How to become a Project Manager in 2025

Demand for Project Managers is on the rise, as the advent of AI and geopolitical tensions ripple across world markets, leading us to reevaluate the way we work.

According to the Project Management Institute’s latest Job Trends report, the energy supply strain caused by Russia’s prolonged invasion of Ukraine is pushing teams across Europe to deliver renewable energy solutions, driving demand for Project Managers who consider environmental impact.

If you're interested in technology, sustainability, and innovation, it's an exciting time to become a Project Manager.

What does this job entail? Could Project Management be for you?

Let's dive in.

What does a Project Manager do?

Also known as Project Coordinators or Project Leaders, Project Managers lead projects from initiation and planning to execution, control, and completion.

Project Management is one of the most complex professions today, requiring people to be consummate communicators, effective leaders, tech-savvy, and tireless team players. 

Regardless of company, industry, or scale, Project Manager job responsibilities include:

• Understanding company strategy, goals, and vision
• Understanding the role projects play in fulfilling the above
• Planning projects to fulfil company strategy, goals, and vision
• Researching, mapping, and defining project scope and requirements
• Creating the project charter and project roadmap
• Forecasting revenues and resource requirements
• Managing and communicating with stakeholders
• Breaking down silos to enable communication and understanding
• Creating and constantly updating project documentation
• Allocating and reallocating resources, from time and funds to people
• Directing all project management phases through the entire project lifecycle
• Creating a detailed project management plan to track project progress
• Keeping track of time and prioritising tasks
• Aligning, supervising, mentoring, and motivating teams
• Conducting project status meetings with a range of teams and stakeholders 
• Being the primary point of contact for stakeholders and other parties
• Managing risk, creating a risk matrix, conducting risk assessments 
• Leading incident escalation and resolution
• Managing Quality Assurance
• Evaluating project performance using appropriate systems, tools, and techniques
• Conducting post-mortem project analysis and reports
• Refining and iterating the project management process

What types of Project Manager are there?

Wherever there is a project, there is a PM, from small companies to Fortune 500, Government to construction, finance, healthcare, and everything in between. This is why, if you have experience in a particular industry or role, you can specialise and become a PM just for that. 

You could work as:

• IT Project Manager
• Health Services Project Manager
• Engineering Project Manager
• Marketing Project Manager
• Construction Project Manager
• PMO Analyst
• Project Management Consultant

Read more about these jobs in our blog, Top Project Management careers in 2025.

What makes a good Project Manager?

The best Project Managers are engaging leaders who can communicate a vision and motivate teams to get there.

They are natural communicators, energetic, emotionally intelligent, creative negotiators and critical thinkers. They have excellent attention to detail, time management, and problem-solving skills.

In addition, they possess important technical skills, from expertise across a range of Project Management methodologies (Agile, Kanban, Scrum, Lean, Waterfall) to task management and collaboration tools such as JIRA, Microsoft Teams, Trello, Asana, Basecamp, Miro, Slack, and Google.

How can you become a Project Manager?

It depends where you are in your career. If you've studied Business or a related field at university, you may have already gone through Project Management modules and have a feel for the job. However, even if you didn't, chances are that you've already worked on your share of projects in the business environment and picked up skills along the way. According to LinkedIn, there are many “accidental Project Managers” who transitioned to this career by taking on increasing responsibility on projects they were involved in.

Whether you are an accidental PM or are just starting out, here are 4 steps to becoming a Project Manager in 2024.

1. Assist projects as part of your day job or volunteering

Projects take place around us all the time. Find out which are closest to you and lend a helping hand. Are they looking for an Assistant Project Manager or Project Assistant? Could you volunteer to gain experience? As many PMs are overworked, this is an ideal chance to look at the range of tasks, the day-to-day rhythm, and find out whether this career truly is for you. If the PM in charge is willing to mentor you, all the better, as they can help point you in the right direction moving forward.

You can also try an apprenticeship. For example, at Firebrand, we offer a Digital Product Manager Apprenticeship that can help you develop transferrable skills. It's Product rather than Project Management, but it teaches you to work on product lifecycles as part of companies' digital transformation, which is a great building block for a Project Management career. Plus, you can gain the Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt while studying!

2. Decide which projects you would like to work on

After gaining some experience, be honest with yourself: Do you enjoy working in your current industry, or would you be better suited to something else? If you're in finance, for example, would you be more interested in marketing projects instead, or healthcare or sustainability?

Also, if you've worked in a certain field as a specialist—for example, in IT, as a Software Developer—perhaps focusing on IT projects would tap into your experience and appeal to you more?

Finally, consider scope: from small to Fortune 500, local to international, all companies need Project Managers. Which environment would you most like to work in?

3. Audit your skills

Now that you've settled on a niche and have some experience, look at job descriptions. Which skills do you have, which do you need to develop?

Think of professional skills such as those listed in Project Management Institute’s PMBOK Guide:

• Integration management
• Scope management
• Schedule management
• Cost management
• Quality management
• Resource management
• Risk management
• Communications management
• Procurement management
• Stakeholder management

Also consider Project Management frameworks (Agile, Scrum, Lean Six Sigma), specific software, and skills that you would personally like to develop (leadership, assertiveness, people management, etc.).

4. Get certified

Depending on your skills gaps and the industry you're targeting, now's the time to research Project Management frameworks and achieve recognised certifications.

These teach you the language of the profession and attest to your skills.

At Firebrand, we offer accelerated courses for the top Project Management certifications, including:

• PRINCE2®7 Foundation & Practitioner 7th Edition, a project- and process-based method widely used in the UK and Europe;
• PMI certifications such as Project Management Professional (PMP®) and Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM®), which are mainly used in the USA, Canada, and the Middle East; 
• Risk Management certifications such as ISACA CRISC® and ISC2 CGRC®;
• All Lean Six Sigma Belts, from Yellow and Green to Black, which focus on quality control;
• Agile certifications for flexible Project Management, from APMG Agile Project Management Foundation & Practitioner to 
• PMI-ACP® and PRINCE2 Agile® Foundation and Practitioner; 
• And Scrum, predominantly used for Software and Product Development—Scrum.org Scrum Master™ I (PSM I) or Scrum Product Owner™ (PSPO I).

5. Network

As you get more involved in Project Management, you will find that networking is a powerful tool for keeping in touch with colleagues, researching, and staying up-to-date with the latest developments. You can also consider joining a professional association specific to Project Management or, even better, Project Management in your particular industry or niche. 

Good luck! #BeAFirebrand

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