What is a project manager?

A project manager is a person who has overall responsibility for the successful initiation, planning, design, execution, monitoring, control, and finalising of a project. Construction, petrochemicals, architecture, technology, and many different industries that produce products and services use this job title.

If you're considering a career in project management, chances are you're curious about the different roles and responsibilities you'll have after finishing your Master in Project Management.

In this post, we'll take a closer look at what a project manager does, including the roles and responsibilities of a project manager, and the necessary skills you’ll need.

What does a project manager do?

In the broadest sense, project managers (PMs) have the responsibility of planning, organising, and directing the completion of specific projects for an organisation. They must make sure these projects are done on schedule, on budget, and within scope.

By overseeing complex projects from inception to completion, project managers can change the trajectory of an organisation, helping to reduce costs, increase business efficiency, and increase revenue as well.

The exact duties of a project manager depend on the industry, organisation, and types of projects a PM must oversee. But in general, they all share similar responsibilities. It consists of five phases of the “project life cycle”:

• Starting
• Planning
• Execution
• Monitoring and control
• Closure

Let’s see what each phase consists of:

• Starting: PMs begin each new project by defining the main objectives, its purpose and its scope. They also identify key internal and external stakeholders, discuss shared expectations, and obtain necessary clearance to move a project forward.
• Planning: Once the project is approved, project managers work with the teams involved to create an integrated project plan focused on achieving the goals. The plan established during this process helps to monitor scope, cost, timelines, risks, quality issues, and communications.
• Execution: During this phase, team members complete the work that has been identified in the project plan to achieve the goals. The role of the project manager is to assign this work and ensure that the tasks are completed on schedule.
• Monitoring and control: In reality, this phase begins at the beginning of a project and continues through planning, execution and closure. In the monitoring and control phase, the project manager must track the progress of a project, manage the budget, ensure that key milestones are reached, compare actual performance with planned performance.
• Closing: During this phase, PMs strive to ensure that all activities necessary to achieve the end result is achieved and completed.

What are project management skills?

A project manager is, by definition, a leader, so some basic leadership skills can be beneficial, not just in getting a job, but in successfully completing a project.

Below we explain some of the most necessary skills, something that you can develop with the Master in Architecture in Madrid, for example.

• Leadership skills: You will be in charge of numerous people who fill various roles on your project team. Leading a successful team means negotiating when there are disagreements and conflicts and staying on top of communications at all times.
• Ability to think about the future: a project is a living being that constantly evolves towards its completion. It is important to plan for what might happen later how to manage what is happening now.
• Money Management Skills: Knowing how to finance a big project, from salaries to supplies to unexpected cash emergencies, is critical.
• Writing skills: A project must be documented from start to finish, in clear and concise language.

We hope this post helps clarify any doubts you have about the role of a project manager. The role does, of course, vary depending on the sector you are in. At Universidad Europea, our academic model is based on experiential learning, so throughout your programme, you will be able to take part in work placements in organisations across different industries and sectors and see for yourself what project managers do in each one.