Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Operations manager to project manager

An operations manager already meets 61% of what the project manager role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From operations manager
61 % overlap
Strong match
To project manager
36 You already bring
11 Still to learn
68 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Real move, short list to learn

51.1/ 100

1 How much of what a project manager is expected to do is already part of an operations manager’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the project manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A project manager role treats 25 of its required skills as things an operations manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • build business relationships
  • control of expenses
  • create project specifications
  • ensure equipment availability
  • ensure equipment maintenance
  • establish daily priorities

What stands in the way is 11 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 36 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A project manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an operations manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held manage several projects management skills
  • already held manage project information information skills
  • already held manage standard enterprise resource planning system working with computers
  • already held manage project metrics information skills
  • already held insourcing strategy business, administration and law
  • already held outsourcing strategy business, administration and law

All 36 carried skills, including the 25 the project manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 32 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 management skills 3 required, 4 supplementary
  • still to learn customise project methodologies required
  • still to learn manage project changes required
  • still to learn organise project meetings required
  • optional, not held design wayside signalling interlockings optional
  • optional, not held develop business plans optional
  • optional, not held find a replacement for stage manager optional
  • optional, not held plan schedule optional
02 business, administration and law 2 required, 11 supplementary
  • still to learn project management methodology (PM²) required
  • still to learn project management principles required
  • optional, not held program management optional
  • optional, not held Agile project management optional
  • optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
  • optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
  • optional, not held lean project management optional
  • optional, not held legal studies optional
  • optional, not held office administration optional
  • optional, not held total quality control optional
  • optional, not held business processes optional
  • optional, not held project configuration management optional
  • optional, not held risk identification optional
03 information skills 2 required, 2 supplementary
  • still to learn identify legal requirements required
  • still to learn perform PESTEL analysis required
  • optional, not held analyse business plans optional
  • optional, not held maintain a central project repository optional
04 communication, collaboration and creativity 2 required, 1 supplementary
  • still to learn apply conflict management required
  • still to learn draft project documentation required
  • optional, not held use communication techniques optional
05 assisting and caring 1 required
  • still to learn ensure compliance with legal requirements required
06 generic programmes and qualifications 1 required
  • still to learn communication principles required

2 further areas in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a project manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 36 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held build business relationships skill
  • already held control of expenses skill
  • already held create project specifications skill
  • already held ensure equipment availability skill
  • already held ensure equipment maintenance skill
  • already held establish daily priorities skill
  • already held estimate duration of work skill
  • already held follow company standards skill
  • already held internal risk management policy knowledge
  • already held liaise with managers skill
  • already held manage budgets skill
  • already held manage logistics skill
  • already held manage project information skill
  • already held manage project metrics skill
  • already held manage staff skill
  • already held manage supplies skill
  • already held negotiate with stakeholders skill
  • already held perform project management skill
  • already held perform resource planning skill
  • already held perform risk analysis skill
  • already held project management knowledge
  • already held provide cost benefit analysis reports skill
  • already held supervise daily information operations skill
  • already held train employees skill
  • already held write work-related reports skill
  • already held apply change management skill
  • already held corporate social responsibility knowledge
  • already held create a financial report skill
  • already held insourcing strategy knowledge
  • already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
  • already held manage several projects skill
  • already held manage standard enterprise resource planning system skill
  • already held outsourcing strategy knowledge
  • already held quality assurance methodologies knowledge
  • already held recruit employees skill
  • already held strive for company growth skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 natural sciences, mathematics and statistics 2 supplementary
  • optional, not held mathematics optional
  • optional, not held statistics optional
08 engineering, manufacturing and construction 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
21 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held program management optional
  • optional, not held Agile project management optional
  • optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
  • optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
  • optional, not held design wayside signalling interlockings optional
  • optional, not held develop business plans optional
  • optional, not held find a replacement for stage manager optional
  • optional, not held lean project management optional
  • optional, not held legal studies optional
  • optional, not held office administration optional
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
  • optional, not held total quality control optional
  • optional, not held analyse business plans optional
  • optional, not held business processes optional
  • optional, not held maintain a central project repository optional
  • optional, not held mathematics optional
  • optional, not held plan schedule optional
  • optional, not held project configuration management optional
  • optional, not held risk identification optional
  • optional, not held statistics optional
  • optional, not held use communication techniques optional
55 held skills the project manager role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role accounting knowledge
  • not needed by the target role adhere to organisational guidelines skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on efficiency improvements skill
  • not needed by the target role advise on utility consumption skill
  • not needed by the target role align efforts towards business development skill
  • not needed by the target role assess financial viability skill
  • not needed by the target role assess supplier risks skill
  • not needed by the target role budget for financial needs skill
  • not needed by the target role contract law knowledge
  • not needed by the target role control financial resources skill
  • not needed by the target role create solutions to problems skill
  • not needed by the target role database quality standards knowledge
  • not needed by the target role develop business case skill
  • not needed by the target role develop revenue generation strategies skill
  • not needed by the target role develop staff skill
  • not needed by the target role employment law knowledge
  • not needed by the target role energy conservation knowledge
  • not needed by the target role estimate profitability skill
  • not needed by the target role evaluate employees skill
  • not needed by the target role evaluate project plans skill
  • not needed by the target role facilities management in the organisation knowledge
  • not needed by the target role handle customer complaints skill
  • not needed by the target role impart business plans to collaborators skill
  • not needed by the target role implement corporate governance skill
  • not needed by the target role information confidentiality knowledge
  • not needed by the target role interpret financial statements skill
  • not needed by the target role liaise with government officials skill
  • not needed by the target role maintain customer service skill
  • not needed by the target role maintain relationship with customers skill
  • not needed by the target role make data-driven decisions skill
  • not needed by the target role make investment decisions skill
  • not needed by the target role make strategic business decisions skill
  • not needed by the target role manage facilities services skill
  • not needed by the target role manage maintenance operations skill
  • not needed by the target role manage major incidents skill
  • not needed by the target role manage profitability skill
  • not needed by the target role manufacturing processes knowledge
  • not needed by the target role meet deadlines skill
  • not needed by the target role negotiate terms with suppliers skill
  • not needed by the target role operations management knowledge

15 further entries not listed here

17 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn communication principles required
  • still to learn project management methodology (PM²) required
  • still to learn project management principles required
  • optional, not held program management optional
  • optional, not held Agile project management optional
  • optional, not held Prince2 project management optional
  • optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
  • optional, not held lean project management optional
  • optional, not held legal studies optional
  • optional, not held office administration optional
  • optional, not held quantity surveying optional
  • optional, not held total quality control optional
  • optional, not held business processes optional
  • optional, not held mathematics optional
  • optional, not held project configuration management optional
  • optional, not held risk identification optional
  • optional, not held statistics optional
Index

Other moves recorded from operations manager

Full index of moves from operations manager

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can an operations manager become a project manager?

Yes, and it is a moderate move. An operations manager already covers 61% of what a project manager is expected to do: 36 skills carry over, 25 of which the project manager role treats as required.

What skills does an operations manager need to become a project manager?

11 required skills are missing, plus 21 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is apply conflict management.

How hard is the move from operations manager to project manager?

Its learning distance is 51.1 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.