Gender disparities between male and female Project Managers continue to persist in the Project Management sector – and it is women who experience the majority of these challenges.
New research has revealed the professional working experiences of women in Project Management.
This has shone a global spotlight on the gender imbalances that continue to persist and affect women in Project Management careers.
For one, a gender gap exists between the number of women and men working in Project Management. The report makes this very clear. We will explore the numbers related to this later in this blog.
The research also highlights the importance of upskilling in the sector to support women’s transition into Project Management roles earlier in their careers.
This post will explore these fascinating findings surrounding women in Project Management. We will uncover what these findings mean for women working in this profession.
Let’s examine the research and insights in this post to understand what they reveal about the experiences of women project managers globally.
We’ll do this by studying the stats and figures that tell a story about the global Project Management sector.
Sub-Saharan Africa, North America, and China report the lowest gender gaps in this report.
| Region | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|
|
Middle East/North Africa |
8% |
91% |
|
Asia Pacific |
14% |
85% |
|
South Asia |
15% |
84% |
|
Europe |
24% |
74% |
|
Latin America |
24% |
75% |
|
China |
25% |
71% |
|
Sub-Saharan Africa |
29% |
71% |
|
North America |
39% |
57% |
Source: PMI Annual Global Survey on Project Management, 2022
Key takeaway: Organisations that build project teams with diversity in perspectives, ideas, gender, race, and sexual orientation, among others, are more likely to build strong and capable teams to serve their project needs and objectives.
Worldwide, women are paid 20% less than men for the same job! This is despite the fact that their roles are of equal value.
These are findings by the United Nations.
This research reveals startling figures that female Project Managers earn less in every country they work in compared to their male counterparts.
Key takeaway: The gender pay gap poses a significant threat to building an equitable workplace that rewards people’s skills, knowledge, and contributions accordingly. Pay transparency measures can be implemented to identify compensation discrepancies. This can help reduce gender imbalances in the labour market.
We found this insight into the Project Management Methodologies used by women versus men particularly interesting.
In terms of industry-recognised approaches, Agile Project Management is one of the world’s most widely used Project Management Methodologies, along with PRINCE2.
These are considered the two most commonly practised Project Management frameworks by professionals globally.
The research shows that women are more likely to work for organisations that apply agile and hybrid approaches to their projects.
Men, however, use traditional and waterfall approaches in their work more than other approaches. They are also more likely to work for companies that use these approaches.
The stats:
– 7.3% of female Project Managers work in organisations that are led by Agile Project Management thinking.
– 10.1% of female project managers work in organisations that use a Hybrid Project Management approach.
Key takeaway: Female Project Managers are adaptable and are not afraid to experiment with a combination of approaches to achieve project goals and organisational objectives.
Women working in the Project Management sector regard power skills highly. Power skills are made up of the following;
– Communication
– Problem-solving
– Strategic thinking
– Collaborative leadership
Power skills refer to a set of behaviours and abilities that project professionals need to possess. These skills enable them to work well with others and successfully deliver projects.
The following table reveals how women value power skills slightly more than men do.
| Power Skill | Female | Male |
|---|---|---|
|
Strategic thinking |
59% |
56% |
|
Collaborative leadership |
64% |
60% |
|
Problem-solving |
64% |
63% |
|
Communication |
68% |
67% |
Source: PMI Annual Global Survey on Project Management, 2022
Key takeaway: Female Project Managers recognise and lean into what’s considered their profession’s “soft skills” more than male Project Managers. Doing this helps them build high-performing teams capable of achieving project and strategic objectives.
We see some positive numbers regarding the progress of women into leadership roles within Project Management.
Data shows that 20% of women are in some kind of management role, compared to 23% of men.
We see positives with this data as, despite the gaps in earnings, gender and work experience show considerable progress is taking place in affording women opportunities to advance their careers into leadership positions.
Key takeaway: Although gender imbalances exist in the sector, women are being afforded management and leadership opportunities. Hiring managers should emphasise the opportunity to move into leadership positions for women when looking to attract female talent.
An “accidental” Project Manager, as the name implies, is someone who starts out in a non-Project Management role but, over time, pivots to project work that requires the skills of a project management professional.
They are professionals who get assigned the role due to their company/industry knowledge, technical expertise, interpersonal skills, and other factors.
Women tend to have fewer years of Project Management experience (9.8 for women -11.4 for men) and are less likely to have a degree in project management (37% of women – 42% of men).
This report claims that women are often “accidental” Project Managers, starting their careers in different fields only to be introduced to the sector at some point.
Key takeaway: Project Management certifications are an ideal way of introducing female employees to the project management sector earlier in their careers.
Certifications and courses in Project Management help you acquire the skills and knowledge to work in the project management sector; they also demonstrate your value to potential employers and colleagues.
We recommend the Agile Project Management and PRINCE2 qualifications to people interested in pursuing a project management career and one day becoming a Project Manager.
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