Project Manager or Producer
the evolution of project leadership
Recently, (and still currently) I found myself in a position where I needed to start looking for a new job.
First thing I did? Hit the job sites! I was a bit impatient and just wanted to find something quick. I figured searching for openings was going to take longer than updating my information, so I went with it.
It seemed obvious and logical that my job hunt should be to find an opportunity that aligned with my experience, so while I worked on refining and strengthening my LinkedIn profile and resume, I began scouring job sites searching for anything in the digital realm that required a Producer or Project Manager.
But I wasn’t finding very much.
Even though the unemployment rate is going down and 9 out of 10 startups are hiring, I just wasn’t finding very many opportunities that fit me.
So I started thinking — What if it’s not just about the right fit? What if it’s not about finding the job I can do? What if I tackle this by looking for something I’m not sure I can do, but I think I can and want to?
So I reflected upon my experience. Despite the Producer title, my earlier job requirements fell more along the lines of a Project Manager. Over time I grew towards a Producer role. I knew this. But on paper, it all looked the same and could mean entirely different things to each person I shared it with.
I tried fiddling with phrases and words but I just came back to the same questions —
What’s the difference between a Project Manager & Producer?
Why does it matter?
What am I going to do?
Perhaps the difference exists in the purpose and mission of the roles, not necessarily in the duties.
And if there is any truth to my statement, then maybe it can help outline a path of career growth in this muddy arena of non-technical professionals.
According to Wikipedia —
a Project Manager can have the responsibility of the planning, execution and closing of any project, typically relating to construction industry, architecture, aerospace and defense, computer networking, telecommunications or software development.
Project managers are the “are we getting things done?” people. From experience and observation, I’ve noticed these roles seem to be more rigid. I don’t mean that the people who are project managers are robots or that a computer algorithm could do their jobs. Rather, I’m talking about the perception of them and what they care about in relation to their job.
Project managers are not meant to be creators. Their job role and responsibilities are administrative. They make sure that the project scope, budget and schedule are confirmed, adhered to and maintained. If you want them to comment on art, they’ll direct you to the Art Director. If you want them to help decide which network architecture is best, they’ll point you to the Information Architect. They’ll remind you when your deliverable is due and check it off the list when you deliver it.
The role itself is actually so defined that there’s a whole institute dedicated to training and certifying Project Managers.
Now how about Producers? What do they do?
Wikipedia has a list to choose from — but that doesn’t really help answer exactly what they do.
This video, while a couple years old, seems to help describe the position and purpose of a Producer, at least in terms of what it means for game/software development.
This Slate article describes a Producer in the context of entertainment production —
[The producer] shepherds the production from start to finish.
In a typical arrangement, the producer develops an idea or script with a writer and secures the necessary rights. He often hires the director, supervises casting, and assembles a crew. Additionally, the producer oversees the budget and then coordinates the postproduction work—everything from editing, to commissioning music, to encouraging the film’s stars to plug the movie on talk shows.
And Dictionary.com’s definition —
A person responsible for the financial and administrative aspects of a stage, film, television, or radio production;
the person who exercises general supervision of a production
and is responsible chiefly for raising money, hiring technicians and artists, etc., required to stage a play, make a motion picture, or the like.
Ok — so let’s recap quickly.
Project Managers ensure things get done. Their purpose is to complete.
And Producers oversee how things are done. Their purpose is to guide.
My experience started by learning to follow scope documents, schedules and budgets. Then it evolved to generating those documents as well as understanding each discipline’s or group’s intent and bringing them towards the original vision. These are things I can do, and have done.
But what do I want to do?
At this point, I noticed another interesting thing. My job experience mirrored Simon Senek’s Golden Circle. My path seemed to be going from the outside in.
I had learned what to do. Then learned how to do it. And now, it must make sense, that I challenge myself with why?
Why is where this whole self exploration gets blurry before it gets clear. Why isn’t just the purpose, it’s motivation and inherent curiosity. It’s figuring out what your brain keeps thinking about. It’s trying to uncover what excites you and makes you speak a little faster when you talk about it.
Why is not a straight line.
Why is considering your impact at all levels: the job duties to the team to the company to the community and maybe, hopefully the world.
Why is what caused you to stop eating your breakfast burrito halfway because the problem isn’t solved yet.
Right now, I can’t tell you exactly what my why is. It’s too blurry still. But I do know that I’m headed in that direction. And hopefully, whatever organization I work for next is headed there too.
