Q I recently graduated with a degree in project management and am struggling to find my first position since I don't have any experience. Can you give any advice as to what I should do?
A You have several avenues you can explore to help you find your first position. However, just as in project management, there are some planning steps to be taken before you start.
First, do some personal stocktaking. Too many graduates are overzealous when it comes to finding their first job, failing to fully understand what they have to offer an employer.
There are many questions you should be asking of yourself:
- Why do I want to be a project manager?
- Have I got the right stuff?
- Which industry or business function do I want to work in?
- What role would suit me?
- What do I bring to the table as a potential project manager?
Answering these questions will give you clarity and will help you formulate your job search tools, such as your CV, cover letter and online profile.
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Second, seek out the type of project management role you can perform. Your long-term career aspiration is to become a project manager, but you can focus on short-term goals. Even if you're not a project leader, a supporting role on a project team can be a perfect way to gain practical experience. These jobs may not have management responsibilities on day one, but they can be seen as stepping stones.
Third, intern or volunteer. Funds may be tight coming out of school, and an unpaid role might not be appealing. Keep in mind, though, that internships aren't always full-time, so you can find other work to pay the bills.
Fourth, find any opportunity that brings you closer to a project management environment. Bottom line: You need to gain work experience and establish a track record that illustrates your ability. Look for opportunities in organizations that are known for their projects and project management office. Which entry-level positions exist that aren't necessarily project-related? The trick is to get your foot in the door and start working toward your long-term goals.
Q I've been shortlisted for an interview for a project management post. What can I expect?
A Job interviews can take many forms. As a rule, you should always try and understand the interview format before you attend. Don't be afraid to ask.
The first tends to be led by your CV, where the interviewers ask questions about your work history, training and education. This type of interview will explore your aspirations and the expectations you have of the role. They tend to be straightforward, with questions like, “Tell me about your time at your previous company,” or “What went well and not so well on your most recent project?”
The second format is a competency-based interview. An organization uses these to score and compare prospects on how certain behaviors and skills will play out in the workplace.
Most often, the same questions are asked to every interviewee, regardless of experience and background. Competency-based questions tend to focus on these key areas: planning, team management, leadership, professional knowledge and judgement. One particular online technique, STAR, helps you formulate responses to competency questions along these lines:
- Situation: Describe the situation.
- Task: Describe what task was required of you.
- Action: Tell the interviewer what action you took.
- Result: Conclude by describing the result of that action.
Project management interviews tend to split their focus: technical questions that relate to project management theory and your skills in areas such as scheduling, risk and configuration; and behavioral questions that are situational. For example, an interviewer might say, “Tell me about a time when such-and-such happened. How did you improve the situation?” The questions could also be about dealing with difficult stakeholders or team members.
In all likelihood, you will have more than one interview for most positions. Second interviews (and sometimes third) are used for many purposes. They're an opportunity to be interviewed by other members of a team, to observe you through testing or presentation, or to discuss human resource details.
The three dominant forms of testing for project management interviews are verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning and presentation. There are many free online resources to help you prepare. Testing measures a number of things, such as your ability to interpret a brief, understand subject matter, devise a plan, manage time and communicate.
Remember, this is your time to shine. Practice answering different styles of questions and you will feel much more comfortable when the time comes for the real thing. PM
Lindsay Scott is the director of program and project management recruitment at Arras People in London, England. Send career questions to [email protected].