| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Operations |
| Level | Manager |
| Reports to | Program Manager |
| Direct reports | Project Executive, Project Coordinator |
| Experience | 5 to 9 years, with 3 years managing projects end to end |
Project Manager job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Project Manager
Department: Operations
Reports to: Program Manager
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Project Manager delivers a defined piece of work with a start date, end date, budget and scope, such as setting up a new branch, commissioning a warehouse, moving an office or rolling out a system for one department. The role plans the tasks, manages the team and vendors, controls cost and changes, and reports progress to the sponsor or program manager. A good project manager finishes on time without quietly cutting scope or quality.
Key responsibilities
- Prepare the project charter with scope, deliverables, budget, timeline and success criteria, and get sponsor approval.
- Build the work breakdown structure and schedule, and baseline both before execution starts.
- Assign tasks to internal teams and vendors, and confirm that people, material and approvals are available on time.
- Hold weekly progress meetings, update the schedule and flag delays together with a recovery plan.
- Control project cost against budget, check vendor bills against work done and approve payments within limits.
- Handle scope changes through a written change request that states the cost and time impact.
- Identify risks early, such as permit delays or material shortage, and keep a mitigation plan for each.
- Coordinate inspections, testing and handover checklists before declaring the project complete.
- Report status to the sponsor or program manager every week with progress, spend, risks and decisions needed.
- Close the project with documentation, vendor settlement and a short lessons learnt note.
Requirements
- Bachelor's degree in engineering, commerce or management
- PMP, PRINCE2 or CAPM certification is an advantage
- A diploma or degree in the project's domain, such as civil or electrical, is an advantage
- 5 to 9 years, with 3 years managing projects end to end
KRAs and KPIs for a Project Manager
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Schedule | Project completed within 5 percent of the baselined timeline |
| Budget | Final project cost within 5 percent of the approved budget |
| Scope and quality | All deliverables accepted at handover with no major rework |
| Change control | Every scope change approved in writing before work starts on it |
| Status reporting | Weekly status report shared on time for every week of the project |
| Vendor settlement | Vendor bills verified and settled within 30 days of certified completion |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: MS Project, MS Excel, Jira, Trello or Smartsheet, Gantt charts, Site inspection checklists.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Program Manager, Senior Operations Manager
Interview questions for a Project Manager
- Walk me through how you would plan the setup of a new branch office in 60 days.
- The sponsor adds a new requirement two weeks before go-live. What do you do?
- How do you recover a project that is three weeks behind schedule?
- Tell me about a vendor who under-delivered. How did you handle their payment?
- What is the critical path, and how do you use it in practice?
- How do you report bad news to a sponsor?
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What does a project manager do in a company?
A project manager plans and delivers one-time pieces of work, such as a new office setup, a system rollout or a warehouse commissioning. They build the schedule, assign tasks to teams and vendors, control cost and scope changes, manage risks, report progress to the sponsor and hand over the finished result.
Is PMP required to become a project manager in India?
No, PMP is not required, but it is the most recognised project management certificate in India and helps with shortlisting, especially in larger companies. Many project managers start as project coordinators or executives and earn PMP after gaining the required hours of project experience.
Who does a project manager report to?
A project manager usually reports to a program manager, the project sponsor or a head of operations. In smaller companies they may report to a director or founder. Project executives and coordinators report to the project manager, while specialists from other departments work with them for the length of the project.