Table 1Transition record

project managertooperations manager

A project manager already meets 48% of what the operations manager role asks for. The move turns on 8 required skills not yet in the profile.

From project manager

48%

Overlap1

To operations manager

36 Skills carried over

8 Required, not held

62.6 Difficulty2

Career overlap Partial match

48%

Learning distance Substantial retraining

62.6/ 100

Easy adjacentmoderatesubstantialcareer change Hard

1 Share of the operations manager role’s weighted skill requirement already met by the project 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 operations manager role treats 16 of its required skills as things a project manager already does. These are the ones it depends on most.

apply change management
build business relationships
corporate social responsibility
ensure equipment availability
ensure equipment maintenance
establish daily priorities

What stands in the way is 8 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 36 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A operations manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a project manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area

already held manage several projects management skills
already held manage project information information skills
already held manage standard enterprise resource planning system working with computers
already held manage project metrics information skills
already held insourcing strategy business, administration and law
already held outsourcing strategy business, administration and law

All 36 carried skills, including the 16 the operations manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you would need to learn

The 55 missing skills fall into 8 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 management skills 4 required, 14 supplementary

required, not held develop staff required
required, not held evaluate employees required
required, not held make strategic business decisions required
required, not held manage profitability required

optional, not held develop revenue generation strategies optional
optional, not held budget for financial needs optional
optional, not held control financial resources optional
optional, not held develop business case optional
optional, not held make investment decisions optional
optional, not held manage facilities services optional
optional, not held manage maintenance operations optional
optional, not held meet deadlines optional
optional, not held oversee the facilities services budget optional
optional, not held perform quality audits optional
optional, not held plan buildings maintenance work optional
optional, not held set quality assurance objectives optional
optional, not held shape organisational teams based on competencies optional
optional, not held supervise work optional

02 business, administration and law 3 required, 5 supplementary

required, not held operations management required
required, not held quality standards required
required, not held supply chain management required

optional, not held facilities management in the organisation optional
optional, not held organisational resilience optional
optional, not held accounting optional
optional, not held contract law optional
optional, not held employment law optional

03 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 required, 1 supplementary

required, not held energy conservation required

optional, not held manufacturing processes optional

04 communication, collaboration and creativity 15 supplementary

optional, not held advise on utility consumption optional
optional, not held implement corporate governance optional
optional, not held maintain relationship with customers optional
optional, not held promote facilities management services optional
optional, not held promote innovative infrastructure design optional
optional, not held advise on efficiency improvements optional
optional, not held align efforts towards business development optional
optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
optional, not held handle customer complaints optional
optional, not held impart business plans to collaborators optional
optional, not held liaise with government officials optional
optional, not held maintain customer service optional
optional, not held negotiate terms with suppliers optional
optional, not held perform procurement processes optional
optional, not held support managers optional

05 information skills 6 supplementary

optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
optional, not held evaluate project plans optional
optional, not held assess financial viability optional
optional, not held estimate profitability optional
optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
optional, not held make data-driven decisions optional

06 assisting and caring 3 supplementary

optional, not held adhere to organisational guidelines optional
optional, not held manage major incidents optional
optional, not held oversee quality control optional

2 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a operations 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 36 skills that carry over

Skill Type

already held apply change management skill
already held build business relationships skill
already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
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 liaise with managers skill
already held manage budgets skill
already held manage logistics skill
already held manage staff skill
already held manage supplies skill
already held perform project management skill
already held project management knowledge
already held strive for company growth skill
already held supervise daily information operations skill
already held control of expenses skill
already held create a financial report skill
already held create project specifications skill
already held estimate duration of work skill
already held insourcing strategy knowledge
already held internal risk management policy knowledge
already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
already held manage project information skill
already held manage project metrics skill
already held manage several projects skill
already held manage standard enterprise resource planning system skill
already held negotiate with stakeholders skill
already held outsourcing strategy knowledge
already held perform resource planning skill
already held perform risk analysis skill
already held provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
already held quality assurance methodologies knowledge
already held recruit employees skill
already held train employees skill
already held write work-related reports skill

The 2 learning areas not shown above

Skill to acquire Tier

07 information and communication technologies (icts) 2 supplementary

optional, not held database quality standards optional
optional, not held information confidentiality optional

08 services 1 supplementary

optional, not held security regulations optional

47 supplementary skills, helpful but not required

Skill to acquire Tier

optional, not held advise on utility consumption optional
optional, not held assess supplier risks optional
optional, not held database quality standards optional
optional, not held develop revenue generation strategies optional
optional, not held evaluate project plans optional
optional, not held facilities management in the organisation optional
optional, not held implement corporate governance optional
optional, not held information confidentiality optional
optional, not held maintain relationship with customers optional
optional, not held organisational resilience optional
optional, not held promote facilities management services optional
optional, not held promote innovative infrastructure design optional
optional, not held security regulations optional
optional, not held accounting optional
optional, not held adhere to organisational guidelines optional
optional, not held advise on efficiency improvements optional
optional, not held align efforts towards business development optional
optional, not held assess financial viability optional
optional, not held budget for financial needs optional
optional, not held contract law optional
optional, not held control financial resources optional
optional, not held create solutions to problems optional
optional, not held develop business case optional
optional, not held employment law optional
optional, not held estimate profitability optional
optional, not held handle customer complaints optional
optional, not held impart business plans to collaborators optional
optional, not held interpret financial statements optional
optional, not held liaise with government officials optional
optional, not held maintain customer service optional
optional, not held make data-driven decisions optional
optional, not held make investment decisions optional
optional, not held manage facilities services optional
optional, not held manage maintenance operations optional
optional, not held manage major incidents optional
optional, not held manufacturing processes optional
optional, not held meet deadlines optional
optional, not held negotiate terms with suppliers optional
optional, not held oversee quality control optional
optional, not held oversee the facilities services budget optional

7 further entries not listed here

32 held skills the operations manager role does not ask for

Skill Type

not needed by the target role Agile project management knowledge
not needed by the target role Prince2 project management knowledge
not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
not needed by the target role apply conflict management skill
not needed by the target role business processes knowledge
not needed by the target role communication principles knowledge
not needed by the target role crowdsourcing strategy knowledge
not needed by the target role customise project methodologies skill
not needed by the target role design wayside signalling interlockings skill
not needed by the target role develop business plans skill
not needed by the target role draft project documentation skill
not needed by the target role ensure compliance with legal requirements skill
not needed by the target role find a replacement for stage manager skill
not needed by the target role identify legal requirements skill
not needed by the target role lean project management knowledge
not needed by the target role legal studies knowledge
not needed by the target role maintain a central project repository skill
not needed by the target role manage project changes skill
not needed by the target role mathematics knowledge
not needed by the target role office administration knowledge
not needed by the target role organise project meetings skill
not needed by the target role perform PESTEL analysis skill
not needed by the target role plan schedule skill
not needed by the target role program management knowledge
not needed by the target role project configuration management knowledge
not needed by the target role project management methodology (PM²) knowledge
not needed by the target role project management principles knowledge
not needed by the target role quantity surveying knowledge
not needed by the target role risk identification knowledge
not needed by the target role statistics knowledge
not needed by the target role total quality control knowledge
not needed by the target role use communication techniques skill

13 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 operations management required
required, not held energy conservation required
required, not held quality standards required
required, not held supply chain management required
optional, not held database quality standards optional
optional, not held facilities management in the organisation optional
optional, not held information confidentiality optional
optional, not held organisational resilience optional
optional, not held security regulations optional
optional, not held accounting optional
optional, not held contract law optional
optional, not held employment law optional
optional, not held manufacturing processes optional

Index

Other moves recorded from project manager

Full index of moves from project 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.