A Project Manager, or PM, is responsible for leading a team of professionals in completing projects by a set deadline to uphold business initiatives. Their duties include dividing up their budget for different project aspects and advocating for additional funding when necessary, hiring freelance professionals or selecting project team members from existing departments and setting or adjusting project schedules to adhere to deadlines.
Over the course of a project, the Project Manager will need to communicate with staff and clients, make decisions and monitor the progress of the project to keep it on schedule. Important responsibilities for a Project Manager include:
- Creating long- and short-term plans, including setting targets for milestones and adhering to deadlines
- Delegating tasks on the project to employees best positioned to complete them
- Making effective decisions when presented with multiple options for how to progress with the project
- Serving as a point of contact for teams when multiple units are assigned to the same project to ensure team actions remain in synergy
- Communicating with executives or the board to keep the project aligned with their goals
- Performing quality control on the project throughout development to maintain the standards expected
- Adjusting schedules and targets on the project as needs or financing for the project change.