A profession but not a career? Work identity and career satisfaction in project management

Abstract Project careers typify contemporary career theories that place the individual, rather than the organisation, as the sole architect of employability and career satisfaction. However, a gap now exists between the strategic importance of projects and the ability of permanent organisations to support and develop the project management role. Using survey data (N = 207) of IT project managers our theoretical framework hypothesizes relationships between project management identity and career satisfaction, and the moderating effect of how project managers relate to their role as a job, career or calling. Findings suggest that project managers with a high level of professional identification achieve validation from external project networks reducing the reliance on internal organisational support. However, not all project managers relate to their role as a career. The article discusses the implications for project careers, professionalization and organisation support.

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