Being promoted too fast? Would this cause troubles?

A friend of mine just got promoted to a project management position (development); though he considers it as an accomplishment, he thinks it's just too fast (since he's jumping from Software Engineer to Project Manager within just 1.5 years) and he thinks future employers may have greater expectations on him or they may think he's just too young to hold the current position (he's 26). He also thinks he doesn't have that much experience as well.

I'm not too sure either what to think of his current scenario; he said he might not accept the position. Surely the top management believes in him to give him the job, but at the same time, I can understand why he feels worried about it.

Do you think he's just too young to be a project manager or is it a good idea to reject the post?

Reply 1

estel

That doesn't seem too young to PM at all. And, to be honest, I've never really seem PM as being necessarily a "step up" from more hands-on development anyway. They're different fields, though it's always useful if a PM has a background in engineering.

If he thinks it would be an interesting new position and/or is getting a nice payrise; then I don't think he should worry about being too young. If PM stuff doesn't hold any interest (it doesn't for me!), then stick where he is.

Reply 2

kka25

Original post by estel

From the way he says it, he seems to be interested with the job; I think he's more worried with future employments. If I recall, he's worried that people will see him as unsuitable for the job (or overqualified/experienced) if he wishes to continue to do engineering.

As I recall, a PM is much higher in position than a developer

Reply 3

username1799249

Original post by kka25

As I recall, a PM is much higher in position than a developer

Not quite - they are different roles. There was a time that if you wanted to progress up the pay scale you had to move into management and because project manager has "manager" in the title it was deemed to be more important. However, projects can still be delivered without PMs but they can't be delivered without developers. There are no PMs in the company I work for. The good PMs I have worked with are more facilitators than managers.

In recent years there has been a recognition within the industry that some don't wish to move into management and so the pay scale continues up through senior and principal development opportunities.

As for the OP - since project management is a skill in its own right, there is nothing significant about being a young whipper snapper. However, the move into PM is likely to define future career moves rather than any previous development work.

Good luck all!