What are the main differences between project management and general management?

A career in management can be both rewarding and challenging. If you’re interested in this field, you may be wondering if a general manager or project manager position is right for you. Though both roles have similarities, there are several key differences between them.

In this article, we’ll discuss the similarities and differences between general managers and project managers, and we’ll provide some tips to help you decide which role is right for you.

What is a General Manager?

A General Manager is responsible for the overall operation of a business or organization. They develop and implement strategies and objectives to ensure that the company meets its goals. General Managers also develop budgets, track progress and performance, and oversee the day-to-day operations of the company. They delegate tasks to employees and managers, and they resolve conflicts between employees. General Managers also develop marketing plans and create policies to ensure the company runs smoothly.

What is a Project Manager?

Project managers are responsible for leading and coordinating a team of employees to complete a specific goal or project within a certain timeline. They develop project plans, track progress, and ensure that the project stays on schedule and within budget. Project managers also work with clients to understand their needs and ensure that the project meets their expectations. They typically have a background in business administration or management.

General Manager vs. Project Manager

Here are the main differences between a general manager and a project manager.

Job Duties

General managers and project managers share some job duties, but there are differences in the types of tasks they carry out. A general manager oversees an entire business unit or department. They’re responsible for setting goals for that department and ensuring employees meet those goals.

A project manager is more focused on a specific project. They oversee the creation and completion of a product or service. Their responsibilities include creating a detailed project plan, delegating tasks to team members and providing direction to team members.

Job Requirements

General managers typically need at least a bachelor’s degree in business administration or another related field. Many also have a master’s degree, such as an MBA. Additionally, general managers often have several years of experience working in management roles before being promoted to a general manager position.

Project managers also usually need a bachelor’s degree, but their field of study can vary more widely. Some project managers have degrees in business administration, while others have degrees in engineering or even liberal arts. Project managers also benefit from having experience leading teams and completing projects on time and within budget. Many project managers also pursue certifications through the Project Management Institute (PMI) to improve their job prospects.

Work Environment

General managers typically work in an office setting, but they may also travel to visit different locations and meet with clients. They often have a lot of responsibility for the overall success of their company or department, so they may spend most of their time working on strategic plans and thinking about ways to improve their business.

Project managers usually work in an office environment as well, although some project management positions involve traveling to construction sites or other locations where projects are taking place. Project managers may need to be available at all times to respond to issues that arise during a project, so they may work long hours and weekends.

Skills

There are several similarities between the skills needed for a general manager and a project manager. Both roles require excellent communication, interpersonal, organizational and leadership skills. They also both need to be able to think strategically, set goals and delegate tasks.

However, there are some key differences in the skills needed for these two jobs. A general manager needs to have a broad understanding of all aspects of their company and be able to make decisions that will impact the overall direction of the business. A project manager, on the other hand, needs to be very detail-oriented and have a deep understanding of the specific project they are working on. They also need to be skilled at managing timelines, budgets and resources.

Salary

The average salary for a general manager is $63,331 per year, while the average salary for a project manager is $87,628 per year. The average salary for both positions may vary depending on the size of the company, the industry in which you work and the level of experience you have prior to pursuing either position.

Running a business requires both project management and business management skills, but they’re actually two different fields of management. The leadership roles within these fields come with different responsibilities.

In this article, you’ll learn about the significant differences between project management vs business management, and how they each contribute to achieving a business’s objectives and goals. We’ll also share how you can leverage many of monday.com’s Work OS features to optimize your projects and manage your business better.

Get started

Project management vs business management: what’s the difference?

Ultimately, the key difference between project management and business management lies in the nature of the work.

Project management is often a temporary or short-term operation, whereas business management is the long-term management of business operations and processes.

Project management refers to the successful execution of one or several projects within limitations such as time, scope, cost, and quality. The project manager in question focuses on tasks such as coordinating resources, project planning, allocating the budget, acting as an intermediary between clients, and keeping the team motivated and on track to complete the project with optimal results.

Business management refers to the oversight of business operations in a specific area to ensure everything is running smoothly. This could include sales, marketing, manufacturing, and more.

Let’s take a closer look at what project management vs business management looks like side-by-side:

How does a project manager differ from a business manager?

A project manager focuses on tasks such as coordinating resources, project planning, allocating a budget, acting as an intermediary between clients, and motivating the team to complete a project with optimal results.

A business manager, on the other hand, focuses on daily operational tasks such as sales, marketing, manufacturing, and so on.

Let’s take a look at what the roles of a project manager and business manager look like side-by-side:

Put simply, a project manager’s role is defined by the unique project at hand, while a business manager’s role is defined by overall business objectives and daily operational needs.

How to use project management to support positive business management

When you consider project management vs business management, you’re essentially comparing apples and oranges. While the necessary tasks in running a small business are to those of running a corporation, both will use some essential management skills to allocate resources, direct staff, and market their products.

For example, as a business grows, several operational aspects can lose efficacy. Signs of this can include:

• Missed deadlines
• Prioritization mistakes
• Conflicts regarding resources and effort
• Task planning and execution issues
• A lack of required information
• Poor communication and mediation with clients

A general business manager will often find themselves overwhelmed as operations grow and objectives change. Project management can help by implementing a structured framework by which a specific goal is achieved, which works by maximizing resources and productivity.

Generally speaking, project management gives businesses greater control over their operations by managing them on a smaller scale.

In other words, things like product or service quality, customer service, marketing, and more can be optimized by having a project manager prioritize specific tasks and assign teams to them. Not only does this free up time for business managers to focus on operational goals and productivity, it streamlines business growth by properly delegating tasks and resources — all within a specific timeframe.

Get started

monday.com features to optimize your project and business management

If you want to successfully implement project management strategies to complement your business management and overall operational goals, you’ll need a platform that will allow you to prioritize and streamline all of your tasks, tools, documents, and more.

monday.com can help you drive growth by enabling you to create effective workflows that bring your teams together to reach project goals more efficiently.

monday.com Work OS allows you to manage multiple projects from one place. From strategic planning to project management, these features help you and your team drive your projects home:

• Gantt charts: Create a project road map that keeps track of a project’s scope, schedule, milestones, dependencies, resources, and metrics.
• Project dashboards: Get access to real-time and high-level data for your project’s goals, budget, scheduling, resources, and more to make better-informed decisions in seconds.
• Workload View: Manage your team resources, assign tasks, and adapt to changing priorities.
• Milestone calendars: Mark and manage significant checkpoints in a project’s timeline and measure and share progress with clients and team members.
• Advanced integrations: Connect to your most important tools like Google Drive, Slack, and Salesforce to align teams across your business.
• Project templates: Choose from a variety of pre-designed templates from our template center that you can customize for every new project.

monday.com is also made me to be used by project managers and business managers alike. For example, you can use the Portfolio Management Template to manage multiple project dashboards and workflows.

Get started

FAQs

What is the next role after a project manager?

After gaining experience and becoming a senior project manager, you have several options: You can become a chief operating officer (COO) of a company, management consultant, program manager, or even a portfolio manager.

Is PMO a stressful job?

Yes, project management can be very stressful. PMOs are responsible for on-time delivery of projects that are also on budget, meeting client expectations, and handling hefty to-do lists.

What is the career path of a project manager?

After gaining experience in the field, a project manager will typically be on track to senior- or executive-level positions in project management. This includes project management office (PMO) and director or chief operating officer (COO) positions and more.

Master project and business workflows with monday.com 

Strategic project management can complement your business management processes by zeroing in on priority tasks and ensuring they’re completed efficiently. This will give your business management team more time to focus on operational growth and other overall business objectives. It also ensures product and service objectives are delivered on time and surpass client expectations.

You can set up the solid processes and analysis you need for both project management and business management using monday.com.

What is the relationship between project management and general management?

What is one of the primary features that distinguishes project management from general management?