PM Job Growth

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Permalink Reply by StageCoach on June 15, 2008 at 9:10am

What is your market where there is PM growth, and what is the source of the chart?

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Permalink Reply by Miles on June 15, 2008 at 9:14am

Connecticut... The source is from Indeed.com. It is not exactly scientific, but should represent a general trend pretty well.

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Permalink Reply by Tracy Shaw on June 15, 2008 at 9:48am

For me, I've seen a huge decline in the demand for Project Management. I left the land development industry over 6 months ago (after being in the industry for over 20 years) and moved to mechanical/entertainment. Obviously, my situation was due to the decline of the economy, but I also saw a lack of hiring because company's didn't want to spend the money along with a lack of confidence for the future. I do believe these Project Managment positions are being absorbed by others.

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Permalink Reply by Timika Pollack on June 15, 2008 at 10:29am

I agree with Tracy - the role must be going through an absorption by other roles which, in my opinion, can be an easy (not necessarily fair) option for companies to do. I think companies are always thinking of ways to maximize, or even over-utilize, their employees. I once worked in one role but had the working responsibilities of project manager. However, I could be pulled into other activities at anytime based on what I was originally hired too. Another point for analyzing a bona fide trend of decline would have to be the industry. I'm more familiar with the pharmaceutical, or health research, side. Would be very interested in hearing comments from folks also in that area.

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Permalink Reply by StageCoach on June 15, 2008 at 11:19am

To coin a phrase from the popular classic song "these jobs are goin' boys, and they aint coming back". American business has figured out that the PM is a role and not a position. I have been working as a consultant, engineer and PM in the IT and internet business since the mid eighties and I am seeing the dedicated PM role being morphed into a customer service role that is being taken over by other technical or management staff. It seems that the quality we provide is less of a concern to business than our costs. The dedicated PM is just one more job that can be eliminated as American business cuts back on staffing and projects.

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Permalink Reply by Gus W. Mehilos on June 15, 2008 at 12:08pm

Miles, it's my perception demand for formal project management continues to grow significantly regardless of the economy. So the "Job Trend" chart surprised me. The theory that IT PM activities are being absorbed into other position titles makes sense.

It's interesting considering IT managers with other position titles typically managed projects, years ago. Starting with my first IT manager position in 1979, I always had a combination of project and operational responsibilities, but mostly project. I didn't have a project manager title until 2004 when I went into contracting.

Maybe the recent demand for formal PMI practices caused the Project Manager title to crystalize. Maybe the "re-absorbtion" of project management activies back to mainstream IT managers is a sign PM maturity. Many companies have developed programs to train their IT managers to be PMP's. In my experience, those managers continue to have a similar mixture of project and operational responsibilities that I had.

Miles, thank you for your observation. It makes me wonder what the impact might be for the future demand/rates for contract (specialized) Project Managers.

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Permalink Reply by Ray Stanley on June 16, 2008 at 1:41pm

In the IT field, I'm finding that my clients expect more than just PM skills. My clients are demanding that their PMs are not only PMP certified, but also able to perform Business Analysis, BA documentation, and a lot of database/web design (design, not development). It works great for me as I was a "techie" first and then migrated into PM, however, when interviewing for other PMs at my current client, it is difficult to find people who can cross over and perform in all of the areas required.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Janke on September 10, 2008 at 7:44am

I sure would like to know where these positions are going. One year ago my phone was ringing weekly for a potential job placement. Now that I have taken the time to get the PMP certificate I can't find a job, in Nashville.

What seems to be happening from my perspective is that the PM role is becoming very specialized. They are asking for qualifications that makes it sound that they are looking for an advanced MCSE that can, also, do project management.

I've recently lost out on positions that were database administrators wrapped up in a project manager's title. Some mid-market companies are trying to get the responsibilities and abilities diluted with other skills.

Furthermore, recruiters are taking advantage of this market situation. I have seen firms drop rates to below $45.00 saying that, "It's all the client will pay." Who knows the truth behind that story?

On the bright side, the minority of large companies that have made a commitment to PMO's and PMP's seem to be holding fast to their commitments.

In closing, I am PMP certified, have earned a Masters Certification in IS/IT PM from Villanova and have 9 years if IS/IT project management experience. I have been working 3 to 4 hours A DAY trying to find a long-term position. One year ago I wouldn't have had any problems.

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Permalink Reply by Alessandro Miodini on September 12, 2008 at 4:47am

Hi all,
here in Ireland, in the IT field, I see two trends.
Small companies tend to cut the PM role, letting it be absorbed by more technical roles, like Solution Architect. The PM is seen as a non value adding cost ("clients won't pay for that role", they say). Then the projects end up being late or overspending because the "PMs" do not document or track the project (but this is another story...).
I also think they don't have the mindset for the PM role.
Besides, they come from a situation in which money literally fell from the sky, why worry about overspending when clients payed so much?

On the opposite, big companies (Microsoft, Google, the telecoms) have a huge demand for project managers, experienced or not.
All multinational companies care about Project Management, there is where the PM jobs still are.

Cheers.

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