Ten Reasons to Become a Project Manager

By Dennis McCafferty | Updated 2016-07-27

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Ten Reasons to Become a Project Manager

Project managers are becoming indispensable, and demand for these pros will grow. By 2020, 700,000 more project management jobs will be created in the U.S.
You'll Help Your Company Innovate

Business is all about innovation, intense competition, and disruptive tech and business models, all of which create demand for agile project managers.
You Will Never Stop Learning

Every project requires different approaches, technology and skills. You'll make new discoveries about cloud migration one day, and gain leadership insights from C-suite members the next.
You'll Be Well-Compensated

The median salary for a project manager in the U.S. is $108,200, and directors of project management offices make $135,000.
You Will Bring Tangible Value to Your Company

You will develop metrics to demonstrate how your team increased efficiencies, reduced costs, improved customer engagement and boosted profits.
You Will Bring Intangible Value to Your Company

You will help bring about better decision making, communications, team engagement and processes, as well as the ability to gain management buy-in for projects.
You'll Make Colleagues Think You're a Superhero

Project managers on top of their game meet deadlines while containing costs, earning the admiration of, well, pretty much everybody.
You'll Foster the Development of Team Members

Your strong leadership, combined with positive project results, will encourage your peers to expand their skills and grow as professionals.
You'll Learn About Customers and Stakeholders

You understand that customers' and other stakeholders' continual feedback—before the project begins, during its execution and after completion—leads to project success.
You'll Reduce Risk and Fix Problems

One of the key qualities of a good project manager is the ability to spot red flags well before the project is finished and to fix any problems that arise.
You'll Steer the Project From Start to Finish

Think of yourself as a CEO of sorts, because the project "buck" often stops at your desk. Without you, projects may never get started, much less reach a productive and valuable end.
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UPDATED ON JULY 27, 2016

In the age of agility, project managers are becoming indispensable in their organizations. In fact, demand for these professionals will grow significantly: By 2020, 700,000 more project management jobs will be created in the United States, according to the Project Management Institute (PMI). Companies seek out proven project managers because teams frequently struggle in this area. According to research from the Standish Group, only a third of IT projects are successful, and a quarter of them are outright failures. So, if you pursue this vocation, what's in it for you? Well, there's the enviable compensation, of course. But you'll also position yourself to command great influence organizationwide, leading your company in responding to challenges related to innovation, market shifts and disruptive tech. You'll tackle a great variety of tasks, and you'll help team members advance in their careers and skills development in the process. To elaborate on these and other benefits, we're presenting the following list of 10 reasons to become a project manager. Our list was compiled from online research and insights posted by organizations such as Bright Hub Project Management, Global Knowledge Training and the aforementioned Project Management Institute.

Dennis McCafferty is a freelance writer for Baseline Magazine.