The project manager role can be hard to define: the umbrella term can cover technical project managers, construction project managers and even IT project managers. All these jobs require different industry knowledge and specialized skills.
What is certain, however, is that management roles in many sectors are growing rapidly. These jobs offer attractive salaries and the ability to shape a project from the inside out.
So how do you show employers that you’re the ideal candidate for their precious management job?
With this project manager cover letter example plus Resume.io’s collection of cover letter samples, free templates and tips, you’ve got all the necessary tools to write a great cover letter and land the perfect project manager position.
This guide, along with an effective cover letter example will:
- Explain the importance of a great cover letter to land your dream job
- Dive into the proper cover letter format with free cover letter examples, samples and templates
- Offer specialized tips for landing project management roles with no experience
- Help your application stand out with resources to create the most attractive presentation
Like any well-organized project, you should look at your job application as a series of steps that build to a new job. It all starts with the perfect resume. We’ve got you covered with our resume example for project managers, resume templates and tons of resume sample sentences. Put it all together in our resume builder and you’ll be ready to move on to the secrets of great cover letter writing.
What if the job application DOESN’T require a cover letter?
Sometimes job descriptions are hard to interpret. Either they’re written in HR speak or they don’t give clear instructions about what the hiring manager is actually looking for. This is often the case when it comes to cover letters. If the job posting doesn’t mention it, then what should you do?
While some job seekers might see this as an excuse to cut corners, a smart candidate knows the cover letter is a golden opportunity to stand out and convince an employer you’ve got what it takes. Unless a job application specifically asks you NOT to write a cover letter, writing a great one can only improve your chances of landing the position.
While great writing is important, you’ll also need an attractive visual presentation to tie it all together. Your resume format should follow certain, standard rules in terms of fonts and sizes, and balance of white space to text. For more formatting specifics, check out our overall guide on cover letters.
Other visual elements like color and header styles allow you to express your personality and interests. Our collection of free cover letter templates offer numerous professional designs, perfect for project manager positions.
Besides introducing you and helping to make a personal connection, while on the job search your cover letter serves another role by increasing your chances of actually landing the position. Since project manager jobs draw from a variety of skills, the applicant pools can be crowded. Hiring managers want to know you’re the one that can handle tasks big and small with confidence and sound judgment. Unfortunately, a resume doesn’t always help in differentiating one candidate from another – that’s where your cover letter comes in.
This document is your chance to show a hiring manager you’ve got many of the necessary elements to handle the job. A cover letter can also be your secret strength if you’re missing key points of experience or have gaps in your work history. On your cover letter, you can offer a brief and professional explanation while directing a hiring manager’s attention to more interesting aspects of your work history.
The importance of tailoring your cover letter
Writing a cover letter is a great start, but there’s one more step to make your cover letter more effective: tailoring. While we offer cover letter examples, they are just that: examples. Each of your cover letters should be unique.
Tailoring your cover letter means adjusting it to each and every different company and position you apply for. This is particularly important for project managers whose jobs vary based on the industry and objectives of the company.
By tailoring your cover letter with the examples, experiences and skills that are most relevant to your potential employer, you can show that you understand their business model and your place within it – one of the key elements of cover letter success.
Best format for a project manager cover letter example
A solid project has clear organization – the same goes for your project management cover letter. Your application letter should be concise, while still containing all the necessary elements to make a great first impression and convey your most convincing experiences.
Here are the key components:
- The cover letter header
- The greeting
- The introduction
- The letter body
- The conclusion
- The signature.
This cover letter structure remains relatively consistent between job titles and industries, so you’ll be able to follow this format no matter where your career takes you. For even more writing tips on each of these sections, check out our overall guide on cover letters.
Use this project manager cover letter sample to guide your own writing process.
Dear Mrs. Howorth,
My project management approach has two goals – the potential of every project should be realized and the headspace of all participants should be freed up to do their daily work.
When I joined Longhelm Logistics five years ago, there was a team of ninety and a business growing at 35% a year with no project management capacity. Having worked as a retail project manager previously, I put in place processes and procedures to guide my colleagues through change in an efficient, financially disciplined and organized manner.
I have managed the supply chain strategy for five Far East sourcing projects, opened a 10,000-sqaure-foot cross-dock warehouse, oversaw a change of logistics providers and carried out a full technology evaluation of our systems and processes. This final project led to a $2.5m overhaul of our entire IT provision.
My projects at Longhelm have brought $4.5m of cost savings, reduced transit time from factory gate to hub by 10%, streamlined customs procedures and consolidated a list of transport partners from 125 to 72 (with deviations improved by 28%). I have always tried to see the projects from multiple perspectives, and I won the “partner of the year” award from Hellkann Freight for our sea freight project.
My bachelor’s degree in Business Administration set me on the project management path and I have since studied remotely to receive my Certificate in Project Management, Lean qualifications and Prince2, alongside attending over 40 external courses. I am a student of continuous improvement and believe that I need to equip myself with the latest thinking if I am to get the most out of the projects teams that I manage.
I understand that this is the first time that you have appointed a Project Manager and I would love to share my experiences of how I started the function from scratch at Longhelm.
Sincerely,
Robert Smith
If you need more guidance or are considering broadening your search, investigate our related business and management cover letter examples:
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Cover letter header
Your cover letter header is likely the very first page element a hiring manager notices. This space at the top of your document should contain the necessary identifying information like your name and contact details. If social media like LinkedIn is relevant for the specific project manager role, include it here as well. Use our cover letter examples to guide you.
The second goal of your header is to create attractive formatting for your cover letter. You can do this by choosing a color palette and design scheme that capture the right tone and look for your potential employer’s branding. Remember that tip about tailoring your cover letter? You’ll want to tailor your formatting, too. Cover letter templates can make this much easier.
The goal of this section: Create a header that’s both attractive and effective at conveying the necessary personal information
Align document styles!
If you want to make an even more professional impression, there’s one thing you can do to take your application to the next level. Align document styles by matching your cover letter and resume format. This will help to create a “personal brand” – a visual look and feel that makes you stand out from other candidates.
If you’re comfortable with graphic design, you may want to tackle this project yourself. Otherwise, you can make things much easier by using professionally designed templates and a cover letter builder, like these from Resume.io.
Cover letter greeting
Your cover letter greeting helps you establish a personal connection with the employer and create a friendly and respectful tone for the rest of your cover letter. Whenever possible, you should aim to address the cover letter recipient by name.
For formal positions where you have no previous relationship with the hiring manager, “Dear” followed by a last name usually works well. If you already have a connection with the hiring manager or are sending the letter in the body of an email, “hi” or “hello” may be appropriate. When in doubt, choose the more formal approach to avoid offending the hiring manager.
The goal of this section: Create a positive and polite tone using the cover letter recipient’s name in your greeting.
Dear Mrs. Howorth,
Cover letter introduction
Your cover letter introduction is the place where you’ll grab the hiring manager’s attention and show them that your cover letter is worth their time to read. The best way to do this is by leading with a relevant example, statistic or fact that shows you get the company and its needs. Since a hiring manager might be evaluating candidates for multiple roles within the same project, it’s a good idea to mention which of the positions you are applying to. Just make sure to keep your introduction interesting and concise.
The introduction to our cover letter example gets right to the point with a project management philosophy statement:
My project management approach has two goals – the potential of every project should be realized and the headspace of all participants should be freed up to do their daily work.
The goal of this section: Grab the hiring manager’s attention with an interesting piece of information about yourself, a relevant fact or important skill
Cover letter middle paragraphs
Your cover letter body is where you’ll finally get to dive into all the unique traits and visions that make you the ideal candidate, as well as the essential skills that set you apart. Since this is the largest section, you can make things easier by dividing into two subsections.
In the first, use the STAR method to describe a Situation, Task, your Action and the positive Result that followed. Make sure to choose examples that are most relevant to the particular project manager role.
In the second subsection, you can mention specific hard skills if they are integral to the job or your proposed vision for the projects you may oversee.
When I joined Longhelm Logistics five years ago, there was a team of ninety and a business growing at 35% a year with no project management capacity. Having worked as a retail project manager previously, I put in place processes and procedures to guide my colleagues through change in an efficient, financially disciplined and organized manner.
I have managed the supply chain strategy for five Far East sourcing projects, opened a 10,000-sqaure-foot cross-dock warehouse, oversaw a change of logistics providers and carried out a full technology evaluation of our systems and processes. This final project led to a $2.5m overhaul of our entire IT provision.
My projects at Longhelm have brought $4.5m of cost savings, reduced transit time from factory gate to hub by 10%, streamlined customs procedures and consolidated a list of transport partners from 125 to 72 (with deviations improved by 28%). I have always tried to see the projects from multiple perspectives, and I won the “partner of the year” award from Hellkann Freight for our sea freight project.
My bachelor’s degree in Business Administration set me on the project management path and I have since studied remotely to receive my Certificate in Project Management, Lean qualifications and Prince2, alongside attending over 40 external courses. I am a student of continuous improvement and believe that I need to equip myself with the latest thinking if I am to get the most out of the projects teams that I manage.
The goal of this section: Use the STAR method to offer relevant examples of your management skills, respectfully offer your potential contributions to the role.
How to finish a project manager cover letter
The cover letter conclusion is all about creating an ending strong enough that a hiring manager is left wanting to get in touch for more information. You can do this effectively with a Call to Action. This sentence expresses your interest in the position and invites a hiring manager to contact you. You may also want to include your email or phone number again here.
Our cover letter example ends with "Sincerely," but there are other appropriate signatures like “Thank you,” or “Best regards.”
I understand that this is the first time that you have appointed a Project Manager and I would love to share my experiences of how I started the function from scratch at Longhelm.
Sincerely,
Robert Smith
The goal of this section: Encourage a hiring manager to get in touch, end the letter with a respectful signature
Cover letter tips and strategies
To land your project management dream job, there are a few key qualities you’ll want to convey.
- Organization: The project manager is the one juggling every piece of the puzzle at once. That means great organization is a must. Make sure to show this through examples that convey how you brought together many moving parts to accomplish a project – even better if it was on time and under budget.
- Flexibility: To manage a project effectively, you need to be agile. Examples that show how you think quickly on your feet and solve problems as they arise are some of the best ways to set yourself apart from other candidates.
- Proven track record: A project manager orchestrates the process to deliver the right results. Use numbers, statistics and facts to back up your project management experience and make sure to highlight projects in the same field or industry where you plan to work.
- Good mix of hard and soft skills: Normally cover letters tend to focus on soft skills whereas the hard ones are left for your resume. While this remains mostly true, if there is a particularly important software, process or other hard skill that is essential to the job, it can’t hurt to offer an example of how you used it effectively in the past.
Construction project manager cover letter with no experience
While construction project management has some overlap with other management positions, there are unique aspects of the field that will have to be addressed in any good cover letter.
Construction management requires knowledge of all the stakeholders, team members and processes for creating a structure from start to finish. If you’ve never worked as a construction project manager before, you’ll want to have at least some experience in a related field like plumbing, electric or glass. For more specifics, see our electrician cover letter sample.
Although you may be up against other managers with years of experience specifically in construction you can still give yourself a fighting chance by adapting each of your previous experiences specifically for the construction role. You can also explain to a hiring manager why you decided to switch career directions and how your previous experience in another domain can actually give you a unique advantage in this role.
Project manager cover letter format and common mistakes
Now let’s take a look at some of the most common mistakes made by candidates for project management roles.
- Poor grammar and spelling: These types of errors can really set back your credibility when it comes to good communication. Luckily, they’re easy to avoid. Just make sure to use spell check or ask a friend to proofread your application before you submit.
- Sloppy formatting: Good visual presentation can make or break your cover letter. If you’re not sure where to begin, a cover letter template can offer you a lot of options for customization and great design.
- Impersonal letter: Since project management jobs can vary so much depending on industry or assignment, it’s important that your letter is customized to the type of work discussed in the job description.
- Unrelated experiences: Even if you’ve never worked as a project manager in construction, it’s important to create similarities between that field and the one where you have years of experience. If you’re new to project management, make sure to focus on soft skills and your perspective of problem-solving instead without pointing out the ways in which you lack experience.
Key takeaways
- A cover letter is often the document that seals the deal when a hiring manager is considering a candidate – unless asked NOT to, it’s always a smart idea to write and send one.
- Don’t forget to tailor your cover letter. Adapting it for each position you apply to shows a hiring manager you’re truly interested in working for them – extra important in project management roles.
- The cover letter organizational structure can help you check off the most important parts of a great cover letter.
- Don’t forget the importance of clear formatting. If you need help getting started, choose a professional template in line with your potential employer’s branding.
- To land a construction management job with no experience, it’s important to draw comparisons between your former experiences and the potential job. Include numbers to back up your accomplishments.
With resume.io, you can create a perfect cover letter in no time at all. Great design, amazing features, effective presentation. Go out there and win!
