Project Manager Cover Letter: Example and Tips

Cover letters are often the first thing that hiring managers see in your application. Although some employers may not require you to submit a cover letter with your application, writing a good cover letter is an important skill to learn. Employers that do want to see a cover letter can use it alongside a resume to learn more about you, your enthusiasm for the role, and your experience and qualifications.

For a project management position, a cover letter can be an opportunity to expand on the skills, motivations, and past successes that don't fit into your resume. Let’s take a look at what that might look like.

Project manager cover letter example

Reading through sample project manager cover letters can be a good way to spark your creativity, get ideas on the kind of content you should include, and gain insight into the tone and style that's most appropriate.

Here's the cover letter in text format:

October 4, 2021

Harland Sanders

Animax

123 Animal St

Chicago, IL 60290

Dear Mr. Harland Sanders,

My name is George Lee, and I am excited to be applying to the Junior Project Manager position at Animax. I am currently a Project Coordinator at Square Paws, where I have supported several projects successfully to completion. I have long admired Animax’s work to improve animal adoption processes and would be delighted to contribute my skills to the team.

At Square Paws, I oversaw multiple aspects of running numerous projects. I worked closely with the project manager to develop project schedules, ensure team members had the resources they needed to complete their tasks, and coordinated communication with stakeholders on project updates. I am particularly proud of a project to roll out a feature on our app that users could use to book appointments with veterinarians. As a complex project that involved multiple stakeholders, it was important to be mindful of the details and listen continuously to feedback from users. My efforts to coordinate an early feedback system in a trial period led to the discovery of several bugs and pain points that we fixed for the launch. We were able to reduce customer concerns by 80% and ultimately completed the project under budget by $3,000.

I have long been familiar with animal adoption centers and believe wholeheartedly in Animax’s mission. I have volunteered consistently at animal shelters since high school and am familiar with their processes. In college, I took several courses that I believe can be useful to the project manager role, including zoology and business administration. Working as a project manager in this field will allow me to expand my knowledge of the industry, and assist in my ultimate goal to make the world a more livable place for shelter animals.

I believe that my past experience, skillset, and passions make me a strong candidate for Animax’s team. I hope to hear from you soon. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

George Lee

(123)456-7890

How to write a good project manager cover letter

Crafting your project manager cover letter involves some strategic planning and deep self-reflection. Here are some steps to get you started:

1. Start with your qualifications.

Hiring managers might be inundated with job applications, so you'll need to make your cover letter stand out right from the start. By stating who you are, your qualifications, and relevant experience in the opening paragraph, you can entice the hiring manager to continue reading to learn more about your story.

Read more: How to Start a Cover Letter

What if I haven’t worked as a project manager before?

Even if you haven’t held the title of project manager before, chances are you’ve done some elements of project management. Have you led meetings, assembled a team, or helped improve a process on your team? Those are project management skills. If you’re still hoping to build out your project management skills, you can consider applying to more entry-level project management jobs like project coordinator or assistant project manager. Learn more about how to become a project manager.

2. Tailor each cover letter to the job.

Templates or old cover letters you’ve used in the past can help get your cover letter started. But don’t forget to tailor them specifically to each job. Companies like to see that you’re genuinely interested in the job and company, and that you’ve done your research.

Look over the job description to see what kinds of qualities and skills the organization is looking for. If you’re applying to a large organization, think about what keywords an automated system might scan resumes and cover letters for. In project management roles, these might include Agile, mitigation, change management, or risk management. The job description is usually a good way to gauge what qualities and skills might be keywords.

Tip:

Review ZipRecruiter's Career Keyword Mapper for roles you're interested in to find out which keywords appear most often in job descriptions and resumes. These can give you ideas about keywords to include in your cover letter. For example, top keywords in project manager job descriptions include communication, collaboration, project planning, innovation, documentation, facilitation, and vendor management [1].

Read more: How to Address a Cover Letter

3. Think beyond your resume.

A cover letter can be a place to expand on your resume and tell more of your story. You can elaborate on one or more of your accomplishments, but don’t simply rehash what your resume already says.

Think about what you can include that showcases your value beyond the accomplishments listed in your resume. How can you connect the cover letter to your personal experiences, or your personal story? What made you interested in this field? What in particular excites you about the job or company, and why? How does this job fit into your goals for the future? Your cover letter should both connect your experiences to the qualities the company is looking for, and show why you, as a person, are good for the job.

Read more: 12 Project Management Interview Questions and How to Answer Them

4. Use numbers. 

Concrete numbers can help illustrate your success in past jobs. If you worked on projects, what metrics made them successful? Did customer satisfaction improve by a percentage, or did you complete the project under budget? 

5. Proofread.

Project management is a profession that demands big-picture understanding and a keen awareness of the details. Make sure your cover letter is formatted correctly and free of spelling and grammatical errors. If you can, have a trusted friend or colleague look through your cover letter to catch anything you may have missed.

Need more structure in your job search process? Try creating a job search plan. Learn what they are in the video below.

Read more: How Long Should a Cover Letter Be?

Getting started in project management

Need a refresher on project management concepts? Online courses can help you review the basics, or get you up to speed with the latest project management practices. If you're looking for a place to start, take a look at the Google Project Management: Professional Certificate. The first week is free.