Effective Ways to Hire High-Quality Project Managers

The role of a skilled project manager is like the cornerstone of a well-constructed building. A project manager provides structure and support, ensuring that a project stands tall and reaches its goals. It’s no wonder that hiring the right person is a decision that can make or break your project’s success, and even that of your company.

Yet, finding the digital project managers to achieve those vital wins can be challenging. Finding the right mix of leadership abilities and technical skills is no easy task, but it is made easier with a sensible blueprint.

Let’s unlock the guiding principles for hiring a great project manager in the UK.

Define Your Needs

Before you even think about talking to candidates, it’s crucial to clearly define the role and its responsibilities. What specific qualities and skills are needed for the project? How does the client factor into how the project will be run? Being specific about the project’s scope and goals will allow you to stay on target and reduce time spent on unsuitable candidates.

Seek Relevant Experience

Experience is paramount for any technical project manager. PMs with a proven track record of effectively leading projects like yours will require less onboarding time, can adapt quickly and ultimately deliver better outcomes. Look for candidates who have successfully handled projects in your industry or niche.

Ask candidates about their experience managing projects of comparable size, complexity and objectives. Ensure you can gauge their familiarity with the tools your business is using, as this can significantly impact project success.

Assess Leadership and Communication Skills

Outstanding digital project managers have exceptional leadership and communication skills. They keep their teams motivated, navigate conflicts well and ensure everyone’s on the same page. To evaluate these skills, be sure to ask candidates questions that delve into their leadership style and how they handle challenging situations.

Conduct a Behavioural Interview

Behavioural interviews remain the gold standard for assessing a candidate’s past behaviour and predicting their future performance. Ask how they’ve managed specific situations in previous roles; this can reveal valuable insights into their problem-solving abilities and approach.

Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method during interviews to gain insights into a candidate’s experiences and decision-making process; this method helps you understand their project management ethos and problem-solving abilities.

Emphasise Adaptability and Tech Proficiency

Every technical project manager worth their salt stays updated with the latest trends and tools in their domain. Ask for examples of how they’ve applied their knowledge of specific languages, platforms and methodologies in previous situations. How did they adapt to a situation where they had to learn a new tool or environment?

Evaluate Problem-Solving Abilities

Unexpected challenges are guaranteed to appear in every project. A savvy project manager will plan ahead to anticipate these. Ask candidates about situations where they had to troubleshoot issues and overcome unforeseen obstacles.

Check References and Conduct Background Checks

Never underestimate the importance of checking employment references and conducting background screening. Candidates who impress in interviews can be undone by a thorough reference check, so it’s best not to skip this step, as it can help avoid major headaches later on.   

Assess Cultural Fit

Cultural fit is an essential consideration. A project manager should align with your organisation’s values and work effectively within your team’s dynamic. Interviews with candidates will reveal whether they will mesh with your team or not. Be sure to ask questions that uncover what motivates the candidate at work, their values and how they collaborate with others.

Leverage Specialised Recruitment Services

A thorough recruitment process for a project manager can take longer than expected. To minimise disruptions to productivity, engaging a tech recruitment specialist can help avoid project delays without sacrificing quality.

Experienced tech recruiters regularly identify and engage project managers for future opportunities, so using an agency can help you tap into these hidden talent networks. They can streamline the hiring process and connect you with high-quality candidates who meet your hiring criteria.

Mining for Details

A well-defined line of questioning will help determine if the person in front of you aligns with the one presented in their initial application or CV.

Here are some examples of effective interview questions for project managers:

• Describe a project you have managed in the past. What challenges did you encounter, and how did you overcome them?
• Can you tell us about a time you had to communicate a complex technical concept to a non-technical stakeholder or team member? How did you ensure effective communication and understanding?
• Can you describe your approach to understanding and aligning with the culture of a new team or company?
• Project managers often deal with tight deadlines and multiple priorities. How do you prioritise tasks and manage your time effectively to ensure project success?
• Tell me about a project where you had to adapt to significant changes in scope or requirements. How did you manage these changes, and what was the impact on the project’s success?
• How do you keep yourself informed about the latest trends, tools and methodologies that are specific to your work?

A Valuable Investment in Your Success

Hiring the right project manager will help your business achieve scale, keep costs under control and ensure team members are happy. You can’t afford to get this type of hire wrong, so why not get expert help?

Our digital and technology recruitment specialists are passionate about matching the right person for the role and have been supporting businesses in achieving their recruitment goals across the UK since the 1990s. We’d love to help you get started — contact our team today.