Boosting Your Worth at Work

As a PMP, you know you’re already doing important work. You manage projects from start to finish. You wrangle resources. You (try to) make deadlines and work within budgetary constraints. Hopefully your organization sees your value and rewards you for it. But let’s face it – everyone can be under-appreciated at work, most of all your friendly neighborhood Project Management Professional.

But it never helps to think critically about how to make sure that your organization understands you’re as indispensable as you know you are. As detailed at Lifehacker.com:

Work on Projects with high visibility

Ask your boss if there are any big projects you can work on. [Emphasis mine] It may come off like you’re sucking up, but the key is to keep the conversation focused on your desire to work on something with impact and something that your skills would be a good match for. The key is to maintain “continuous visible productivity,” as former recruiter Dominic Connor explains to The Register. The people who survive a round of layoffs are the ones that managers can’t see themselves progressing on important projects without.

Make sure your priorities are you boss’s (or your department’s priorities)

If you’re not sure what your department’s priorities are, ask! You boss or manager should be able to tell you which projects are the ones that are most important to them or to your team’s success. Worst case, pay attention at your next department or company meeting. If you look between the buzzwords, you should be able to tell which projects or initiatives are the ones that are most important. Then look for ways to work on those priorities first.

Jump in to new projects and new products. With your skills as a PMP, you should be able to handle the political and logistical issues that crop up with these new challenges. Ask about global opportunities if that’s applicable to your organization.

Get training to boost your skills, and pick the right skills to boost

Beyond being smart about the things you choose to work on (and the things you choose to work on first, if you don’t have control over your workload), the best way to make yourself indispensable at the office is to learn skills that are in high demand. Find your niche, or a subject area that you can become the team expert in.

Now, I know what you’re thinking – “I already got my PMP Certification!” But you know full well it doesn’t end there. Attend webinars, participate in Communities of Practice that are related to your current field or job function. Talk to your boss and your coworkers about what you’re learning.

Keep your resume up to date, and keep other job prospects in your pocket

As you build those skills and work on those high-flying projects, don’t forget to keep your resume up to date, and keep your feelers out for other opportunities. Even if you’re not planning to leave your job, you should always keep your options open.

You may be perfectly happy at your current organization. But the days of staying at one company for forty years and then retiring with a fat pension and an expensive gold watch are gone. And good riddance to such complacency. You worked (or are working) hard for your PMP certification, to hone your skills and make yourself valuable. Remember your worth.