Top 13 Project Management Skills: A Beginner’s Guide

To succeed, project management professionals must bring together many moving parts and stakeholders. They need a wide variety of hard, technical and soft skills. While most project manager skills revolve around communication and organization, there are detailed technical and hard skills needed as well, relating to specific methodologies and frameworks, software and industries.

Successful project managers need a particular set of skills, acquired from various sources over their lifetime. From soft skills to detailed project management software and theory proficiency, the combination of skills is what gives you the ability to shepherd projects to a successful conclusion while meeting all required guidelines.

Essential Soft Skills for Project Managers

Some people seem wired to excel in certain ways. They have a knack for seeing easy solutions or soothing tempers in a disagreement. Soft skills build on those innate abilities and are refined over time, mostly through life experiences, although training can help some skills. If you are that person who always knows where everything is in the office (even when it is misfiled), you might be project management material.

Project management soft skills help you work better with people and pull information together.

1. Communication

Project managers act as a bridge between disparate departments and stakeholders. You must be able to facilitate teamwork between parties that may never meet, or only meet when there is an ongoing conflict. Nadege Minois, project and program manager, stresses that communication is often a primary function of project managers.

Mediating conflicts between project team members and departments with sometimes conflicting goals is necessary, but also tricky. Like most soft skills, effective communication can be taught, but some have a knack for not only communicating information effectively, but also managing emotional communication for better outcomes. For example, many projects I’ve shepherded had cross-disciplinary teams that required adjusting how certain technical tasks were explained to fit the skill set of each group.

Communication happens through many channels, including face to face, emails, phone calls, and project management software. Most of the best project management software available gives you a boost to effective communication with real-time chat tools. However, I always urge caution to avoid overreliance on real-time chat. There are times when a video call or face-to-face meeting might work best, and knowing when to change communication channels is part of effective communication.

2. Leadership

As the project manager, you are the linchpin holding everything together. Whether you are leading a large or small project management team or reporting to a program manager, you’ll need leadership skills to keep everything moving in the right direction and juggle the many different personalities involved, both on your team and with outside stakeholders.

The trickiest part of leadership and team management for a project manager is that the project sponsor is usually making the actual decisions, and you must make sure they are implemented. In many cases, you must lead without final authority over a particular part of the project.

3. Patience

Dealing with frustration is a near-constant issue for project managers, and no matter how solid your team is, some days will feel like you are trying to herd cats. Being able to remain calm while remembering everyone else is also trying to do their best isn’t just an option; it’s required for effective team management. According to Craig Park, Director of Digital Experience Design at Clark & Enersen, patience drives progress.

As a project manager, you set the tone of most discussions and interactions. Giving in to frustration only exacerbates issues and hinders finding solutions. Staying calm and behaving as a neutral mediator is important to diffuse tense situations, while becoming impatient and curt could demoralize the team and make conflicts worse.

4. Time management

Being a project manager means juggling a lot of objectives and moving parts. You’ll have to combine hard skills and technical skills like planning and forecasting, project scheduling and project management software proficiency with a knack for organizing all of your tasks to fit in an allotted time. In fact, optimizing time is vital in most cases, especially in healthcare settings, as a study from the Journal of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene demonstrates.

While multiple deadlines, stakeholder needs and budget constraints can be difficult to align, finding the time to work on all of those tasks is the first step to project success. Like many soft skills, time management is partially learned over a lifetime and partly an innate talent that helps you quickly shuffle priorities to best fit the time available while spotting potential problems ahead that may demand your time later.

For example, I learned early in my career working with industrial projects, where the want of a tiny part can bring down a plant and cost hundreds of thousands an hour, that contingency plans for a team missing a deadline were vital.

5. Organization

Time management and organization go hand in hand, but each has its own quirks. Where time management deals with having the time to do things, organization also applies to keeping track of and prioritizing all of the steps involved, along with all of the information and assets needed to complete tasks. Without organization, productivity tumbles. In fact, 20% of product managers list disorganization as the biggest productivity killer, according to the Project Management Institute.

Organization skills keep you from missing vital information or wasting time searching for a contact name and phone number. Keeping information and details logically arranged and easy to access also makes it easier for someone else to step in if you are out of the office for an extended time due to illness or injury.

6. Adaptability

Nothing is static in project management. Project management software, frameworks and scope are constantly evolving and adjusting. Being able to adapt to changes and (hopefully) enjoy an atmosphere of continual learning is a big plus for project managers. Especially as projects continue to transform and become more complex, being flexible so you can adapt is vital in modern project management environments, according to Isaac Oladipupo, product marketer of the Agile Business Consortium.

You need to be able to quickly get up to speed with new programs frequently, especially as new alternatives come into the marketplace. For example, your company might decide to move to a Trello alternative, and you need to not only quickly master the program but also help your team make the transition.

Learning and adopting new software, technology and techniques may be a hard skill, but the nimble mindset needed to gain those hard skills is adaptability and flexibility.

7. Critical thinking

Critical thinking means being able to objectively analyze a situation and make a logical decision without letting your ego influence decisions. Being able to emotionally step aside to clearly look at all sides of a situation and merge that information with hard facts to identify a useful neutral solution is a valuable talent.

As the project manager, you need to be able to make decisions quickly within an often tight set of constraints while looking ahead to see potential implications down the road. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that critical thinking is one of many essential skills for those looking to become project managers. Starting a project with clear critical thinking during the planning stage and having the flexibility to adjust as project conditions change helps you successfully hold stakeholders accountable.

Essential Hard Skills for Project Managers

Hard skills start from education, whether formal or informal. For project managers, hard skills include planning and forecasting. Especially for project management, you also need underlying industry-specific knowledge. Hard skills can be gained through on-the-job training or formal classes.

Hard skills are needed to complete specific project management tasks.

8. Reading and writing

Strong reading comprehension and the ability to effectively communicate across multiple disciplines are vital. In fact, you’ll see reading and writing called out in project management job descriptions such as this one from the Partners for Public Good. Project managers need to be able to understand received communication from one specialty and repackage that communication so team members in other departments can understand it.

Keeping everyone on the same page requires every team member to understand what page they should be on. As the project manager, you must serve as that bridge. That often means interpreting terms or jargon far outside of your skill set and then being able to effectively translate that information into something digestible for others without losing vital key points or important details along the way. Nothing can be lost in translation.

For example, when working with an international team, or even teams in different regions, understanding local idioms is important. Many times I’ve had to translate between teams things that are common phrasing for one but sound harsh to another.

9. Risk management

Accentuate the positives, as the old song says. The process of maximizing gains by minimizing the potential downsides of actions is risk management. In other words, you use your experience (and sometimes intuition) to avoid, or at least reduce, downsides from decisions.

Project managers must be cognizant of potential profit and loss from projects and decisions. However, it isn’t only your decisions but also being aware of how the decisions and actions of others involved in the project could result in losses or gains. Risk management as part of organizational awareness is considered a core competency, according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Management.

Each company and department will have different risk tolerances, and risk tolerance can vary between projects as well. Some projects may be undertaken more as experiments with less pressure to return immediate profit, while others may urgently need to profit to support the company. As the project manager, you’ll use that information in mediating decisions about project goals, timelines and allocated resources.

10. Cost management

Before a project starts, you’ll either be given a set budget or, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics outlines, asked to develop a cost estimate and present that estimate for approval. Part of a project manager’s job is to stay on top of how that budget is spent and avoid going over budget throughout the lifecycle of the project.

Cost management is part of the project management triangle, along with time and scope, that creates the boundaries of a project. You’ll sometimes hear this referred to as the triple constraint. Time, scope and cost affect each other and must be balanced for a successful project outcome.

As the project manager, you must meet all three requirements:

• Staying within budget
• Fulfilling (but not exceeding) project scope
• Finishing on time

In my experience, often there is considerable pushback from individuals who want to change the scope or costs in the middle of the project. For example, I had a team member who wanted to spend triple the agreed-upon shipping budget for a task so they could change the time constraints of another task reliant on that shipment.

11. Planning and forecasting

A key role of project managers is creating the plan for the project. You’ll develop a strategy and step-by-step plan that guides other stakeholders in what needs to be done and when. As part of that, unless your organization requires a specific method, you’ll determine which project management methodology (more on those in just a bit) is most appropriate for each project.

Project management software and tools like Gantt and PERT charts help with visual overviews of project planning. Depending on your organization, you may be given a specific software package to use, or it may be up to you to select the best Gantt chart software.

Forecasting is a vital part of planning and goes hand in hand with risk management. You must make predictions about possible and most likely project outcomes for management and sometimes C-suite leadership.

Forecasting often needs to be informed by your past project management experiences and data from past projects. Interpreting those previous results and adjusting for current conditions and the new project specifics will help you make better forecasts. However, because of industry differences and complexities, planning and forecasting training is usually part of formal project management university degrees and certificates such as Arizona State University’s Online Graduate Certificate in Project Management.

Essential Technical Skills for Project Managers

Technical skills in project management include using project management software and a deep understanding of the different project management methodologies.

Software and project management methodology proficiency are vital in project management.

12. Project management software proficiency

Project management software is a huge category, but it has made project management much easier across a diverse group of team members and stakeholders. I mentioned visual charts like Gantt charts, but project management software covers much more than just charts.

Common project management software features include real-time communication, visual representations of timelines and task management tools, along with tools that only certain members may see, like costing and forecasting. Some software is geared toward specific industries, like construction project management software.

Being proficient with a variety of popular project management software not only helps you choose the best software for project success, it helps you stay adaptable when coordinating with outside stakeholders who may use different software than your organization.

Part of the job is often explaining software to others. I’ve spent many hours over the years helping stakeholders troubleshoot software. Software proficiency is essential to staying in control of your project. In fact, data management consulting firm EWSolutions considers losing control over which software is used as a project management worst practice.

13. Project management methodology proficiency

There’s a method to the madness, as they say, and for project management, project management methodologies support project success. Project management methodologies are the overall processes, guidelines, values and principles you’ll use as a project manager. Understanding the methodologies is complex, and entire certifications, such as PRINCE2, are built around proving your proficiency in various options.

Project management methodologies generally fall into traditional methodologies (also called predictive) and agile frameworks. While the nature of project management is to be in a perpetual state of flux, there are some methodologies and frameworks that are more popular than others, and it is important to be fluent in multiple methods. There are also cases when you’ll use hybrid methods combining different ideas. The goal is to use the best fit for your project’s and organization’s needs.

Common Project Management Methods

Traditional Project Management Methodologies	Agile Project Management Frameworks
Waterfall	Kanban
PRINCE2	Scrum
Critical Path Method (CPM)	Extreme Programming (XP)

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Developing strong project management skills requires a variety of methods depending on the skill type and the opportunities within your organization.

Learning Soft Skills for Project Management

Soft skills generally start as a compilation of life and work experiences but can be bolstered with formal online or in-person training. Often, soft skills benefit most from informal training such as working with a more experienced project manager and shadowing them as an intern.

Learning Hard Skills for Project Management

Hard skills are trainable but often less industry-specific than technical skills. That means there are usually many more training options available from a more diverse set of teachers than with technical skills. However, I do urge caution in choosing your learning source. Random YouTube seminars or downloadable booklets aren’t going to be as accurate or complete as training from established educational institutions or industry organizations.

Learning Technical Skills for Project Management

Any technical project management skill can be learned through work experience, but formal training is usually readily available online as well. Often, specific project management software packages or industry organizations offer training and certifications.

Where To Find Project Management Training

When looking for project management training, consider proof of knowledge after completing a course such as diplomas, certificates or certifications. While the training itself is important, it is also important to show employers and other stakeholders verifiable evidence of skill training.

Project management online courses

Online courses come in two flavors: free and paid. Within those categories, the sources run the gamut from random YouTube videos to university-developed courses and full degree programs.

While free online project management courses are budget-friendly and convenient, they don’t always count toward required training hours for some certifications such as the PMP certification. Free courses are also often scaled-down versions of the paid online classes, and different online platforms may be viewed as more or less reputable as well.

Popular online project management training class sources include:

• University-created mass open online courses (MOOCs) such as edX and Coursera
• LinkedIn Learning

On-the-job project management training

You don’t have to be actively working as a project manager. In fact, the Project Management Institute outlines ways to pick up on-the-job project management skills before ever obtaining a project manager title. Most jobs involve some level of project management. For example, although not often called project management, many administrative assistants manage projects such as annual company events or retreats. Compare the tasks you handle with small projects to project manager tasks and start framing what you do in those terms.

If you are part of a project team, you can watch what the project manager does and ask questions to better understand the process. Not only can it help you learn more about project management, but it can also help you complete your tasks more successfully by being better attuned to the overall process.

Finally, if your current role doesn’t offer those opportunities, watch for chances to help out with projects others are working on. Like many, I started out by being dragged into projects more than volunteering, but found I liked it and later sought out more opportunities.

Certifications not only test your project management knowledge, they also help you prove to employers and other stakeholders that you know what you are talking about. Some certifications (such as those from the Project Management Institute) are often considered more credible than others. For project management, most certifications will fall under project management as a whole or agile frameworks certifications.

Project Management Certifications

There are several widely accepted project management certifications. Some, like the Project Management Professional (PMP)®, are an overarching capstone certification, and others are more focused on specific aspects of project management.

Project Management Professional (PMP)® Certification: Offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI), it covers a wide variety of skills and project management knowledge. It is the most recognized project management credential and takes time and effort to achieve. It requires years of active real-world work experience plus considerable training hours or CAPM certification.

Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM): Offered by PMI, CAPM is an entry-level project management certification that is the first step for many project managers.

Professional in Project Management (PPM): Obtained through the Global Association for Quality Management (GAQM), this certification focuses on project planning and execution.

Master Project Manager (MPM): Administered by the American Academy of Project Management (A.A.P.M.), the MPM program requires over three years of project management experience on top of in-depth project management knowledge.

Methodology and Framework Certifications

Product management certifications focus on proving in-depth knowledge of specific methodologies, frameworks and practices. While most certifications are for agile frameworks, there are some that apply to Waterfall or other methodologies.

PRINCE2 Foundational: This certification focuses on PRINCE2’s techniques, processes and terminology. It’s internationally recognized and very helpful when you want to work with a team using PRINCE2.

PRINCE2 Agile Foundation: Where the PRINCE2 Foundational certification focuses purely on the PRINCE2 methodology, the PRINCE2 Agile Foundation certification focuses on your skills in combining PRINCE2 with agile principles for a hybrid project management approach.

Certified Scrum Master (CSM): Offered by the Scrum Alliance, CSM certification is targeted at individuals working to become scrum masters. This certification reflects a deep understanding of scrum and how you can apply scrum values to projects and teams.

Professional Scrum Master (PSM): Available as a series of certifications at different levels, PSM is offered by Scrum.org to show the depth of your knowledge to apply scrum principles and lead scrum teams.

SAFe Practice Consultant: Targeted to those working with scaled agile projects, the SAFe Practice Consultant Certification focuses on concepts and tasks such as data streams, launching Agile Release Trains (ARTs), applying SAFe values to projects and launching scrum teams.

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