Table 1Transition record

programme managertoproject manager

A programme manager already meets 42% of what the project manager role asks for. The move turns on 18 required skills not yet in the profile.

From programme manager

42%

Overlap1

To project manager

23 Skills carried over

18 Required, not held

68.1 Difficulty2

Career overlap Partial match

42%

Learning distance Substantial retraining

68.1/ 100

Easy adjacentmoderatesubstantialcareer change Hard

1 Share of the project manager role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the programme manager profile. Required skills count in full, supplementary skills at 0.35. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs. 2 Combines what is missing with how specialised it is, so a gap of general skills scores easier than the same number of narrow ones.

Why

Why this move works

A project manager role treats 18 of its required skills as things a programme manager already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

ensure equipment availability
ensure equipment maintenance
establish daily priorities
follow company standards
identify legal requirements
liaise with managers

What stands in the way is 18 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 23 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A project manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a programme manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area

already held project management methodology (PM²) business, administration and law
already held program management business, administration and law
already held manage several projects management skills
already held manage project information information skills
already held manage project metrics information skills
already held identify legal requirements information skills

All 23 carried skills, including the 18 the project manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 45 missing skills fall into 9 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered below in the order worth working in: the areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the supplementary ones.

Skill to acquire Tier

01 communication, collaboration and creativity 6 required, 2 supplementary

required, not held apply conflict management required
required, not held build business relationships required
required, not held draft project documentation required
required, not held negotiate with stakeholders required
required, not held train employees required
required, not held write work-related reports required

optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
optional, not held use communication techniques optional

02 management skills 5 required, 5 supplementary

required, not held create project specifications required
required, not held customise project methodologies required
required, not held manage project changes required
required, not held organise project meetings required
required, not held perform project management required

optional, not held design wayside signalling interlockings optional
optional, not held develop business plans optional
optional, not held find a replacement for stage manager optional
optional, not held apply change management optional
optional, not held recruit employees optional

03 information skills 3 required, 3 supplementary

required, not held control of expenses required
required, not held estimate duration of work required
required, not held perform PESTEL analysis required

optional, not held create a financial report optional
optional, not held analyse business plans optional
optional, not held maintain a central project repository optional

04 business, administration and law 2 required, 13 supplementary

required, not held internal risk management policy required
required, not held project management principles required

optional, not held Agile project management optional
optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
optional, not held lean project management optional
optional, not held legal studies optional
optional, not held office administration optional
optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held total quality control optional
optional, not held business processes optional
optional, not held project configuration management optional
optional, not held quality assurance methodologies optional
optional, not held risk identification optional

05 assisting and caring 1 required

required, not held ensure compliance with legal requirements required

06 generic programmes and qualifications 1 required

required, not held communication principles required

3 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a project manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 23 skills that carry over

Skill Type

already held ensure equipment availability skill
already held ensure equipment maintenance skill
already held establish daily priorities skill
already held follow company standards skill
already held identify legal requirements skill
already held liaise with managers skill
already held manage budgets skill
already held manage logistics skill
already held manage project information skill
already held manage project metrics skill
already held manage staff skill
already held manage supplies skill
already held perform resource planning skill
already held perform risk analysis skill
already held project management knowledge
already held project management methodology (PM²) knowledge
already held provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
already held supervise daily information operations skill
already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
already held manage several projects skill
already held plan schedule skill
already held program management knowledge
already held strive for company growth skill

The 3 learning areas not shown above

Skill to acquire Tier

07 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 2 supplementary

optional, not held mathematics optional
optional, not held statistics optional

08 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 supplementary

optional, not held quantity surveying optional

09 working with computers 1 supplementary

optional, not held manage standard enterprise resource planning system optional

27 supplementary skills, helpful but not required

Skill to acquire Tier

optional, not held Agile project management optional
optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
optional, not held create a financial report optional
optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held design wayside signalling interlockings optional
optional, not held develop business plans optional
optional, not held find a replacement for stage manager optional
optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
optional, not held lean project management optional
optional, not held legal studies optional
optional, not held maintain relationship with suppliers optional
optional, not held manage standard enterprise resource planning system optional
optional, not held office administration optional
optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held quantity surveying optional
optional, not held total quality control optional
optional, not held analyse business plans optional
optional, not held apply change management optional
optional, not held business processes optional
optional, not held maintain a central project repository optional
optional, not held mathematics optional
optional, not held project configuration management optional
optional, not held quality assurance methodologies optional
optional, not held recruit employees optional
optional, not held risk identification optional
optional, not held statistics optional
optional, not held use communication techniques optional

22 held skills the project manager role does not ask for

Skill Type

not needed by the target role advise on efficiency improvements skill
not needed by the target role align efforts towards business development skill
not needed by the target role analyse external factors of companies skill
not needed by the target role analyse financial performance of a company skill
not needed by the target role analyse internal factors of companies skill
not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
not needed by the target role budget for financial needs skill
not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
not needed by the target role develop revenue generation strategies skill
not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
not needed by the target role evaluate project plans skill
not needed by the target role impart business plans to collaborators skill
not needed by the target role implement corporate governance skill
not needed by the target role integrate headquarter's guidelines into local operations skill
not needed by the target role interpret financial statements skill
not needed by the target role make investment decisions skill
not needed by the target role make strategic business decisions skill
not needed by the target role manage profitability skill
not needed by the target role plan health and safety procedures skill
not needed by the target role shape organisational teams based on competencies skill
not needed by the target role support managers skill
not needed by the target role utilise economies of scale in projects skill

19 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to acquire Tier

required, not held internal risk management policy required
required, not held communication principles required
required, not held project management principles required
optional, not held Agile project management optional
optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
optional, not held lean project management optional
optional, not held legal studies optional
optional, not held office administration optional
optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
optional, not held quantity surveying optional
optional, not held total quality control optional
optional, not held business processes optional
optional, not held mathematics optional
optional, not held project configuration management optional
optional, not held quality assurance methodologies optional
optional, not held risk identification optional
optional, not held statistics optional

Index

Other moves recorded from programme manager

Full index of moves from programme manager

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.