What does an operations project manager do?
An operations project manager is responsible for monitoring the performance of the project team, ensuring that the operations meet the clients' standards and internal regulations with maximum productivity and efficiency. Operations project managers manage the department's budget and allocate materials and resources accurately, maintaining a record of expenses and costs forecasting. They coordinate with the clients, discussing project adjustments or additional tasks as needed, and lead project execution and deliverables by determining the team's needs and concerns, and enforcing strategic procedures.
Operations project manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real operations project manager resumes:
- Manage resource allocation to help maximize ROI and focus on the division's strategy.
- Manage operational programs that include the introduction and preparation for the manufacture of new products, design enhancements and OEM deviations.
- Manage elaborate software implementation projects relate to national convenience store/gas station point of sale (POS) technology.
- Manage payroll distribution process ensuring timeliness, accuracy, and confidentiality to protect client's privacy and prevent liability of exposure.
- Reduce emergency department length of stay: participants reduce time to admit patients by 90 minutes.
- Assist with providing best practices for the PMO base on previous positions that include PMO set up and interaction.
- Facilitate improvements to the functionality of ERP system user interface.
- Perform cost-benefit analysis reports for additional functionality to the ERP system.
- Create scorecards to reflect overall performance on rationalization programs per PMO standards.
- Analyze patient charts and overall utilization management of patients weekly with multidisciplinary team.
- Automate vendor oversight reports for senior management, resulting in significantly improve visibility and timeliness of critical business information.
- Facilitate a critical transformation of the compensation structure by moving document approval to SharePoint for ease of collaboration and editing.
- Maintain operational readiness through initiative oversight and provide regular reporting and maintain ongoing communications to senior management, stakeholders and sponsors.
- Create and execute warehouse logistics project plans including unloading, receiving, case per unit performance productivity, and operations set-up.
- Develop SharePoint tool to track outstanding issues and change items for business-own and 3rd party applications responsible for brokerage operations processes.
Operations project manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 20% of Operations Project Managers are proficient in Project Management, Business Operations, and Risk Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Leadership skills, and Management skills.
We break down the percentage of Operations Project Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Project Management, 20%
Project management and application ownership of multiple global applications that support front office and back office applications for IBM Learning Delivery.
- Business Operations, 6%
Created partnerships, identified vendors and banking partners negotiated supplier agreements and credit terms to successfully launch business operations in Afghanistan.
- Risk Management, 5%
Facilitate thorough issue/risk management and provide oversight for on-time resolution/mitigation/escalation.
- Process Improvement, 4%
Directed a $1 million global project for the implementation of regulatory document and submission management system and document process improvement.
- Business Process, 4%
Procured project proposals automating business processes that significantly improved method of operation (mop) efficiency, employee productivity and morale.
- Provide Management, 4%
Provide management oversight and driving operational accountability through effective change management and leadership development process.
Common skills that an operations project manager uses to do their job include "project management," "business operations," and "risk management." You can find details on the most important operations project manager responsibilities below.
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for an operations project manager to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what operations project managers do because "top executives must be able to convey information clearly and persuasively." Additionally, an operations project manager resume shows how operations project managers use communication skills: "produced effective internal communications strategies and content, as well as training materials for areas of ownership. "
Leadership skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling operations project manager duties is leadership skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "top executives must be able to shape and direct an organization by coordinating policies, people, and resources." According to an operations project manager resume, here's how operations project managers can utilize leadership skills in their job responsibilities: "headed interdisciplinary team leadership and technical expertise in product development programs. "
Problem-solving skills. operations project manager responsibilities often require "problem-solving skills." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "top executives need to identify and resolve issues within an organization." This resume example shows what operations project managers do with problem-solving skills on a typical day: "directed the selection of shelby systems as the erp solution. "
Time-management skills. A commonly-found skill in operations project manager job descriptions, "time-management skills" is essential to what operations project managers do. Operations project manager responsibilities rely on this skill because "top executives do many tasks concurrently to ensure that their work gets done and that the organization meets its goals." You can also see how operations project manager duties rely on time-management skills in this resume example: "decreased project completion time, reducing costs 15% by developing and streamlining multiple business processes and procedures. "
The three companies that hire the most operations project managers are:
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Compare different operations project managers
Operations project manager vs. General manager of operations
General managers of operations are employed to oversee the overall operations of businesses. Their responsibilities include the improvement of the efficiency of the operations and overall management. They coordinate the primary performance goals for direct reporting functions and set the strategies for the organization. It is their responsibility to communicate strategy as well as results to employees. They also engage with the corporate officers in the strategic planning and development of the organization or enterprise.
There are some key differences in the responsibilities of each position. For example, operations project manager responsibilities require skills like "project management," "risk management," "business process," and "provide management." Meanwhile a typical general manager of operations has skills in areas such as "develop team," "financial statements," "payroll," and "continuous improvement." This difference in skills reveals the differences in what each career does.
General managers of operations tend to reach similar levels of education than operations project managers. In fact, general managers of operations are 4.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to have a Doctoral Degree.Operations project manager vs. Group manager
Group Managers are employees who oversee a specific department, team, or any group in the company. They are usually tenured employees or industry experts. Group Managers oversee their team's performance and professional growth. They set clear, strategic goals for the team and create plans to reach these goals. They monitor the achievement of such goals and guide their team along the way. They also manage the team professionally. The coach team members train the employees if there are updates or new strategies and ensure that they remain engaged. They motivate their team to perform well and strive hard to reach group goals.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, operations project manager responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "business operations," "risk management," "business process," and "provide management." Meanwhile, a group manager has duties that require skills in areas such as "client relationships," "continuous improvement," "performance management," and "quality standards." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
Group managers earn a higher average salary than operations project managers. But group managers earn the highest pay in the finance industry, with an average salary of $135,074. Additionally, operations project managers earn the highest salaries in the finance with average pay of $90,596 annually.In general, group managers achieve similar levels of education than operations project managers. They're 0.2% more likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for operations project managers in the next 3-5 years?
Eric Olsen
Professor, Industrial Technology and Packaging, Orfalea College of Business
Operations project manager vs. Customer service/operations manager
A customer service/operations manager is primarily in charge of spearheading and overseeing the efforts of a customer service team, ensuring efficiency and client satisfaction. Their responsibilities include setting goals and objectives, establishing guidelines and schedules, managing the employees, creating new programs for customers, and developing strategies to optimize customer service operations. They may also participate in reaching out to clients through calls and correspondence, resolving issues promptly and professionally. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage teams to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
The required skills of the two careers differ considerably. For example, operations project managers are more likely to have skills like "project management," "business operations," "risk management," and "business process." But a customer service/operations manager is more likely to have skills like "payroll," "performance reviews," "customer care," and "credit card."
Customer service/operations managers make a very good living in the finance industry with an average annual salary of $67,456. On the other hand, operations project managers are paid the highest salary in the finance industry, with average annual pay of $90,596.Most customer service/operations managers achieve a lower degree level compared to operations project managers. For example, they're 8.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.5% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Operations project manager vs. Administrative operations manager
An administrative operations manager spearheads and oversees a company's administrative operations, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Among their responsibilities include setting goals and budgets, establishing guidelines and timelines, training staff, and developing strategies to optimize various departments' daily operations. Their responsibilities include performing inspections and assessments, conducting research and analysis, liaising with external parties, and presenting progress reports to higher-ranking officials. Moreover, an administrative operations manager must lead and encourage teams to reach goals, all while enforcing the company's policies and regulations.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between operations project managers and administrative operations managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, an operations project manager might have more use for skills like "risk management," "business process," "provide management," and "operations project." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of administrative operations managers require skills like "payroll," "financial reports," "powerpoint," and "administrative operations. "
The real estate industry tends to pay the highest salaries for administrative operations managers, with average annual pay of $77,011. Comparatively, the highest operations project manager annual salary comes from the finance industry.The average resume of administrative operations managers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to operations project managers. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 3.0% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.3%.Types of operations project manager
Updated January 8, 2025
