Ready to ditch the internal politics and unlock a higher-earning, more flexible career? This video is the definitive guide to making the leap from a traditional Project Manager role to a high-value Project Consultant.
We break down the key differences between a PM and a consultant, showing you exactly how to reposition your existing skills and what new strategies you need to master. Stop managing projects for one company, and start advising multiple clients for a premium. This is how to become a project consultant and take control of your career path.
Let me know in the comments: What is the #1 thing holding you back from becoming a consultant?
This video is safe for viewing in the workplace.
This is learning, so, sit back and enjoy
Here’s the plan.
First, what makes the roles different.
Then, why you might switch.
Next, the skills you need.
After that, what consultants actually do.
Finally, how to make the jump.
Let’s go.
Project Manager & Project Consultant: What is the difference between the two roles?
Think of a project manager as the driver. Hands on the wheel. Eyes on the road. Delivers the thing.
A consultant is more like a navigator. They see the map, suggest the route, and help the driver get there more efficiently and confidently.
Key differences:
- Accountability: the PM owns delivery. The consultant owns the advice.
- Time horizon: the PM works day to day. The consultant steps in and out.
- Engagement: the PM is embedded in the project. The consultant is objective, time-boxed, and focused on strategy and outcome.
- Authority: the PM has formal control. The consultant uses influence and evidence.
- Success: the PM is judged on delivery. The consultant is judged on clarity, capability, and the quality of their recommendations.
So, the PM is inside the project, while the project consultant stands beside it. Both matter. They just create value in different ways.
Why would Someone Choose to Make the Transition from Project Manager to Project Consultant?
You might want a broader scope, more variety, more control over your time, or better remuneration. Here are common reasons:
- Broader impact: help many teams, not just one.
- Leverage: use your hard-won lessons across clients.
- Variety: new challenges, sectors, and people.
- Autonomy: shape your work and your weeks.
- Longevity: advisory work can be less draining than constant delivery firefighting.
- Earnings: value-based fees, not just day rates.
Consulting not for everyone. But if you like solving the big problems or teaching others to fish, project consulting can be a great fit.
What skills or experience does it require?
You need credibility, great communication skills, and professional presence. Let’s break it down.
- Track record: You’ve delivered tough projects. You have evidence. Outcomes. Benefits. References.
- Diagnostic thinking: You can find root causes fast. You frame hypotheses. You test them.
- Methods and tools: you know assurance, risk, benefits, governance, lifecycle design, and hybrid ways of working.
- Commercial acumen: You scope well. You price well. You manage margins and stop scope creep.
- Facilitation: You run workshops. You unlock decisions. You handle conflict.
- Stakeholder influence: You talk to execs with calm and clarity. You reframe without blame.
- Data literacy: You use dashboards. You read leading indicators. You recommend with evidence.
- Thought leadership: You write, speak, and share practical IP—checklists, canvases, playbooks.
- Ethics: You hold boundaries. You say the hard thing, kindly and clearly.
- Gravitas: Ultimately, this all adds up to one thing. Your clients need to want to know what you think and, when you speak, be prepared to listen carefully.
You don’t need all of this on day one, but the more of it you have, the better you’ll be in your role.
What are the Roles of a Project Management Consultant?
What do you actually do?
A lot.
But the many hats you’ll wear are all in service of clarity, control, and confidence. Here are the core hats:
- Assessor: health checks, capability reviews, delivery audits, portfolio diagnostics.
- Designer: governance blueprints, stage-gate models, PMO structures, role frameworks, playbooks.
- Facilitator: vision work, scope definition, risk sessions, planning summits, dependency mapping.
- Advisor: options appraisal, business cases, delivery strategy, vendor strategy, recovery roadmaps.
- Assurer: independent reviews, challenge panels, readiness checks, benefits assurance.
- Coach: uplift PMs, sponsors, and PMOs; shadowing and feedback; communities of practice.
- Interim leader: step in, stabilize a troubled initiative, then hand it back.
- Enabler: tool selection, metrics and KPIs, dashboard design, reporting simplification, ways-of-working refresh.
- Change catalyst: align sponsors, decision rights, and culture so delivery sticks.
Pick the ones you are best at, and become excellent at them. Then, broaden your top-tier skill set.
How can Someone Make the Transition from Project Manager to Project Consultant Successfully?
Many people fail by trying to be good at everything. Don’t do that. Be focused and start with a clear service offering.
- Pick two or three signature services to offer. Define clear outcomes and deliverables for each.
- Productize these services: Build repeatable assets like Diagnostics, Checklists, Canvases, Workshop designs, Slide decks, briefings, and dashboards.
- Start with clients you know: Your current or previous employer, your network, businesses like the ones you know.
- Deliver great outcomes and then ask for testimonials and referrals.
- Build Authority: publish useful articles and videos. Speak at local chapters.
- Think about pricing. The most confident consultants can price for outcomes, making the shift from day rates to fixed-fee tiers. To do this, you need the experience to state the scope and assumptions. Include a premium option with extras.
- Build your selling skills: create an outline script and a proposal template. Get out and meet people.
- Ethics first: Declare conflicts. Keep independent. Always choose integrity.
- Keep learning: stay current on new ideas, methods, and tools, and sector rules.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Let’s save you pain.
- Too broad: “I can help with anything.” Clients don’t buy that. Be specific.
- Day-rate trap: you sell time, not outcomes. You get treated like extra hands, not a trusted advisor.
- Scope creep: weak scoping leads to free work. Protect the scope. Use change control.
- Power mismatch: you advise someone who can’t decide. Always confirm decision rights.
- No IP: every job from scratch. You burn time. Productize early.
- No follow-through: great slides, no change. Tie advice to ownership. Help leaders make decisions and stick to them.
Closing Remarks
So, what’s the real shift?
You move from delivery of stuff to producing clarity.
If that excites you, start small. Define your offer, build your assets, and put the word out.
Help one sponsor to make one better decision… and repeat.
What Kit does a Project Manager Need?
I asked Project Managers in a couple of forums what material things you need to have, to do your job as a Project Manager. They responded magnificently. I compiled their answers into a Kit list. I added my own.
Check out the Kit a Project Manager needs
Note that the links are affiliated.
Learn Still More
For more great Project Management videos, please subscribe to the OnlinePMCourses YouTube channel.
If you want basic Management Courses – free training hosted on YouTube, with 2 new management lessons a week, check out our sister channel, Management Courses.
For more of our Project Management videos in themed collections, join our Free Academy of Project Management.
For more of our videos in themed collections, join our Free Academy of Project Management.
