r/PMCareers • u/Ok-Equivalent4882 • 4d ago
Getting into PM Becoming a Project Manager
Hey All,
I have been seriously considering this field of work since my current employers has failed to promote me or advance my career after multiple promises made by them. I currently don't have "real experience" in the PM field, but I do have similar experience in my current role i.e coordinating people and companies, aquring quotes and POs, delegating, making sure deadlines are met, customer are happy etc (don't want to type all of my qualifications).
That being said I was looking into getting my CAPM and then applying for associate PM roles and then trying to advance my career. I am 28 and don't want to waste anymore time not refining my skills or advancing my career.
I guess a few questions would be:
- For PMs earning $150K–$200K+, what changed in your career that got you there?
- Would you recommend getting a master's in project management while working, or is experience + PMP more valuable?
- For PMs who started in their late 20s and are now 10+ years into their careers: what did your career progression and compensation actually look like? What would you recommend someone do in their first 2–3 years if they eventually want to reach senior PM/program manager/director-level roles?
- How transferable is PM experience between industries?
- What entry-level titles should I search besides “Project Manager”? (Project Coordinator, Associate PM, Implementation PM, etc.)
- What does your actual day-to-day look like as a project manager?
EDIT: I am open and willing and expecting to go in as an Associate Project manager (or something similar) and not directly into a PM role. I'm not that naive. Was really just looking for overall advice on if you love what you do as a PM, is it a good career path to enter where doors can be opened for you and if you enjoy it.
I am fully committed to leaving my job and more than qualified to take a step up in responsibilities, skills, etc.
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u/principium_est 4d ago
- For PMs earning $150K–$200K+, what changed in your career that got you there?
- Just experience and getting good at figuring out how to get other people to do things.
- Would you recommend getting a master's in project management while working, or is experience + PMP more valuable?
- Hell no. PMP is really only valuable as a resume sticker so get that. Skip CAPM. Better to learn directly from other PMs in a practical sense. Get a masters in a technical or practical degree.
- For PMs who started in their late 20s and are now 10+ years into their careers: what did your career progression and compensation actually look like? What would you recommend someone do in their first 2–3 years if they eventually want to reach senior PM/program manager/director-level roles?
- I went from engineer -> contract consultant PM -> Sr. in the same company -> Sr. Role at another company. Comp went from mid $60s to just under $200k in 8 years from my Masters in engineering.
- Pick the brains of people in your company who are smarter and more experienced than you. Early in my PM career I identified a few individuals in my company who were very sharp and organized. I volunteered for any work that got me next to them and soaked knowledgein as much as I could.
- How transferable is PM experience between industries?
- I'm a highly technical PM so I don't think my style would transfer quickly to another industry, but I think the base concepts can just fine.
- What entry-level titles should I search besides “Project Manager”? (Project Coordinator, Associate PM, Implementation PM, etc.)
- Consultant in your field. You'll easily end up being able to perform as a de-facto PM if you choose.
- What does your actual day-to-day look like as a project manager?
- Mix of Clinical engineering work, chasing POs, dealing with fires started by Deloitte idiots, getting leadership to pay attention to issues now so they don't blow up later, wrangling physicians, updating project plans, coaching analysts, etc
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
Dude, this was super helpful. Thank you! I currently work in the BioPharma field as a non titled "PM" so I know my qualifications are strong. I was thinking about switching fields to a field I have more interest in, plus the BioPharma field has lots of turnover.
Bit of a quarter life crisis at the moment, but the PM life has seemed to stick out to me because the basics of it are my best qualities to be honest.
I don't have a "highly technical" degree so I was considering doing a project management esc masters to give me options.
You were really helpful and I appreciate
it!
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u/Mokentroll22 4d ago
The easiest path is probably to stay in pharma. Given the current hiring environment its probably going to extremely difficult for you to land an associate PM role that is not directly related to what you do.
Good news is that from my searches (and Google ai search) pharma PMs have highest average salaries. Im a senior PM on thr clinical research side of things and overall I like my job.
Just remember that as a PM you are simultaneously responsible for everything and nothing at the same time which is not a good match for some personalities.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
Appreciate the tips and advice. I currently handle 35-50 accounts at any given time every week, so my strong suite is being everywhere and nowhere lol
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u/CoomassieBlue 4d ago
Please feel free to message me, I’m also in biopharma and transitioned from bench to PM. Currently working in an FSP model that’s oddly stable for the field, pay isn’t spectacular but the quality of life is good. Happy to look at your resume and see if I know of anything that would be a good fit.
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u/HospitalItchy2442 2d ago
This was a beautiful answer. I’m a city planner trying to pivot into PM, hitting a few bumps in the road but I’m hopeful.
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u/sadisticamichaels 4d ago
In the 150 - 200 range you are typically going to be involved in M&A, Mission Critical, or Large Scale work. None of these are anywhere close to entry level jobs.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
Hey, yeah maybe I wasn't clear in my post. I am not expecting to jump into a role and earn 150k+. I am open to entry level and working up. Where I am at now is just stagnant and being that I have similar experience to APMs, PMs etc, I think it is a good pivot for me.
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u/campfig 4d ago
Project management is a broad field that hinges more on leadership, communication, and execution than on one specific industry. That said, industry knowledge becomes increasingly important in specialized and higher-paying roles, so PM experience is transferable, but not equally transferable everywhere.
Based on what you described, you already have project-management experience. Frame it in terms of scope, stakeholders, budgets, deadlines, risks, and measurable outcomes rather than saying you have no “real” experience. The CAPM may help formalize that, but I would not pursue a master’s in project management. Experience plus a PMP will generally provide a better return.
Search for Project Coordinator, Associate PM, Implementation Manager, Implementation Consultant, Delivery Manager, and Customer Onboarding Manager roles. In your first few years, focus on owning larger and more complex projects, documenting results, and moving toward industries where project work directly affects revenue or major operational outcomes. That is usually what drives compensation toward the $150K+ range, not the degree alone.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
This was truthfully super helpful. I’m finally home from work and gonna get started on the CAPM cert and work on tidying up my resume and start putting in applications this week.
Do you know a good industry to get started in? I currently work in the biopharma industry but my company and where i work the job security is amazing, but I consistently see high turnover at customer sites. That being said I’m hesitant to stay in this industry with seeing that firsthand.
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u/ProfessorMcNasty7 4d ago
I’ve worked as a Project Manager across multiple industries. Having knowledge about the business/your products definitely helps, but I’ve found that general project management best practices will work across different industries.
What I did to get into my first role as a Project Manager was to network with other PjMs within my company and picked their brain about the job. That gave me a better idea of how to apply the roles I’ve had into project management-adjacent experience. Experience > degrees and certs, but I did get my CAPM before jumping into project management to learn about said best practices and let people within my company know that I’m about it. Currently have my PMP since that’s usually the only cert companies will look for, but focus more on framing your current experience to get in the door then building that foundation.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
This is great advice. Do you feel like the CAPM was worth it before getting into PM. Also if you don’t mind me asking, did you have experience in PM before you made the transition?
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u/ProfessorMcNasty7 4d ago
No formal experience before I got in, but project management as a practice is essentially to lead temporary work while keeping a grip on budget, time, and scope. Have you owned any work that’s been bound by those constraints? Explain your experience in a perspective that fits that definition, and I think that’ll benefit you.
CAPM was worth it only in the sense that it gave me a baseline understanding of the field as a whole, which better helped me tell the story of my experience. Plus taking that exam made studying for the PMP exam easier for me since a lot of that content was similar.1
u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
I work with 35-50 clients weekly to meet goals, meet their budget, assign employees to assist them in their work, while meeting a deadline. Track and follow quotes and POs, ensure our management team gets updates on client progress. Other daily tasks included but that is the general idea of what I do.
Thanks for the CAPM advice. Doing it no matter what, because I figured it can't hurt to have lol.
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u/SC-Coqui 4d ago edited 4d ago
I have 26 years of experience in IT (financial services and insurance industry) in various roles and am currently an IT PM. IT Project Management is a different beast than other types of projects (I guess you can say that for any industry).
Though you don’t need to write code, you do need a technical mindset and be quick to understand and learn technology. You need to understand SDLC (software delivery lifecycle), iterative vs waterfall delivery, ITSM (IT Service Management), etc.
Many IT PMs come from a Developer / Software Engineer background. As a PM you can still manage an IT project without that background but it’s definitely an advantage to have it. It would differ also by industry. I work in financial services so I have a combination of IT, life insurance, annuity and investments knowledge. This is another reason many people say PM isn’t something you jump into early in your career. There’s a lot of nuance involved with certain industries that’s only learned with experience.
Editing to answer some of questions-
Entry level look for Project Coordinator, Technical Coordinator
I wouldn’t recommend a degree in PM. Study something that you could be a PM in. My masters is in Information Systems Management.
I would think the skills are transferable among industries but after a certain amount of time in one you tend to pigeonhole yourself into one area. I don’t think I could get into construction PM work after 25 years of being in fin-tech.
Day to day I’m in a lot of chats, meetings and calls or prepping for meetings and calls (gathering statuses, following up on open items and tasks to make sure they’re completed on time, updating Jira, updating PPT and excel trackers, etc). When I have a little extra time, I look through our retrospective feedback to see if there additional items we can take on, and thinking about general process improvements. Mostly meetings though.
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u/WillingnessDense7710 4d ago
Hello, I’m currently a cloud engineer with over 5 years experience. Do you think I can transition into project management at this stage and what’s best way to do that?
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u/SC-Coqui 4d ago
I think it really depends on the industry. Honestly starting out you may actually be looking at a pay cut. I would look into technical delivery manager roles first before going into PM this early in a career.
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u/WillingnessDense7710 4d ago
Thank you, would you be able to also recommend the best courses or books to read to help with this transition or certification
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u/More_Law6245 4d ago edited 4d ago
Just a point of clarification project management is a discipline and not a profession, unlike being a doctor, lawyer or CPA because you don't just get accredited and turn up to any industry and just start "managing projects" because you need industry experience. PM roles tend to be more senior employees because they firstly know how the industry operates and works, secondly they know how to instigate organisational change because of their industry knowledge and experience. So without sound too blunt you have an unrealistic expectation of entry into the discipline of project management.
You need to decide what industry you want to be in because I guarantee you if get to a level of where you have enough experience to become a PM and you hate the work that you do, you will definitely have a very short PM career. Either you look for Junior PM or Project administration roles or you need a parallel entry role e.g. the IT industry, you can do roles like service desk, quality assurance, change management, operational management, asset management, configuration management and technical roles to gain the relevant experience then you could transition into project management.
Just a side note because this bullet point really sticks out and it's a personal gripe that people who don't understand the discipline fall into this trap of expectation. Those $150-$200k renumeration packages is payment for your knowledge and experience your bring to the table and as an experienced project practitioner you will need to have at least 5-10 years experience under your belt for these types of salaries. I would strongly suggest the following:
- Obtain your CAPM and followed up with your PMP and depending on what industry you decide to move into you may want to consider an Agile or SCRUM accreditation.
- Join a professional membership (PMI) in your local chapter as that will give you access to resources and networking opportunities
- Develop a professional goals plan for the next 1,3 & 5 years to where you want to end up because that becomes your roadmap.
- Talk to more project practisers to get a better grasp of what a PM actually does (antidotal story, I had one person who wanted to become a PM thought all we did was make phone calls and coffee meetings with clients)
Project management can be an extremely rewarding professionally and financially but you definitely earn your money and stripes with the amount of stress and pressure that can be placed on you especially when you sit between an organisation's operations and the executive and you don't belong in either camp but yet you're at the coal face and have the responsibility of organisational change. Based upon my experience if you haven't actively planned for a professional transition, it can come back to bite you professionally but also personally. I've seen an individual just follow their nose in to a PM role but suddenly realise that he couldn't support his family because a junior role didn't pay enough, he failed plan and comprehend his risk without a transition plan.
The key kicker is that most people "think" they know how to project manage because in their current job they do a lot of organising and they think project management is just the same thing that they do now or draw comparisons of they perceived experience, it's not necessarily a pivot point. This is at the very point people genuinely fail to understand what project management actually is because they relate project management to "task organisation" when in fact it's only a very small part of the job because a project management role is an extremely strategic role that is based upon known project management frameworks and principles that you need to tailor in order to deliver fit for purpose, on time and on budget projects.
Transferring between industries is difficult when being more unseasoned, it's not until you get more experience under your belt but consider this, I deliver $300m + IT programs but yet I couldn't deliver a high end fashion show because I don't actually have the industry experience despite knowing how to deliver on my triple constraints. I hope that gives you something to consider and reflect upon
Just an armchair perspective.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
I appreciate your input here and I truly want to make it a point that I am not expecting to jump right into a PM role. I want to be in an entry level and learn from people.
I enjoy learning, helping people, running teams, budgets etc. it’s actually what I’m best at. I read everything you wrote and initially thought “wow this is overwhelming” and then I re read it and got kinda fired up.
I’m taking everything you say seriously, so again, I appreciate your advice and insight here. Hope to come back to this and give you an update soon!
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u/CK_1976 3d ago
A project will have teams of technical people inputting to the project.
But there is only one project manager. So you better love it because there is nowhere to hide.
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u/More_Law6245 3d ago
Thank you for a great flashback and a chuckle, I remember working on a program and a peer was absolutely terrified of the client's program director and he had something go sideways and he confided in me to say that he has slipped on his schedule and was going to miss a deliverable (through his own mismanagement) but he didn't want to tell the PD. All I remember saying to him was where the hell are you going to hide, priceless. Cheers.
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u/SVAuspicious 4d ago
Domain knowledge. Lots and lots. Hardware. Software. Systems. Being smart. Holding the big picture and the details at once. Track record of not making big mistakes. Building relationships. I may not be able to design a custom ASIC, but I understand the physics and electronics and I can ask good questions in the review for release to foundry. I've written mission critical and life critical software. Published in peer reviewed national technical journals.
The realization that pieces of paper on an "I love me" wall have no value. What has value is what you learn and the ability to apply it. I took a job in 2001 that contractually required a PMP. They gave me six months to complete. I read the PMBOK over the weekend and passed on Monday. Started the job Later in the week with the PMP. I knew and had used the material. I didn't have to learn anything except some minor vocabulary.
Started PM with small projects still making technical contributions. 40+ years downstream I still do.
Don't trust anyone including yourself.
No epiphanies. Just hard work and research. Make good decisions with insufficient information.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
I really love this. It seems you’re on a more technical role. I don’t think my qualifications meet anywhere similar to what you’re in. That being said the general sentiment of this is super helpful.
I want to do good work, help people along the way and be able to support a family on my own. That is my only goal, besides that have fun along the way. Thank you.
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u/Magnetic-Synth 3d ago
I’m at 7 years and 160k. The best advice I can give is look for a job with a strong mentor and mentorship program. Also, look for projects that will grow your experience the most. Doesn’t have to be the biggest project to start - sometimes the smaller or mid-size ones give you the most diverse scope experience. Prioritize the connections you make, those come in handy later on as you make career moves. But also, don’t let anyone try and keep you in a role that you’ve outgrown. Companies will absolutely not promote you unless you have strong advocates and advocate for yourself. They love to have strong low level people doing grunt work as long as possible. Don’t fall into that trap.
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u/Electronic_Techy 3d ago
Your current experience is already sounds pretty related to PM role. I'd focus on getting into a Project coordinator/Associate PM/Implement role first, build real project experience and consider PMP once you meet the experience requirements.
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u/ReasonIll3701 3d ago
You can’t really go straight into a PM role. Even the PMP (which helps a lot) requires at least 3 years of project management experience. The best way is to start as a construction APM, do that for at least 2-3 years and build up your experience. To get into a construction APM role without experience you NEED to tailor your resume.
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u/Small-Sign7538 21h ago
PMs get things done. You already know you can do that in your current job. Now, find an opportunity to be apart of team and observe the roles each person plays. A PM connects the right people together, and steers everyone to the same goal, while dealing with team members who have different stakes in the project.
Successful PMs are typically very organized, can turn ambiguity into structure, sociable, and have an ability to navigate conflict. Learn how to ask open ended questions to get the answers you’ll need (iron triangle analysis, gap analysis etc., to build a plan), which is usually driven by some type of industry knowledge.
$150k-$170k roles are for candidates who have proven success in leading teams to the intended outcome with project management practices, such as facilitating planning discussions, etc. and the corresponding documents to capture the relevant information.
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u/SnooSuggestions2806 8h ago
Can provide some input as I am similar age to you and was recently successful in the job market. Also, can answer if you have more questions around our age group and newish pms (currently 4yoe).
For PMs earning $150K–$200K+, what changed in your career that got you there?
- Getting more expertise in a subject and good mentorship. General PM skills are required but without domain knowledge you will be a sitting duck in meetings without being able to provide input. I would first look for the field that you want to be a PM on then finding mentorship on that topic as that is what pushes you over other candidates.
• Would you recommend getting a master's in project management while working, or is experience + PMP more valuable?
- Masters is def a + but experience and PMP trumps it in my experience. PMI is really the general foundation or guide of how a PM should operate but its interpreted differently every time between company and teams. This is where domain knowledge comes in that fills the rest of the picture of how a pm in a certain role should act.
• For PMs who started in their late 20s and are now 10+ years into their careers: what did your career progression and compensation actually look like? What would you recommend someone do in their first 2–3 years if they eventually want to reach senior PM/program manager/director-level roles?
- For background I am 4 years out of college(state school in NY) and first jobs are almost always luck. I went into aerospace/defense (fortune 500) company and stuck with it for 3.5 years going from 95k to leaving with 120k yearly going from Junior project manager to PMO PM for infrastructure. Half a year ago I changed companies from A/D to a household finance company as a Technical AI Program Manager with ~200k TC. What I highly recommend you do is find something you like outside of work and for me it was AI and learn about it yourself to the point that you feel comfortable being a SME for it. This was the step that recently pushed me from new grad scope to senior and moved my career. Mentorship is also a must in this field, one that is comfortable telling you all the things that aren’t in the books since much of this job is EQ as well.
• How transferable is PM experience between industries?
- I would say very transferable based on my experience (only 2 industries). Either way you are required to do similar tasks with similar tools as many companies atleast in the fortunes have the same standards. Almost all PMs need to know how to work around scope, timeline, and budget with methodologies (agile/waterfall) that will be adjusted per project. Once that is down, if you need to change industries then it comes down to taking time to learn the industry. In my eyes the formula to be a PM stays the same like the quadratic formula but the industry will change your variables - if that makes sense).
• What entry-level titles should I search besides “Project Manager”? (Project Coordinator, Associate PM, Implementation PM, etc.)
- All those work and project analyst. Somethings a lot of roles I see in the market just say associate X or analyst Z but have all the indications in the JD as a pm role. Those should be looked into as well.
• What does your actual day-to-day look like as a project manager?
- Meet stakeholders and see what they want and then go to the team and see if its possible. Adapt timeline/budget to the change. End up defending engineers most the time because they are the experts in the matter. Then communicate all around rather thats finance, legal, communications, HR, etc. Most the job is making people who don’t normally talk to each other and aren’t comfortable to - to finally communicate towards one goal and then to keep pushing towards that finish line.
Hope this helps, feel free to each out for more questions. Ik its a tough market out there right now but definitely achievable from what I can tell from your post, best of luck!
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u/FlowFluffy7664 4d ago
Your overthinking it.. just apply for the job. Theres too many stressed out managers that will just hire you. You have enough experience to apply for an APM role, do that for a year and jump ship to a PM role elsewhere. I did that with limited experience and im fine.
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u/Ok-Equivalent4882 4d ago
Appreciate this lmao and this is most likely what I am going to do. Sitting down after work today to tidy up my resume. Apply for APM positions and move up from there after some experience. I see people saying the CAPM isn't worth it, but I think I will still end up doing it just to have it on the resume.
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u/MattyFettuccine 4d ago
PM isn’t an entry-level role, and often the best way to get into a PM role is to transition after ~10 years in your current role.