Getting into Project Management: Starting a Career in Project Delivery

On 18th June 2026, I attended a ⁠BCS webinar hosted by BCS PROMS-G titled Getting Into Project Management, exploring what it takes to enter project management and how the profession is changing as organisations increasingly deal with technological, organisational and societal complexity.

The session brought together perspectives from Purnima Gore of Project GPS, Sue Whittaker of Blackstar Alchemy and Richard Haydon in Service Delivery, exploring how people can transition into project management and the skills needed to succeed.

This felt particularly relevant to me as I begin my own career in project management. Coming from a technical background, one of the strongest messages I took away was that entering project management does not mean leaving previous experience behind. Instead, technical knowledge, communication, stakeholder management and the ability to bring people together can all contribute to the value a project manager provides.

Why Project Management Is Growing

One statistic shared during the webinar stood out to me: approximately 1 in 12 people are employed in project management, with around 2.3 million people involved in projects and project management activities.

This reflects a wider change in how organisations work. Technology, artifical intelligence, data and digital transformation are making projects increasingly complex, while organisations face pressure to continually adapt and remain competitive.

As a result, there is a growing need for people who can coordinate different areas of expertise and help organisations turn ideas into outcomes. Project management therefore increasingly sits at the intersection of people, technology and organisational change.

From Outputs to Value

Another important theme was the shift from focusing purely on outputs towards thinking about value and agility.

Completing a deliverable does not necessarily mean a project has been successful. A system can be built but remain unused, or a new process can be implemented while making life more difficult for the people expected to use it.

Project management therefore needs to consider not just what is delivered, but whether it delivers the intended value.

Agility is important here because projects rarely remain static. Requirements change, technology develops and stakeholder priorities evolve. The project manager’s role is not necessarily to protect the original plan at all costs, but to help teams respond to change while maintaining direction.

You Don’t Have to Be an Expert in Everything

One of the most valuable points from the webinar was that project managers do not need to know everything.

Projects often bring together subject matter experts with deep knowledge of specific technologies, processes or business areas. A project manager cannot realistically become an expert in all of them, nor should they need to.

Instead, the project manager can offer value by providing:

• Structure and direction
• Coordination and prioritisation
• Communication
• Stakeholder management
• Visibility of progress
• Support for decision-making

The specialists provide the depth of knowledge; the project manager helps bring that knowledge together.

This also changed how I think about project management frameworks. Frameworks and methodologies provide useful structure and common language, but they cannot replace understanding the people, system and problem being managed.

A project manager can follow a process perfectly and still miss why a team is struggling, why a stakeholder is disengaging or why an assumption is beginning to fail. A project manager can create value not necessarily by having the answer, but by bringing the right people together to find it.

Communication is Key

Perhaps the strongest recurring theme was the importance of communication.

Project managers work across teams, leadership, customers, suppliers, subject matter experts and other stakeholders. Keeping these groups informed requires more than simply producing reports; it requires understanding what different stakeholders need to know, when they need to know it and how best to communicate it.

This becomes particularly important as communication increasingly moves towards digital channels.

One discussion point that resonated with me was how younger professionals may have less experience with phone conversations, having grown up with messaging and instant communication. However, project management often requires conversations that cannot easily be replaced by text.

Sometimes a difficult conversation needs to happen directly. Sometimes a quick call can resolve an issue that would otherwise take numerous messages. Building trust with stakeholders also requires more than exchanging information.

Communication is therefore not simply a supporting skill for project management: it is part of the role itself.

Project Management in an Age of AI

Naturally, this led to the question of how AI might affect project management. AI is able to already support many administrative activities, including summarising information, analysing data, producing reports and assisting with planning. However, stakeholder management is much harder to automate.

Project management involves relationships, judgement, negotiation and understanding context. A project manager may notice hesitation in a meeting, recognise tension within a team or understand that a seemingly minor concern represents something more significant.

I therefore see AI as more likely to change project management than replace it. By reducing some of the administrative workload, it could allow project managers to spend more time on the human aspects of delivery where judgement and communication matter most.

Transferable Skills and Getting Started

Another important message was that people looking to enter project management should not underestimate their existing experience.

Technical experience can demonstrate problem-solving and analytical thinking. Customer-facing roles can demonstrate communication and stakeholder awareness. Administrative experience can demonstrate organisation and attention to detail.

The important part is being able to translate existing experience into a project management context.

The webinar also provided a useful action plan for people looking to enter the profession:

• CVs – Clearly demonstrate transferable and project-related skills.
• Journals – Continue learning and reflecting on project management.
• Case studies – Understand how projects operate in practice.
• Certifications – Build formal knowledge and demonstrate commitment.
• Networking – Connect with people already working in the profession.
• Speaking to project managers – Learn from their experiences and career paths.

For me, this reinforces that career development is not simply about collecting qualifications. It is about combining knowledge, experience and relationships and continuing to learn from others.

Personal Reflections

This webinar felt particularly timely as I prepare to begin my own career in project management.

Coming from a technical background, I initially viewed moving towards project management as potentially moving away from technology. I increasingly see it differently. My technical experience gives me an understanding of how systems work, how technical teams approach problems and some of the challenges that can exist between technical and non-technical stakeholders. Project management gives me an opportunity to build on that foundation.

I do not need to become the person who knows the most about every technology involved in a project. Instead, I can focus on understanding how the different areas connect, bringing the right people together and helping teams deliver something valuable. This also connects with my previous reflections on strategic empathy and project governance. Understanding different perspectives, recognising what is happening within a project and communicating effectively are just as important as having a well-structured plan.

Final Thoughts

The biggest takeaway I took from the webinar is that project management is fundamentally about enabling people to work together effectively.

Technology will continue to change, AI will automate more processes and project management methodologies will evolve, but projects will fundamentally continue to involve people with different experiences, priorities and areas of expertise. The project manager’s role is often to provide the structure that allows those people to work towards a common outcome.

You do not need to be the expert in everything. You need to be able to listen, communicate, coordinate and bring people together.

As I begin my own project management journey, that feels like one of the most useful lessons I could take forward.