneficial cooperation.