The management team and much of the staff does not understand or respect the project management profession. There’s a strong cultural mindset that “anyone can do project management,” which is reflected in low pay, no recognition for achievements, and no development.
Ironically, while they require project managers to have 5+ years of experience and prefer certifications like a PMP, leadership within the PMO (including the manager and director) has very limited project management experience (great managers, but lack perspective).
There is little to no investment in the PMO, and there are minimal opportunities for growth or mentorship. Most learning is self-driven or dependent on support from other PMs.
Workloads are excessive, with each PM managing 6–10 highly complex projects at once. This leads to constant firefighting, handling urgent issues, compensating for missed deadlines from R&D, and working around poor coordination across teams. In addition, implementation management struggles with accountability and execution, which further increases the burden on project managers.
Overall, the environment is highly stressful and unsustainable. I would not recommend roles such as Project Manager, Client Relations Manager, or Account Manager.
