Project Management

[Forthegloryofmerlin]

How do you get your first project management role when all the job postings seem want many years of PM experience?
I manage v small projects and support larger ones currently but have no budget responsibilities and my job title wouldn't be suggestive of any kind of project work as it's typically a clinical role. I'm currently doing project management courses on LinkedIn learning but can't afford £460 to take my PRINCE2 exam at the moment.
Any tips or advice for how to get my foot in the door? Thanks

Ooh, interested in this too as I'm in a similar position.

Look for assistant PM roles or project administrator roles in companies that will pay for the qualification for you

Think about how you write your CV. It sounds as if you do have relevant experience-perhaps you're not recognising it because of the job title?
Be warned though, it's an increasingly competitive field-it's on the surface an easy area to target when a company is looking for things to cut. My dd managed a team of 4 last year-it's been cut to 2....

I'm not a project manager, so this might not help much, but in my company without experience, you would generally start as a junior project manager or project coordinator working on smaller projects first. You would then be expected to study for your Prince exam (which my company would pay for) and pass this before progressing to Project Manager.

Thank you @GoodChat and @DrCharlotteKing just had a look at those roles a lot seem to want a PM qualification too even when calling the role entry level. Is it quite easy/quick to move up to PM from those positions? They are a substantial paycut, 20k less than current salary.

They will be a huge pay cut because they're low level roles presumably in comparison to what you already do. Administrator and coordinator roles are easy to progress from in the right company.

Is there any potential for movement within your current organisation?

@GoodChat
I have been waiting a year or so to see if any clinical project managers leave so that I could apply but it's such a nice company and so flexible that none of them seem in danger of quitting.

Will your company pay for you to do the qualification?

It's worth asking the question. You will need to stay for a couple of years afterwards probably but at least it'll get you qualified and get your name in the mix for when others get promoted or retire etc

@GoodChat
No I got to do a one day course but they won't fund any further apart from LinkedIn learning which we get free but is probably worse than useless on a CV.
Even the current lead PM doesn't actually have a qualification so I don't think they'd see a business need. Maybe I just have to suck it up and find the money somehow to do the first part of PRINCE2.

I have just seen a few volunteer project coordinator roles for a day a week (I'm currently PT) maybe that would be helpful to gain experience.

Experience is always more important than a PM qualification. There is only so much you can be taught. The best way to learn is to find out the hard way as that's usually an experience you won't forget 😂and/or learn from more experienced project / programme managers. One of the key skills you need to acquire is anticipating things so you can manage them before there's even a sniff they might become an issue.

I'd suggest trying to get more involved in the bigger projects that you say you currently support and see if there's scope for you to take on more responsibility (if you prove yourself adept).

A lot of people think project management is easy. It's not. A good project manager is worth their weight in gold. You may never realise how good they are until they're not around and everything that seemed effortless suddenly falls apart.

Thank you, at the moment I can only really be a support for PMs and take on small projects. The large projects are more along the lines of sections of clinical trials and all work is delegated in an extremely structured and rigid way. The PMs have kindly been letting me shadow them. I'd ideally like to be involved in more general project management. I have seen a volunteer project coordinator role with a charity for a day a week, maybe I'd be able to get more experience to pad my CV that way.

I get what you’re saying about project management. It can be an actual juggling act. I’ve found that Agile is super helpful in keeping things flexible and on track. It allows teams to adapt quickly, a lifesaver when unexpected stuff pops up. Plus, regular check-ins mean everyone stays in the loop, reducing confusion.
I used to struggle with rigid plans that felt like chains, but Agile turned that around for me. It makes the whole process feel more like a team effort than a solo mission. If you haven’t checked out the role of an Agile Project Manager, I’d say it’s worth a look. They help guide the team without being bossy, letting everyone bring their ideas to the table. It’s all about collaboration and keeping the momentum going.