Exaggerated my responsibilities to get a Project Manager job and now I'm completely out of my depth

girlagogo

Just under a week ago I was successful in an interview for an experienced Project Manager role working on what turns out to be a large company wide project. I was surprised I got it as I didn't meet key criteria in the application, including experience of managing a project from start to finish, but this was not mentioned during the interview.

The reality is that I have experience supporting on bits of project delivery already in flight and only in a junior capacity, on some deliverables with no real leadership experience. However having been out of work for 5 months due to the pandemic, I was desperate for work and did sell myself as being the person responsible for fully delivering the recent 2 projects I worked on from start to finish.

Rather than start me off with a small project, my boss has given me a huge one that impacts the whole of the business and I am responsible for kicking it off. I met with my project sponsor today to whom my boss told he will leave him in my "capable hands". He has no idea and Im panicking, not a clue where to start in the process, having been told that I need to map stakeholders and get a plan together in less than 2 weeks when there are 7 different groups who have no idea that they have to be involved yet, let alone do the work and I still don't understand the project.

I'm on a 6 month fixed term contract with 1 week's notice for the first time 2 months and I just want to leave before the first update to the Board and getting found out or humiliated for the incompetent I really am. I'm so stressed and am not sleeping well, particularly as I am so worried about my financial situation and really needed the money.

How do I explain my reason for leaving or what can I do?

Marcon

girlagogo said:

Just under a week ago I was successful in an interview for an experienced Project Manager role working on what turns out to be a large company wide project. I was surprised I got it as I didn't meet key criteria in the application, including experience of managing a project from start to finish, but this was not mentioned during the interview.

The reality is that I have experience supporting on bits of project delivery already in flight and only in a junior capacity, on some deliverables with no real leadership experience. However having been out of work for 5 months due to the pandemic, I was desperate for work and did sell myself as being the person responsible for fully delivering the recent 2 projects I worked on from start to finish.

Rather than start me off with a small project, my boss has given me a huge one that impacts the whole of the business and I am responsible for kicking it off. I met with my project sponsor today to whom my boss told he will leave him in my "capable hands". He has no idea and Im panicking, not a clue where to start in the process, having been told that I need to map stakeholders and get a plan together in less than 2 weeks when there are 7 different groups who have no idea that they have to be involved yet, let alone do the work and I still don't understand the project.

I'm on a 6 month fixed term contract with 1 week's notice for the first time 2 months and I just want to leave before the first update to the Board and getting found out or humiliated for the incompetent I really am. I'm so stressed and am not sleeping well, particularly as I am so worried about my financial situation and really needed the money.

How do I explain my reason for leaving or what can I do?

Tell the truth: that based on the information you were given during the hiring process, you had not appreciated the scale and complexity of the project and do not believe you have the necessary skills to complete it successfully. Accordingly, you feel that the most professional thing to do is resign at an early stage to ensure the company can recruit someone who more closely fits the profile you believe they need.

Phrased like that, they might be annoyed (and doubtless will be - as much with themselves as you), but won't be able to fault your behaviour in terms of professionalism. There's an outside chance they might offer you a 'second in command' role...fingers crossed!

TELLIT01

Bluntly put, the OP lied about their ability and experience and has been caught out by those lies.  If they don't resign I suspect it won't be long before the company realises and gets rid of them anyway.

Many people do exaggerate on CVs but to claim to have run projects from start to finish when involvement has actually only been on the periphery is taking it far further than that.

The OP may get away with claiming that the project is far bigger than anything they have previously done, far bigger than they understood it to be at interview, and they simply do not have the depth of experience required for the role.  All those statements are true.

Undervalued

girlagogo said:

Just under a week ago I was successful in an interview for an experienced Project Manager role working on what turns out to be a large company wide project. I was surprised I got it as I didn't meet key criteria in the application, including experience of managing a project from start to finish, but this was not mentioned during the interview.

The reality is that I have experience supporting on bits of project delivery already in flight and only in a junior capacity, on some deliverables with no real leadership experience. However having been out of work for 5 months due to the pandemic, I was desperate for work and did sell myself as being the person responsible for fully delivering the recent 2 projects I worked on from start to finish.

Rather than start me off with a small project, my boss has given me a huge one that impacts the whole of the business and I am responsible for kicking it off. I met with my project sponsor today to whom my boss told he will leave him in my "capable hands". He has no idea and Im panicking, not a clue where to start in the process, having been told that I need to map stakeholders and get a plan together in less than 2 weeks when there are 7 different groups who have no idea that they have to be involved yet, let alone do the work and I still don't understand the project.

I'm on a 6 month fixed term contract with 1 week's notice for the first time 2 months and I just want to leave before the first update to the Board and getting found out or humiliated for the incompetent I really am. I'm so stressed and am not sleeping well, particularly as I am so worried about my financial situation and really needed the money.

How do I explain my reason for leaving or what can I do?

You don't have to give a reason at all.

Unless your contract says that you have to give a week (or more) notice, the legal default is zero in the first month or employment. It does not have to be the same as whatever notice they have to give you.

You need to learn from this and stick to the truth. Don't make matters worse by lying about why you are leaving.

moneysavinghero

Style it out, you never know you might be good at it.

JLDrew

I'd be honest and say it's a bit much to deal with on your own and you're gonna need help. I think they will appreciate your honesty and support you if it is a big major contract/project.
Most contract managers or project managers I've met in my time haven't got much of a clue about most things and rely on other people to do their job correctly. You can only handle what you know your capable of so asking for help is not a sign of defeat. You got this! Good luck.

steampowered

Personally I would give it a crack.

There must be lots of materials about project management online. Could you spend your evenings reading as much as you can to upskill yourself?

You might even find that you do a good job, and develop the necessary skills for higher paid work in future.

Lawyers, investment bankers and some other jobs typically do 12-14 hour days 5-6 days a week. It is actually not that hard. You simply prioritise work over netflix. You could do the same. You don't need to do it forever, just while you are getting to grips with the new job.

Dakta

Only you know the scale of the exaggerations, I'd have a long hard objective look at the challenges now you've an insight to what you need to do and actually consider if you can do it.

if it's really that you can't and you've no chance at all you may wish to bow out, but I wouldn't do that automatically, because without going into tooo much detail, I have over time become concious to the fact that an amazing proportion of people do get through their working lives blagging it.

and a lot of them lead happy successful lives

[Deleted User]

Sit it out and hope you don't make any mistakes or be as productive as you can.
Or
Just tell them, my heart isn't in this/had a change of mind since interview/don't feel I fit in.
I have every empathy for you, I know when I went along for a Factory export job and it turned out they needed someone with v look up experience in Excel so rather advance skills (excel isn't any passion of mine) and I would never have known this from an interview; but in addition were looking to show someone the job remote/video link despite being in the same vicinity, whereas I thought it was side by side, it was awful I couldn't keep up and knew so quickly it wasn't for me - I made the call to chat to the recruitment agent the next day, who sounded like she was expecting my call. 
It was a weight off my shoulders.
There was also the Bailiff office, 2 interviews later and all that hope, yes I could want this job... day of trial I lasted half a day, as just the gut told me it wasn't right. Again best thing I could do rather then sit there faking it, I couldn't see me in the role. The scariest thing was getting £20 back to the bailiff.
I've got myself into all kinds of scrapes, there was the debt collection job which I probably should have thanked the Employer for turning me into sales rep, my only regret was asking them why they did that beyond the stating of cradle to grave, but it turned out the debt collection was heavily retentions as well.
Last year I sat opposite a girl who spent 5 months (probably petrified) who just couldn't do the job employed to do, there were tears as time rolled on, it wasn't pleasant seeing her dismissed.  In the end the boss genuinely couldn't get through either with re-training from around the 3 month marker when it all came out things were not being done and said has to go. Whilst he was soooo laid back, I do recall his best piece of advice, (which I am always forgetting) to take the emotion out of it when in business.
No amount of money is worth effecting your sleep over x

TELLIT01

Suggesting somebody sticks it out when it is apparent they simply don't even know where to start is doing no favours to either person asking or the company.  If it was a case the OP had handled small projects in the past it would be different as they would have the basic knowledge and could potentially develop that. 

moneysavinghero

TELLIT01 said:

Suggesting somebody sticks it out when it is apparent they simply don't even know where to start is doing no favours to either person asking or the company.  If it was a case the OP had handled small projects in the past it would be different as they would have the basic knowledge and could potentially develop that. 

Sound like the OP has already started work. So they may have to get a reference from them at some point (or explain why they don't want to give a reference from their most recent employer of 5 days). Chances are that reference is not going to be good ("Misled us about their experience level during interview"). So they may as well just go all-in and give it a go. If they managed to bluff the interview, who knows, they might be able to bluff the job as well.

The OP did say they have worked on small projects in the past (although not as lead), so they do have some knowledge. Just need to have confidence in themselves that they can do it alone. This could be the making of the OP. Never turn down an opportunity when it presents itself to you.