In the literature there is a common belief that project management is a general theory that is mainly
about techniques and/or tools used for planning, budgeting, and control. This view has lately been
questioned due to the fact that it does not give a complete picture of what a project manager actually
does in their daily work. By including other skills, such as, skills for communication, team building,
and leadership, a more complete picture of the project management role may be provided. Project
management research needs more empirical data from project managers about what their role as project
manager actually means. The purpose of this study is to investigate what it means to work as a project
manager in small and medium sized organizations. Empirical data is planned to be gathered (in the
county of Värmland, Sweden) from May through October 2012, using semi-structured interviews and
participant observations of project managers working in a multi-project management environment.
Three overlapping analyzes techniques will be used to analyze the gathered data: thematic analysis,
grounded theory, and narrative analysis. By using these techniques, hopefully this article will expand the
knowledge and the understanding what a project manager actually does in their daily work.