This new series will look at a range of jobs which may be suitable for people with Asperger's Syndrome and will discuss the positive qualities they could bring and the challenges they could face.
Project Management is a field which requires both good time management and meticulous attention to detail. These are qualities that some people with Asperger's syndrome possess in abundance.
Of course, if you have an ADHD co-condition, then project management is not going to be a suitable career choice because good organisation is critical.
There are many different types of project management roles and many of these are in common "special interest areas" such as computing, engineering, transport, law and even simply in documentation such as standards and compliance. Provided that you join a project management team in an area close to your special interests, you should have no difficulty maintaining attention to detail.
Most project management roles will require tertiary education (a degree) and a bit of experience in the field, so it's not really an ideal first job unless you can find an internship.
Project management often involves high-level thinking and the ability to see both detail and the big picture at the same time. This is an area where people with Asperger's syndrome have a distinct advantage. There is also quite a bit of logic and procedure in project management - and charting too.
The hardest part of project management for people with Asperger's syndrome tends to be on the social front. It's quite common for project managers to need to attend lots of meetings and to deal with a lot of people. Don't give up though because depending upon the types of projects you're engaged on, you may find that someone else in the team is more willing to take on that part of the role or that much of the project can be accomplished via other means of communication such as email and collaborative writing solutions.
Project management is not for everyone but it is a role in which many people with Asperger's syndrome can excel.
Comments
Microsoft limited me to what seemed to me to be the same dull routine day after long day. The DISTRACTIONS involved people and having a line manager who did not understand the reason I needed and wanted to keep my door closed. I never admitted having any form of ASD during my career. I only admitted to having ADHD, due to the fact that I was taking medication that was evidently used for this condition. The medication and my medical appointments were paid by company insurance, so it was pointless to hide the obvious.
I was considered "very shy" and "antisocial", which probably cost me a bit in terms of raises and stock options. I'd come to Microsoft with at least fifteen years prior experience in Quality Assurance, Database Analysis and design, CGI, Desktop Publishing, Technical Writing and Editing experience. I am chaotic in my ENVIRONMENT -- not in my WORK.
I think it depends though. Part of my asperger's is to be precise and organized. My son, on the other hand, also an aspie is neither precise or organized.
The ability to conceptualize large complex systems is a plus, smarts is a plus, the capacity to store large amounts of 'useless' information on obscure topics is also a plus (especially in IT).
To Anonymous's point, being a PM does require a bit of socialization and I often have to be the motivator of groups of people, which does not come easily or naturally to me. I am lucky that my co-workers understand my 'quirks' and see past them to recognize the value in my intelligence and obscene organizational skills.
I have started to disclose to some people I work with, but mostly people just think I'm quirky.
Project management appeals to my need for order and logic.
I'm fine with meetings with people – I joke that I’m an extroverted introvert; I recharge by being quiet and I like quiet focus-time, but I’m also talkative and love to explain things to people and get into details. So, project meetings that are purpose-driven can be satisfying. What's hard is taking the time to NOT be so purpose driven when we have things to do. It can bother NTs when you want to focus on the issue or task at hand without focusing on them and their feelings and position in the process.
I recently made an extremely difficult change decision. I left a great job to accept a career growth opportunity. Learning the new work culture has been challenging.
My previous employer (11 years), was a fast-paced environment where I had a lot of agency to engage stakeholders as needed then move forward with getting the job done, and keeping all parties informed appropriately along the way (I liken it to conducting an orchestra). The culture was basically "get things done now," "we're all on board," "nothing's personal," and "fail fast." That role intersected with IT and other like-minded, task-focused types.
The new job is with mostly senior business administration staff and a lot of very long-time employees in a government-office/lifer setting. The culture is VERY slow and consensus-based. Everyone’s a sensitive stakeholder and way more meetings than needed have to happen to assuage sensitivities. The irony is they hired me to get stuff done (because I’m a rockstar), but they don’t like how I do it (by being work-focused), so now they’ve asked me to change my style, and I’m less effective. Maybe there’s a connection (sarcasm).
Like many with ASD, I'm a direct communicator who has no ability for subtext, manipulation, or subterfuge (or facial recognition). I'm a nice, pleasant, cheerful & sometimes comical person (to be non-threatening) but I still freak out NTs because I say what I mean. I'm not rude, but I'm also not going to look at something terrible not say what's terrible about it. I don't actually say "this is terrible," but I do point out all the things that need to be fixed because they’re so glaringly OBVIOUS. I now try to do it in a passive way to make the NTs feel better.
So, getting used to sub-par work being acceptable due to lack of attention to detail because no one wants to point out what's wrong because they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings is also a challenge for me. Frankly, I think that's stupid on many levels, but it's the culture, so I'm learning to bite my tongue and try to "suggest" things or ask them "if they would be open to" or "did they consider,” or “maybe we could try…” Pppsh. Do or do not. Yada Yoda.
*A side note on the PMP: The Project Management Professional (PMP) exam is stressful and HARD. I didn't pass the 1st or 2nd times (you get three tries in a year before you have to re-apply. I wasn’t able to pass until I went all-in the 3rd and final time where I gave up masking and stimmed like crazy, gestured, talked to myself (I'm a verbal processor), and generally acted "weird" (it is a proctored exam and the proctor remarked on my strange behavior afterward).