20 Must-Have Project Management Skills for 2024: The Ultimate Guide

Successful project management requires a blend of expertise and innate ability. Beyond technical know-how, a repertoire of essential skills — both hard and soft — forms the foundation of this profession.  

So what does it take to thrive as a project manager? 

This blog post details the core competencies that every project manager needs, from budgeting to communication and risk management to relationship-building. Whether you’re a seasoned project veteran or just starting out, read on to find out what you need to excel today in this multifaceted role.

What Does a Project Manager Do?

A project manager plays a pivotal role in the successful execution of projects across various industries and sectors. 

Their primary responsibility is to oversee all aspects of a project, from initiation to completion, ensuring that it is executed within scope, time, and budget constraints while meeting quality standards and stakeholder expectations. 

Project managers are tasked with any or all of the following responsibilities: 

• Developing project plans
• Setting project goals
• Defining deliverables
• Allocating resources
• Creating schedules
• Facilitating communication among team members and stakeholders
• Ensuring everyone is aligned with project objectives 
• Keeping stakeholders informed about progress and milestones
• Identifying and mitigating risks
• Resolving conflicts
• Adapting plans as needed to overcome challenges

Project managers exist in nearly every industry, so having expertise in their applicable sector is important as well. However, they can easily transfer their general skills from one industry to another — that’s some powerful job security! No matter where they work, project managers provide leadership, direction, and support to ensure projects are carried out efficiently and to the satisfaction of all stakeholders involved.

20 Essential Project Management Skills

Every project manager role is different, depending on the industry. But there are a handful of skills that nearly every project manager needs to succeed and see projects through to completion, on time and on budget. 

First, the hard skills. 

Hard Skills for Project Managers

1. Budgeting and cost management: The ability to create and manage project budgets, including estimating costs, tracking expenses, and optimizing resource allocation to keep projects within budget.
2. Schedule management: Proficiency in developing project schedules, setting timelines, identifying critical path activities, and managing dependencies to ensure timely delivery of project milestones and completion.
3. Risk management: The ability to identify potential risks, assess their impact and probability, develop risk mitigation strategies, and monitor risk throughout the project lifecycle to minimize disruptions and achieve project success.
4. Quality management: Expertise in defining quality standards, implementing quality assurance processes, overseeing quality control, and ensuring that project deliverables meet or exceed stakeholder expectations.
5. Technical expertise: Depending on the nature of the project, project managers may require technical knowledge and proficiency in specific tools, technologies, or methodologies relevant to their industry or field of work.
6. Contract management: The ability to negotiate and manage contracts with vendors, suppliers, or subcontractors, ensuring that contractual agreements are met, and deliverables are completed according to specifications and within budget.
7. Scope management: Proficiency in defining project scope, documenting requirements, managing scope changes, and ensuring that project deliverables align with stakeholder expectations and organizational objectives.
8. Resource management: The skill to identify and allocate resources — such as personnel, time, equipment, and materials — to support project activities, optimize productivity, and minimize resource conflicts.
9. Data analysis and reporting: Competency in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting project data to generate insights, track progress, measure performance against key metrics, and communicate project status to stakeholders.
10. Knowledge of regulatory compliance: Depending on the industry or project type, project managers may need to have knowledge of relevant regulations, standards, and compliance requirements to confirm that projects adhere to legal and regulatory guidelines throughout their lifecycle.

Looking to deepen your knowledge? Check out our Project Management Bootcamp certificate! >

Bear in mind that many of these skills require a combination of other abilities, some innate and some acquired. Many of them can also be learned and honed on the job! That said, it takes a certain kind of person to become a talented project manager, especially one who has or can cultivate a number of interpersonal or “soft” skills.

Soft Skills for Project Managers

1. Leadership: The ability to inspire, motivate, and guide team members towards common goals, fostering a positive and collaborative work environment while providing direction and support.
2. Communication: Verbal and written communication skills are essential for project managers to convey ideas, instructions, expectations, and feedback clearly and concisely to team members, stakeholders, and other project participants.
3. Team management: The skills to build, develop, and manage high-performing project teams, including delegating tasks, empowering team members, resolving conflicts, and fostering a culture of collaboration and accountability.
4. Problem-solving: Project managers need strong problem-solving skills to identify issues, analyze root causes, develop solutions, and implement corrective actions to overcome obstacles and keep projects on track.
5. Decision-making: The ability to make timely and informed decisions based on available information, critical analysis, and consideration of potential risks and consequences.
6. Negotiation: Proficiency in negotiation techniques and strategies is crucial for project managers to resolve conflicts, reach agreements, and manage expectations among stakeholders with competing interests or priorities.
7. Relationship management: Establishing and managing relationships with various stakeholders, including clients, sponsors, team members, and external partners, to ensure alignment with project objectives and foster support for project initiatives.
8. Adaptability: The capability to adapt to changing project requirements, priorities, and circumstances while remaining flexible, resilient, and proactive in adjusting plans and strategies to address evolving needs and challenges.
9. Emotional intelligence: Project managers with high emotional intelligence can empathize with team members, understand their perspectives and concerns, manage emotions, and build strong relationships based on trust, respect, and empathy.
10. Time management: Effective time management skills enable project managers to prioritize tasks, allocate resources efficiently, and optimize productivity to meet project deadlines and deliverables while balancing competing demands and priorities.

10 Best Project Management Tools for 2024

Project managers rely heavily on their team members to execute projects to scope — as important as their jobs are, they don’t operate in a vacuum! They also frequently utilize digital tools to help them stay organized and on track, ensuring crucial project details don’t fall through the cracks. 

Some of the most popular project management tools include:

• Trello: Known for its simplicity and flexibility, Trello is a favorite project management tool that uses boards, lists, and cards to help teams organize and prioritize tasks.
• Asana: Asana is a comprehensive project management tool that enables teams to create tasks, set deadlines, collaborate on projects, and track progress. It offers features such as task dependencies, calendars, and project timelines.
• Jira: Jira is widely used in software development projects but can be adapted to various industries. It helps teams plan, track, and manage projects, issues, and tasks by breaking them down into distinct phases and emphasizing continuous improvement at each step.
• Basecamp: Basecamp is a popular project management and collaboration tool that offers features such as to-do lists, file sharing, messaging, scheduling, and document storage. It’s widely used across many industries and is known for its user-friendly interface and suitability for remote teams.
• Microsoft Project: Microsoft Project software provides tools for creating project plans, scheduling tasks, managing resources, and tracking progress. It is most suitable for complex projects with intricate dependencies.

Many of today’s best project management tools leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to help project managers become even more effective on the job. For example, Microsoft Project has started integrating AI capabilities into its platform to provide predictive insights, optimize resource allocation, and automate scheduling.

Other AI-driven project management tools include:

• Forecast: The Forecast platform uses AI to predict project timelines, resource allocation, and budget estimates based on historical data, team performance, and project parameters.
• Monday.com: Monday.com integrates AI-powered features such as automations, smart notifications, and data insights to streamline project workflows, automate repetitive tasks, and provide real-time insights into project progress and performance.
• Clarizen: Clarizen is a project management software that incorporates AI-driven analytics and forecasting capabilities to help project managers make data-driven decisions, identify risks, and optimize resource allocation.
• Wrike: Wrike uses machine learning algorithms to analyze project data, identify patterns, and suggest recommendations for optimizing project processes and performance.
• Smartsheet: Smartsheet integrates AI-driven features such as automated workflows, resource management, and predictive analytics to streamline project execution and collaboration. 

Asana has introduced features such as Asana Automation, which enables users to automate repetitive tasks and workflows using rules-based triggers. While not strictly AI in the traditional sense, it does offer some level of automation based on predefined conditions, which is a step toward leveraging AI for project management. 

Trello, Jira, and Basecamp do not currently have built-in AI features, but the landscape of project management tools is continuously evolving. These platforms may soon introduce AI-driven functionalities to stay competitive and address the evolving needs of project managers and their teams.

How to Develop Your Project Management Skills

No aspiring project manager starts off knowing exactly how to execute contracts or ensure quality control for a specific industry. Many of the best project managers learn by doing, often while performing more technical tasks as part of a project execution team. For example, a software engineer can advance from production team member to team leader to large-scale project manager as they develop new skills or identify new competencies over their career. 

If project management is your ultimate goal, there are several pathways you can take to learn and develop the necessary skills — not to mention gain the professional credentials to prove your abilities. 

• Formal project management education: Consider pursuing a degree or certification in project management from an accredited institution or professional organization such as Project Management Institute (PMI) or PRINCE2.
• Online courses and webinars: Enrolling in online courses, webinars, or virtual workshops offered by educational platforms, industry associations, or training providers can help project managers learn specific skills or stay up-to-date on industry trends and best practices.
• Books and publications: Reading books, articles, blogs, and industry publications related to project management can provide insights, tips, and strategies for improving your skills and staying informed about new developments in the profession.
• Networking: Participating in professional networking events, conferences, seminars, and workshops enables project managers to connect with peers, share experiences, exchange ideas, and learn from others’ perspectives.
• Mentorship and coaching: Seek guidance and mentorship from experienced project managers or coaches for personalized advice, feedback, and support for professional development and skill enhancement.
• On-the-job experience: Perhaps the most informal educational path, aspiring project managers can gain hands-on experience by leading projects in their own workplace or chosen industry. This way, you can apply theoretical knowledge, develop practical skills, and learn from real-world challenges and successes.
• Feedback and self-assessment: Solicit feedback from colleagues, supervisors, team members, and stakeholders to identify strengths and areas for improvement and tailor your learning and development efforts accordingly.

No matter which path you take, commit to adopting a mindset of continuous learning and improvement by actively seeking opportunities to acquire new knowledge, skills, and experiences. This approach fosters personal and professional growth and enhances your effectiveness as a project manager.

Take the next step in your career and consider the Project Management Certificate offered by the University of San Diego’s Division of Professional and Continuing Education. This four-course, self-paced program is offered 100% online, so busy working professionals can complete it on their own schedules. Built upon the standard Project Management Institute (PMI)® methodology, the program helps project managers sharpen their existing skills and discover proven strategies for executing top-quality projects. 

For more information about this practical professional certificate program, explore the course list and learning outcomes today.