Organizations are increasingly relying on project management professionals to implement strategic initiatives, drive change and deliver on innovation. And whole industries just now realizing the value of project management are expected to spur a boom in demand for project management skills in the coming decade, according to the a recent report from the Project Management Institute.

Project managers, especially, bring a valuable set of skills and knowledge that organizations will increasingly need to execute strategic projects in the years ahead. However, the PMI report reveals a troubling gap between the increasing demand and expected availability of skilled project professionals from 2017 to 2027. This gap spells significant career opportunities for those interested in pursuing a career in project management — and rising salaries.

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Magnitude of the skills gap

By 2027, employers will need to fill nearly 90 million project management related roles, according to the PMI report, which was completed by Anderson Economic Group. These roles include project managers, program managers, portfolio managers, schedulers, business analysts, change management experts and others.

Fueling this increase is the fact that various industries across the U.S. are adopting a more project-oriented model in recognition of the benefits around goal attainment and strategic focus. Attrition rates, including retirements, are a second catalyst for the expected project management skills gap. Here is a look at the growing demand for project professionals within some of these industries as a result of attrition and expansion.

7 million jobs in manufacturing and construction

5 million jobs in information services and publishing

6 million jobs in finance and insurance

7 million jobs in management and professional services

279,000 jobs in utilities

49,000 jobs in oil & gas

Project management goes global

But the increased reliance on project management in the next decade isn’t isolated to the United States alone. The projected skills gap for project management professionals will affect many countries across the globe. If the project management skills gap continues and roles go unfilled, the result could be a potential GDP loss of 208 billion dollars in 11 countries collectively (United Kingdom, United States, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Japan, India, Germany, China, Canada, Brazil, and Australia), according to the report.

Estimated project management jobs by country 2017-2027

Country 2017 2027 China 34.9 million 46 million India 14.7 million 21.7 million United States 6.7 million 8.8 million Japan 3.4 million 3.8 million Brazil 1.9 million 2.4 million Germany 1.9 million 2 million United Kingdom 1 million 1.2 million Canada 690,184 779,828 Australia 474,495 574,399 Saudi Arabia 201,127 228,077 UAE 73,352 93,861

How does a skills gap translate into opportunities?

The project management skills gap will translate to substantial opportunity for those pursuing a career in project management. With project management professionals earning on average 82 percent more than non-project-oriented professionals, the estimated increases in project-related jobs (2.1 million in the U.S. alone) over the next decade will open up a large number of well-paying job opportunities.

The demand for skilled project professionals indicate they are valuable to businesses interested in more accurately executing on strategy and driving excellence. This demand will also continue to elevate the salaries for these high-value professionals. PMI’s ninth edition salary survey shows an annual median of $108,200 for project managers working in the U.S. Here are additional annual U.S. median salaries by years experience, certification status, position, project team size and project management technique.

Project management salaries based on experience

Years Experience Median Salary Less than 3 years $74,900 3 to 5 years $85,000 5 to 10 years $100,000 10 to 15 years $112,200 15 to 20 years $120,000 20+ years $125,000

Project management salaries based on PMP certification status

PMP Status Median Salary Have PMP certification $111,000 Do not have PMP certification $91,000 PMP for less than 1 year $95,000 PMP for 1 to 5 years $104,000 PMP for 5 to 10 years $120,000 PMP for 10 to 15 years $124,000 PMP for 20+ years $133,000

Project management salaries by title

Position Median Salary Director of PM/PMO $135,000 Portfolio Manager $128,000 Program Manager $120,000 Project Manager III $105,000 Project Manager II $95,000 Project Manager I $87,000 Project Management Specialist $85,000 Project Management Consultant $110,000

Project management salaries by team size

Project Team Size Median Salary Less than 5 $100,000 5 to 9 $107,070 10 to 14 $111,000 15 to 19 $115,823 20+ $120,000

Project management salaries based on PM technique employed

Project Management Technique Less than 1 year 1 to 5 years 6+ years Agile / interactive / incremental PM / Scrum $103,000 $109,000 $120,000 Extreme PM $106,000 $109,377 $120,000 Process-based PM $107,000 $100,000 $115,550 Event chain PM $107,070 $105,000 $120,000 Project portfolio management $96,788 $108,000 $125,000 Program management $93,502 $103,000 $122,000 Earned value management $101,000 $107,000 $122,500 Lean project management $105,000 $108,000 $120,000 Critical chain PM $107,000 $104,000 $118,000 Waterfall PM $100,000 $100,000 $116,400 Risk management $92,750 $100,000 $120,000 Change management $95,000 $100,000 $116,500 Resource management $96,000 $97,500 $119,000

Source: PMI Project Management Salary Survey

To find out more information on this skills gap, the impact, and how it is opening up significant job opportunities for those interested in a project-management related career, read PMI’s skills gap report.

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