Bridging the Project Management Skills Gap: Strategies for Success

Bringing a team together does not ensure project success. In fact, with the wrong or missing skills within a project team, a project can be delayed at best, with the additional potential of mounting costs, missed deadlines, unsatisfied customers, poor morale, and more. The best project teams bring together the people with the right skills for the work at hand, including project management skills. The size of the skills gap between each project’s goals and the skill set of the assigned project team impacts organizational success. A project manager can conduct a project management skills gap analysis to inform an action plan and help the team complete the project successfully.

On this page:

• Understanding what the skills gap is
• How to Conduct a Skills Gap Analysis
• Impact of the Skills Gap on Projects
• Strategies to Bridge the Skills Gap
• Conclusion

Understanding The Skills Gap

Skills gap is the term used to refer to the difference in ability and knowledge of what the employee has to what is needed to meet the requirements of a job. A skills gap can occur for many reasons. For example:

• Someone may be in a role for which the requirements have changed, and they no longer have the necessary skills to do the job.
• Someone may be in a role and be working to gain the skills needed for a more senior position.
• Someone may be in a role due to reorganization or organizational changes and need to gain the skills to perform the work.

The term “project management skills gap” applies to a project team and project manager working on an assigned project. The project manager may bring years of experience and multiple project management certifications to the effort. Still, the project team is only set for success if project management skills are prevalent across the organization.

The project management skills gap happens within the project team when team members have skill gaps in the knowledge and abilities needed for the assigned project. With a lack of understanding of project management methodologies, risk management, stakeholder management, quality control, and other business acumen areas, project team members can hinder progress or unintentionally cause delays, increase costs, and prevent deliverables from meeting goals.

How to Conduct a Skills Gap Analysis

A skills gap analysis, typically conducted by a human resources team member or in the training function, is crucial in addressing the project management skills gap. A project manager can use the same four core steps that human resources or training would use to assess skills across the workforce. This analysis helps identify the skills and certifications needed for the project, assess the existing skills of the team members, identify skill gaps, and prioritize them based on their impact on the project.

1. Confirm the skills and certifications needed for the project. These can include soft skills (people skills) and technical skills. Depending on the project, team members may require specific certification types to complete, verify, or certify work products.
2. Assess the existing skills of the project team members. Evaluate your project team’s current project management skill levels through self-assessments, peer reviews, performance reviews, and skill assessments. Talk with the team before the assessment effort so that they know the reason for it and the outcome will support their skill growth. Failing to be upfront about a project-driven skills assessment can cause misunderstandings and mistrust within your team if they interpret it as connected to job performance and security instead of helping the team gain project management skills.
3. Identify skill gaps among the project team members. Use the information from step one (needed skills) and step two (existing skills) to find where there is a gap. The more complex projects will likely have more needed skills and wider skill gaps.
4. Prioritize gaps based on their impact on the project. After listing known skills gaps, assess each regarding the potential impact on project success and desired outcomes. Include project management skills and knowledge in this step. The deliverable is a prioritized listing of the highest project management skills and expertise needed. Include project management or other certification needs as well.
5. Develop an Action Plan to Address Skill Gaps: Based on the prioritized listing of project management skills needs and any required type of certification, create an action plan to address gaps incorporating training types, timelines, and costs.

An organization that prioritizes project management skills gap analysis and implements resulting action plans is better equipped to meet the demands of complex projects. This approach leads to a workforce with the most sought-after project management skills, ensuring improved project outcomes and organizational success.

Impact of the Skills Gap on Projects

The correlation between project management skills and organizational success is evident in the stories of great wins and examples of losses.

• IBM addressed its project management skills gap so that the project could transition to a services-oriented business model with targeted training projects, mentoring initiatives, and certifications. The result was a workforce able to reach project goals and satisfied customers.
• Siemens identified its project management skills gap and created the Siemens Learning Campus to deliver tailored training programs and classes. A workforce with stronger project management skills resulted in sustained competitive advantage and operational excellence.

No industry is immune to cost overruns, timeline delays, or project failures from a skill deficiency within the project team. For example:

• The Denver International Airport’s automated baggage handling system was shut down after hundreds of millions of dollars were spent. The project failed due to the team’s lack of technical and project management skills.
• The UK’s NHS National Programme for IT created a centralized digital medical records system. Ten years after the planned launch and £10 billion later, the project’s failures were connected to a project management skills gap.

Team members who have a solid understanding of project management and the necessary skills to perform their roles effectively contribute significantly to a project’s success. An organization that recognizes the value of project management skills within any project team role will have more positive project outcomes, instilling confidence in the team and the organization’s ability to deliver.

Strategies to Bridge the Skills Gap

The last step of the analysis, the “Action Plan to Address Skill Gaps,” should include a combination of learning resources and training types to most effectively build the project team’s technical skill set, soft skills, and project management skill set.

• Cross-Training and Job Rotation
• Formal Education and Certification (e.g., PMP, PMI-ACP)
• Industry Associations
• Leadership Training
• Mentoring and Coaching
• Online Courses and E-Learning
• On-the-Job Training
• Peer Groups and Networking Groups (e.g. LinkedIn groups)
• Workshops and Conferences

The work to reduce or eliminate the skill gaps signals employees that the organization values growth and learning and opens up opportunities for personal growth and career advancement. This helps reduce employee turnover and increase employee morale at a project and organizational level while also fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

Enable Project Management Skill Growth through Technology

Project management skills can be best developed by blending certification work, education, and on-the-job practice. These learning development activities can be achieved through technology, for instance:

• Gamification: leverage online challenges, leaderboards, and rewards to motivate learning
• Project Management Courses: use Project Management Institute’s (PMI)®’s Authorized Training Partners (ATP) range of online training with live instructors, online courses, and practice exams
• Project Management Software: learn industry-standard products, including Microsoft Project, Asana, Trello, and Jira
• Communication: incorporate communication technologies in day-to-day operations to enhance knowledge sharing, team building, and collaboration (e.g. Slack, Microsoft Teams)

Traditional project management (waterfall) and Agile methodologies have related certifications requiring formal education, work experience, and knowledge assessment. Technology tools for knowledge sharing, communication, training, and skill building can augment the work necessary to earn certifications.

Building a Culture of Continuous Improvement

An organizational culture of continuous improvement that encourages team members to continuously seek knowledge, grow new skills, and update existing skills is better positioned to remain competitive. There must be specific resources and activities available to the organization to realize that mindset within a project, such as:

• Access to Training Resources
• Feedback and Reflection
• Knowledge Sharing
• Leadership Support of Learning Activities
• Budgetary Support of Certification and Related Educational Efforts
• Peer Learning Communities

A mechanism for employee feedback and performance monitoring that informs needed changes should exist to maximize the effectiveness of the different improvement efforts.

Conclusion

Organizations should provide a range of learning resources, including training and development programs, certifications, project management and communication technologies, mentoring, and online courses, to enable a continuous improvement environment. Project Managers should conduct skills gap analyses to ascertain any potential skill gaps within a project team and, from there, create an action plan that leverages organizational skill development resources. Investing in skill growth better positions the project team for success and fosters talent retention and morale across the organization.