Lindsay Scott is the director of program and
project management recruitment at Arras People
in London, England
experiences they require. Start by looking at the
job boards and researching the prominent organizations in that country that hire project managers.
Next, contact PMI or look on PMI.org under
the Get Involved tab and find out if that country
has a PMI chapter. Luckily for you, PMI has chapters in more than 90 countries, so there likely will
be a chapter there or at least in that region. This
will instantly grant you access to the local project
management community—enabling you to get
rapidly acclimated. You might also consider volunteering for a PMI chapter, which would help you
quickly build a network.
You can even start applying for positions in
your new country. Recruitment sometimes can
take a long time, so there is no harm in starting
early. This also will give you some early insight
into the recruitment process in your new country,
which you can use to readjust your approach with
the next opportunity.
Q: I’m returning to work after raising
my children for several years. I want
to get my project management career
back on track, but I’m feeling a little
out of the loop. What steps should I
be taking?
A: Project managers have two attributes that make
them worth hiring: their knowledge and their
experience.
First, make sure your knowledge is up-to-date.
Get up to speed with the latest training, qualifications and industry news. Also, there are many
free online resources and blogs that will help you
focus on the areas that matter most to you. As you
immerse yourself, you probably will find that your
confidence level will begin to rise, and that out-of-the-loop feeling will start to dissipate.
The second part, experience, may not be as
easy since hirers tend to look for project practitioners with recent experience. Still, all is not lost.
Start by being realistic about expectations; acknowledge that you likely will
not be getting back into work at the
same level as before. Look for positions
where you feel comfortable you could
perform well, that meet your remuneration needs and for which you have
enough relevant experience to warrant
the hirer’s interest.
A third area, which is often overlooked, is your network. Get back in
touch with old colleagues; attend chapter meetings; connect with other project practitioners in
your area. Most people find work through their
network—so make sure you’re proactively engaging with yours. PM
Consider
Your Career
Don’t travel down
your career path
alone. Find advice
and direction here.
Send job questions
to pmnetwork@
imaginepub.com.
