How to be a Freelance Project Manager

Project Management is one of the hottest career options out there. Project managers earn big bucks and occupy positions of repute in an organisation. However, what stands out about the profile of work is the fact that freelancers can more or less enjoy similar perks along with the added benefit of working from the comfort of your home.
One group of project managers’ freelance fulltime. The other group freelances by the side and often works out of a need to earn extra money. However, what both groups must realise is that Project management is a well-paying career option and you can earn more than designers earn as a project manager.

Job Duties for Freelance Project Manager

You will have to fulfil many roles as a freelance project manager. You must be willing to take on duties that are similar to a fulltime engagement, albeit from the comfort of your living room. Project management is an important position in an organisation and you should be extra careful about the quality of work you turn in, and the deliverables you set for the liaising teams should be clear and concise. Some general duties that you will undertake/or be responsible for, as a project manager will include:

• Agreeing project objectives
• Representing the client’s interest
• Providing independent advice on the management of projects
• Organising the various professional people working on a project
• Risk assessment
• Making sure that all the aims of the project are met
• Making sure the quality standards are met
• Using the latest it to keep track of people and progress
• Recruiting specialists and sub-contractors
• Monitoring sub-contractors to ensure guidelines are maintained
• Accounting, costing and billing.

Skills:

As a Freelance project manager, there are many skills that you must perfect and be adept at to garner success. Project management is a skillset which is in demand and offers a more rewarding alternative to daily run-of-the-mill office work in the freelance segment. Thus, you need to develop some skills and hone them to a razor’s edge. Some of the important skills include:

• Be highly organised and be able to multitask
• Be a leader and take charge
• Be an effective communicator
• Be a good negotiator
• Be detail oriented
• Recognise and solve problems quickly
• Posses the necessary knowledge of platforms, technologies etc.

There are many websites, forums, and videos that can teach you project management online.
Lynda, Pmi.org, Stanford.edu, UWaterloo and Telegraph offer many free, paid-for courses that teach you the basics of Project Management and you can take on many certification programs and become a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM).

Finding work:

As a Project manager there are many small scale, medium and even large organisations that may have a use for your talents. Many websites offer jobs for project management. As a project manager you can find many freelancer opportunities. Odesk, Peopleperhour, Elance and Freelancerare some of the popular websites offering job opportunities to project managers like you.

Being successful as a Project Manager:

As a freelance project manager, your success can be determined by the kind of reputation you boast off, and how employers rate you. Like other freelancers the initial bedding in period that you will face can be tough and very new, however, there are steps you can take to ensure success as a project manager. Some of them, include:

• Being able to market your services and creating a Social Media presence
• Creating a responsive network, one which you can leverage to find projects and extra work
• Problem solving skills
• Ability to work under pressure, and to strict deadlines
• An understanding of the industry

Average Remunerations:

Usually freelance portals offer various kinds of payment models. In the fixed-price model, the price is usually pre-determined. The hourly model is the most popular and employers usually pay a predetermined sum per hour. Finally, in the project-budget based model, you often need to auction for such projects. Usually a fixed price model may range from $20- $200 and upwards, while you have to pitch for hourly projects, and budget payments, which usually range from $5- $35 an hour. Project Managers usually earn $28 an hour.

Resources:

Lynda, Pmi.org, Stanford.edu, UWaterloo and Telegraph offer many free, paid-for courses that teach you the basics of Project Management and you can take on many certification programs and become a Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM).