5 Questions to YozmaTech Project Manager

We are starting a new feature that will introduce you to the YozmaTech Team. Today we will ask 5 questions to Illya – a musician, sports fan and project manager at YozmaTech!

1 How did you become a Project Manager?

In my first job, I started working as a Full Stack Drupal Developer. I studied for the first 2 months, after that I mostly wrote backend for about a year. Due to the fact that the team did not have a separate project manager – the main communication with customers fell to me, because I knew English well. Over time, I received more and more PM’s responsibilities, and then – I was offered to become a project manager.

2 What is the main difference between the work of PM and the Developer?

This is most clearly described in the phrase “PM communicates all the time, and works in his free time. The developer works all the time, and communicates in his free time”. When you are a PM, you need to constantly communicate with the team and stakeholders and find time to complete your tasks! Because of this, you periodically have to work more than normal.

3 How did you develop as a PM?

I Learned the Scrum Guide and PMBoK – because it is a must-read for every PM, took courses, read articles on DOU, HABR and other resources. For the most part, I immediately tried to apply the acquired knowledge in practice in order to gain useful experience.

4 What methodologies do you use in projects?

Kanban, Scrum, Spotify. Methodologies on projects often change, because startups are actively developing and are constantly looking for improving their approaches to management and organization of work.

5 What 3 advices can you give to novice project managers?

“ What the eyes fear, the hands do”

Don’t be afraid to experiment, change your approach to management and try something new.

“Hard work always pays off”

Work hard, maybe even more than the norm, because it allows you to quickly move from junior to middle level.

“Learn the Scrum Guide and PMBoK”

Without theory, you will not be able to set up processes according to standards, and you will not be able to pass an interview. Theory is the key to success in project management.