An internship is a vital step in the development of one’s career, and it must always be chosen carefully and thoroughly. As a person studying project management, I had to choose an internship as an assistant project manager. Such a position corresponds to both my professional aspirations and skills, which I am striving to improve every day. Internships enable people to show their practical experience and apply theoretical knowledge accumulated during studies, as well as be able to adapt to the job environment (Hoy, 2011). The internship involving performing the role of an assistant project manager implies having a variety of soft skills, yet the core ones among them are problem-solving, active listening, creativity, and time management.
Problem-solving was chosen as an essential skill for the assistant project manager internship because it is necessary for effectively performing job tasks. As an intern, I will face numerous challenges, especially due to the fact that I will have to operate in a new environment. As a result, I will have to be able to find solutions to the problems I encounter in a fast and efficient way. The soft skill of problem-solving is the capability that can enable me to approach different issues critically and make the best decisions in relation to them.
For instance, as an assistant project manager, I will be tasked with interacting with clients who may provide unclear requirements. By employing my problem-solving skills, I will be able to resolve the issue by working together with the customer on their project requirements, addressing each aspect separately.
Active listening is a skill that is vital for any type of job but especially for the role of an assistant project manager. Being an assistant implies working for a senior employee who will also act as my mentor. Therefore, my task will be to quickly understand their task while managing to get professional insights into the work of a project manager. Active listening will enable me to receive essential information and gain a better understanding of my role in the organization faster. Active listening implies openness, meaning receptivity to the words of others, and interpretation (Topornycky & Golparian, 2016). When working with my colleagues, I will always employ active listening in order to understand their needs correctly and respond in a way that is appropriate.
Creativity is another major skill required for the work of an assistant project manager because it helps one to devise unique solutions to existing problems and tasks. Creativity is closely connected to problem-solving since they both rely on exploring different approaches to addressing challenges. It is possible that during my internship, I will be asked by my colleagues to share my perspective on the development of a certain project in the organization. In this case, creativity will be essential for me because it will allow me to provide an opinion or idea which will inspire the rest of the team to make progress. Studies show that creativity is a factor that guarantees superior organizational performance in the sphere of project management (SzabĂł, 2016). Thus, creativity should always be made a priority for people engaging in project management.
Finally, time management is another key skill that I will be required to have as an assistant project manager. It is clear that when working with a mentor, I will be likely to spend a major part of my internship as a person helping them. Therefore, creating schedules for projects may be one of my main tasks, which I will have to perform excellently to ensure that my internship experience is successful. The skill of time management will let me make schedules of high quality, which satisfy every employee. At the same time, time management will also be essential for me when working on my own tasks in the organization. I will have to complete all of my work before deadlines, and time management will be a vital skill to achieve it.
At the same time, although the four aforementioned skills can be considered a prerequisite for an assistant project manager, I also possess other skills which may help me during my internship. Emotional intelligence is a soft skill that I am continuously perfecting and have already achieved substantial progress. Emotional intelligence enables people to effectively manage stress in the workplace and overcome challenging situations in their professional life (Arora, 2017). I will utilize emotional intelligence throughout my internship as a way to stay focused on my tasks and gain the ability to avoid distractions. Moreover, emotional intelligence will positively contribute to my decision-making and creativity skills allowing me to keep my emotions in control.
I will undergo an internship as an assistant project manager, which will require me to demonstrate soft skills such as problem-solving, active listening, creativity, and time management. Problem-solving will be essential for me since it will allow me to address different work challenges effectively. Active listening will enable me to gain a better understanding of my job tasks while creatively will help me to create unique solutions for various problems. Time management will let me stay within deadlines and be able to produce correct schedules for projects. My best skill of emotional intelligence will be necessary for me to stay calm under pressure and manage possible work stress.
References
Arora, B. (2017). Importance of emotional intelligence in the workplace. International Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 4(4), 43–45.
Hoy, M. (2011) Building pathways to working with collections: Can internships and student work experience help? Australian Academic & Research Libraries, 42(1), 29-42.
Szabó, L. (2016). Sustainability, creativity and innovation in project management – Model development for assessing organizational performance through projects. Budapest Management Review, 47(10), 3–18.
Topornycky, J., & Golparian, S. (2016). Balancing openness and interpretation in active listening. CELT: Collected Essays on Learning and Teaching, 9, 175–184. Web.