What Does A Project Manager Do in Project Management: Explained in 5 mins

What does a project manager do – Project Management view 

Are you wondering what exactly a project manager does while managing a project? Well, then you have come to the right post.

In simple terms, if you imagine Project Management as a ship then the Project Manager is the captain of the ship.

Project management is the most critical function for the successful operation of any business, and it’s only getting more important as time goes by.

As per the PMI report, by 2027, employers will need 87.7 million individuals working in project management-oriented roles. To help manage this increasing need, 71 percent of global organizations now have a project management office—an almost 15 percent increase from 2007. 

PMO of an organization ensures the set project management process and policies are applied to the projects. However, projects are actually managed by the Project Manager.

 A Project Manager is responsible for the initiating, planning, execution, monitoring, and completion of a project. The project manager is in charge of the overall project and handles everything involved, such as the project scope, cost, schedule, project team, and other resources.

Ultimately, the Project Manager is responsible for the success or failure of a project. The project manager basically needs to manage three components: People, Process, and Tools.

Also, it is not an easy task to define the roles and responsibility of a project manager, since each project is unique and list of activities may differ from project to project. However, there are minimum list of activities that a project manager should perform by keeping short term (day to day) and long-term goals in mind.

So “What does a project manager do?”

Project managers are involved in various parts of the project from initiation to completion. Their responsibilities include critical things like overall integration management, scope, cost, schedule, stakeholder, Risk management, HR management, Communication, and Procurement management.

Daily basis responsibilities of a Project Manager

The project manager is responsible for the day-to-day management of the project and must be competent in managing the various aspects of a project, like scope, schedule, cost, risk, quality, and communication.

Here are the top 13 key activities which a project manager follows on daily basis:

1. Check the budget requirement for project work.
2. If needed, seek approval for Budget deviation.
3. Check and maintain the required resource for the project.
4. Pitch to the finance team to increase the budget.
5. Evaluate risk assessment reports and develop a mitigation plan.
6. Check-in with the project team for the project progress report.
7. Check and update the project schedule& timeline.
8. Manage or reallocate tasks to meet workload requirements.
9. Take action to mitigate any cost or schedule risk.
10. Making sure the work is done as per approved process & procedures
11. Motivate the Project Team.
12. Communicate and with various functions.
13. Coordinate with clients.

Long Term Responsibilities of a Project Manager

Here are the top 13 key activities which a project manager performs on a long term basis (weekly or monthly):

1. Make sure the overall project is on time and on budget.
2. Review overall project plan.
3. Organize team-building activities.
4. Meet with management to discuss project scope variation.
5. Management reporting of project progress and financial health.
6. Project budget or Time extension approval from management.
7. Meet with leadership to discuss upcoming projects.
8. Defending business case and profitability of project to management.
9. Nurturing new project management leaders.
10. Interviewing and hiring new talent for the project team.
11. Managing key stakeholder expectations.
12. Arrange approval for the continuing project.
13. Reward the Project team and celebrate a milestone achievement.

Conclusion

The sheer variety of activities means no two days on the job are the same. However, each activity is important and plays a critical role in the success of any project.

From the above list, which activity do you perform most on your project? Let me know by leaving a comment below right now.  This may help you understand what exactly going on in your project.

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