UKC

Having had time to reflect and take stock of the job market.

I noticed that in positions where the work was similar and repetitive, i became bored and unmotivated.

When given the chance to get involved in projects it give me a new lease of life in work. I would quite like to go down this route.

What is the best way to get involved in projects?
What are people experience of work/managing projects?

In reply to goldmember:

Working in project work is a bit like saying you want to work in the NHS. There are lots of different types of project. However, one way might be to contract in whatever field you are in. Alas, you might end up having to be a bit flexible geographically, but on the plus side, you are working for yourself, the pay is usually significantly better (provided you don't get ill or take holidays) and you can jump ship if things don't work out without new employers taking too dim a view of you.

It is worth having a bit of a cash buffer though. I found that I didn't get paid for two months due to the invoicing period and of course you can be canned pretty quickly so might need some cash to carry you to the next contract.

In reply to goldmember:

I love it. Similar to you, I could never feel the value in shifting things from the in tray to the out tray - not to say there isn't, but I didn't gain satisfaction from being a cog in a machine. I work as a Project Engineer for National Grid, with my projects being replacement of ageing HV system assets and installation of all new HV assets as a means of extending/reinforcing the HV network. My involvement in project cycles is typically 2-4 years for medium sized projects and I see them from high-level design, to development, to pricing/tender/contract award, and then work with contractors through detailed design, installation and close-out. I can have anything from 1-5 on the go, dependent on workflow and it can be a lot of responsibility, but ultimately satisfying to see something from a paragraph on a Word document to a physical installation being commissioned.

I went through a National Grid training programme, so quite specific and possibly not much help, dependent on your background/qualifications, but I can't see myself outside of project-based work now.

In reply to goldmember:

I enjoyed IT Project Management and was involved in the hardware side rather than the software side of things but the work often involved managing both. Get your self a PM qualification. Prince 2 is good and opens up the market for you as lots of Government and big corporates use it. Lots of people say they "project manage" but formal project management is a whole different ball game. It can be very stressful and frustrating but is ultimately satisfying. It is also advantageous if you have experience in the industry that you want to manage. I could earn £450/day as a PM contractor on a high value project and that was 5 or 6 years ago. Good luck.

In reply to goldmember:

If you want advice on Rail projects I can help. Personally I avoid them (too much like hard work) and stick to small scale local projects if I can!

In reply to goldmember:

"Projects" can mean anything, from the miniscule to managing things like £15bn Crossrail or the Olympics. Projects are generally about managing time, cost, quality, resource and risk. In many domains engineering/system engineering or review life-cycles are important to understand. If you want to get into project management APM could be a source of advice, and read the APM body of knowledge.