Here is the next profile in the series “How Did I Get Here.” I met Chelsea at the local PMI meeting here in the Denver area. Thanks, Chelsea!

When did you first decide to become a project manager?

In 2013, my company took on a big project and then realized after a couple of months with minimal progress that they needed someone to lead and direct the project work. I stepped into the role of project manager for the duration of the project and then worked with my supervisor to create a permanent, new position within the company to manage projects.

What was your academic and/or corporate background before you became a project manager?

I actually earned my undergraduate degree from the University Colorado – Boulder in the field of psychology! In the two years after I graduated, I operated as a marketing specialist, designing graphics, updating website content, and managing social media. Before the opportunity came up at my job, I thought project management was something relegated to engineering and software companies, and I didn’t even consider it as a career possibility. However, my supervisor recognized my skill at getting all the pieces and information from different departments to line up to produce campaigns on schedule, and he recommended me for the opportunity to manage projects when it came up.

If you made a transition, did your company support your transition to project manager?

My organization was pretty small, just under 150 people, and we had never had a position as a project manager before. It was definitely a functional organization, with departments that operated in silos and were used to doing things when they wanted to do them. I received some great support in terms of getting involved in leadership meetings and creating an overall project schedule for potential projects that different departments wanted to do, but I didn’t receive any authority. I had to ask for resources, and projects were often pushed back when a department prioritized something else instead. It was a transition that experienced some growing pains, and I left before it was completed.

Which credential do you have?

Once I decided to explore project management as a career, I studied for and earned my CAPM in 2014.

How has having your credential helped (or hurt?) your career?

I think it helped convince the organization I was with that project management was a position in its own right, and that it was worth creating a separate position for. So far, I don’t think it has helped or hurt me in any significant way.

What advice would you give an aspiring project manager?

Project management is relevant in any field, so if you enjoy bringing together different groups of people and combining their skills to achieve a large, overreaching goal, you should learn more about it!

Reach out to people you know in project management, attend a meeting with project managers, and ask them how they apply their skills. Explore new ways and areas where you can apply project management, and don’t feel like you have to be tied to either a large organization or a field that is scientific. There are a lot of organizations out there that need your ability to pull together people and information and just get projects done.

Would you like to be the subject of How Did I Get here? Contact me.

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