What new project management skills you should possess in 2023

Efficient management of a corporate project is a guarantee of the competitiveness of a business entity. The most important role in this respect is played by contract employees referred to as project managers. This is a particularly important profession in the IT, engineering or marketing industries. What issues will come to the fore in the coming years when it comes to the project management profession? What project management skills will you need the most?

Project managers skills – table of contents:

1. Predisposition for the project management profession
2. Contact with international customer
3. Growing demand for the use of artificial intelligence in business
4. Curious innovations in managerial projects
5. Leadership qualities come out ahead

Predisposition for the project management profession

Project management is one of the most important contemporary disciplines of knowledge. The person working in this position must systematically develop their professional qualifications. Both soft skills related to human resources management, and hard skills consisting of the impeccable implementation of project objectives. A project manager is a one-person factor that may tip the scales in favor or against the company.

This is a constantly evolving profession, somehow coupled with technological advances available in the modern world. It is not only about the project manager’s use of new technological advances, but above all about the ability to anticipate future changes and make adjustments when necessary. There are several areas in which a project manager operates.

Contact with international customer

Globalization processes have gained unprecedented pace that has resonated particularly hard in the case of companies creating business projects. A project manager will be required above all to have fluent language skills, not only in native speech but also in selected foreign languages. For example, the IT industries are also opening up to the Spanish, German or Italian markets. In the perspective of the coming year, a great role will be played by soft skills, which are always important.

The Project Management Institute report presents some of the most important personal predispositions that a good project manager should have. These include: the ability to effectively motivate staff, possession of extensive leadership qualities, and representing the impeccable organization of work. It is important that a person in this position develops soft skills concerning conflict mitigation, interpersonal communication and psychological issues involved in group management.

Growing demand for the use of artificial intelligence in business

The report of the World Economic Forum indicates the outlook for 2022 in the context of innovative professions, which undoubtedly includes the position of project manager. According to analysts, a strong trend of robotization in many fields is noticeable. As recently as 2019, about 70% of work in selected technical industries was performed by human labor, after 2023 this percentage is expected to decrease – to about 58%. This shows current employment trends, which also affect the need to automate many work processes.

Implementing innovations, in the case of a project manager, should not come as a surprise. The person holding this position is required to implement modern solutions, adapting the project to contemporary conditions – also in the context of computerization or robotization of work.

Curious innovations in managerial projects

A paper compiled by PMI points to six groups of technologies that will increasingly break into the mainstream of enterprise project management. Analysts highlight two key learning processes that will grow in importance. These are deep learning and machine learning (the process of adopting AI to react in ways similar to the human brain). The third and fourth technologies are RPA (robotic process automation) and decision management.

Both terms are closely related to the exploitation of artificial intelligence for analytical purposes. An important aspect in the work of a project manager will also be the use of new systems, i.e. IT expert systems and architecture based on imitating the actions of the human brain.

Leadership qualities come out ahead

Among the new challenges faced by project managers, issues related to the social impact of their personalities also stand out. The leadership role is extremely important and should be exhibited by a person employed in this position perfectly. Experts point out that managers will have to systematically increase their rhetorical skills to exercise influence on subordinate social groups. A project manager has to be a kind of leader, a leader and authority for a group of people responsible for the implementation of tasks. Is that all?

The catalog of skills and characteristics desirable in modern project managers remains open-ended. Apart from the aforementioned trends, entities researching the future labor market point to the necessity of, among others:

• developing personal maturity;
• adapting competencies to create modern business plans;
• strengthening negotiation skills;
• improving remote working skills.

If you would like to stay in touch with us, join our Facebook community!