Women Outnumbered by Men in Project Management, But Many Take Leadership Roles

A new study reveals that despite gains in recent decades, women still hold far fewer jobs than men in project management. Men outnumber women in the field by a 3-to-1 margin, according to research from the Project Management Institute (PMI).

The numbers are even more stark than the overall workforce participation rates for women around the world. About 47% of eligible women participate in the workforce worldwide, compared to 72% for men, according to research cited by PMI.

In its “The State of Women in Project Management” report, PMI offers a data-driven look into how women have made gains in the business, while also remaining far behind men in the field. This is despite decades of equality movements and diversity, equity and inclusion programs.

However, PMI notes that with an estimated 25 million new project management professionals needed by 2030, women may play a role in filling the gap for employment by going into project management.

While the disparity in gender participation rates “has immediate negative implications for project teams – 88% of project professionals say having diverse project teams increases value – it may also hold the key to solving an ongoing crisis for organizations,” PMI wrote.

Key Findings

As part of the report, PMI listed some important findings in relation to gender disparities in the project management profession.

• Male project managers outnumber female counterparts around the world and in every sector, but the gaps differ greatly by region and industry.

• Women earn less than men across all regions and industries.

• Women are slightly less likely to have project management certification or a project management degree.  

• While far fewer women work in project management, they are only slightly less likely than men to take on a leadership role.  

• More women work in project management at organizations that use agile and hybrid approaches, advanced technologies, and place a higher value on power skills.

The report also shows that earning a degree or certificate in project management can become a good career move for women, with companies offering plenty of opportunity for advancement into management roles. 

Where Gender Gaps in Project Management Are Biggest

The PMI report provides a snapshot of female participation rates in the project management workforce worldwide. The largest gap, by far, is in the Middle East/North Africa region where women make up only 8% of project professionals. Women have the highest participation rate in North America, making up 39% of project professionals.

The areas with the next highest female participation rate in project management are Sub-Saharan Africa (29%) and China (25%). In both Europe and Latin America, participation rates for women are 24%.

The Project Management Gender Gap by Industry

The PMI report also breaks down female participation in project management by industry. Women are represented the most in project management in the healthcare industry, where they make up 41% of project professionals. 

The next highest professions include training/education (37%), financial services (29%), government (26%), consulting (24%), telecom (22%), and information technology (20%). The lowest female participation is in the construction industry (13%).

In terms of salaries, the lowest gender gaps are in the United Arab Emirate, France, Japan, Australia, China, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Germany, and the United States.

Women in Project Management Leadership

The report also shows that women excel in certain areas of project management. Those include leadership, where about 20% of women in the survey reported working in a management role. Positions include PMO director, portfolio manager, product manager, functional manager and development manager.

In terms of raw numbers, far fewer women have leadership roles in project management when compared to men. However, the percentage of women in project management who have leadership roles is only 3% less than the rate for men. 

“This data shows that women are being provided opportunities to advance their careers and contribute at more strategic levels within organizations,” PMI reported. “This opportunity to move into leadership is a selling point hiring managers should emphasize when seeking to recruit more women into project management roles.”

Women also tend to use agile/hybrid approaches in project management more than men, an important trend in a profession where agility is increasingly desired. Women also are more likely to work for organizations that use advanced, innovative digital tools in the management of projects.

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