Is the Project Manager’s Road to Success Paved Only with Clear Career Paths?

Abstract

This study examined the role of career attitudes and behaviors and employability enhancement factors in predicting project managers’ career success facets, over and above the availability of clear career paths. An online survey was completed by 552 Italian project managers. Clear career paths, employability culture, and protean career attitude positively predicted both objective and subjective (along with objective boundarylessness) career success. Dominance analysis showed the prevailing role of protean career, employability culture, and clear career paths. Results built a bridge between project management literature and career studies, particularly informing about the significance of the protean career. Organizational and individual implications for practices are discussed.