ABSTRACT Project management is a major topic worth studying and reviewing in the 21 century because every sector of life requires project managers to complete projects effectively. Project managers are tasked with leading a project throughout its life cycle, including the initiation, planning, execution, and closure. However, from the review of relevant literature on project management, it is evident numerous studies have been conducted emphasizing the execution of the roles of the project manager to complete a project. Still, very few have emphasized the role of critical skills that contribute to the execution of the role of the project manager. This paper examines the different crucial roles of a project manager, shedding light on the contribution of critical skills to the successful execution of these roles. The main focus of this paper, however, is on the roles of the project manager throughout the life cycle of a project. Using existing literature to back up the facts discussed, this paper analyses the different roles of a project manager, reflecting on the skills responsible for executing the roles and drawing on supportive literature from up-to-date sources. The paper aims to build a discussion on the gaps identified in the role skills play in executing the responsibilities of project managers. ROLES OF A PROJECT MANAGER INTRODUCTION A project manager is in charge of ensuring that a project assigned in any company or institution successfully goes through the five stages of project management which are initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closure. As the leader of the project, a project manager needs to have critical skills that help in the execution of their roles throughout all the phases of a project cycle. The most important role of a project manager is to function as the project leader by inclusively discussing the scope of the project activities, planning the timelines of completion of every step, executing the activities, and completing the whole project (Khan et al., 2020). Inclusivity during the project increases the effectiveness of the project activities since members working on the project have equitable resources to use their full potential in meeting their responsibilities. Project managers play a crucial role in innovation through their leadership style, intellectual competencies, and behavioral characteristics (Ribeiro et al., 2021). For effective project management, a project manager has to exhibit entrepreneurship skills to be conversant with discovering the requisite skills, the market value, and the proven processes that are trending to stay relevant (Sundarbabu & Venkatachalam, 2021). However, from the review of relevant literature on project management, many studies have been conducted on emphasizing the execution of the roles of the project manager to complete a project, but very few have emphasized the role of the critical skills that contribute to the execution of the roles of the project manager. Therefore, this study will explore the roles of a project manager concerning the critical skills needed for successful project completion. TEAM BUILDING Project managers, being in charge of the activities as a project goes through different phases, are responsible for team building. The role of a project manager is to oversee the activities carried out, make, and offer a plan to be followed, and correct where necessary to ensure the efficiency of project completion. Therefore, to perform the tasks mentioned effectively, a project manager has to ensure team building among the people working on the different specific areas of a project, according to Larsson and Larsson (2020). For instance, in a project plan, there are different sections all performing different activities which, when harmonized, meet the goal of the project; therefore, every person working on the different activities should be able to collaborate with one another to meet this common goal. This improves the project's sustainability because knowledge and skills are generated among the team members, who can, therefore, innovate better ways of fulfilling their responsibilities and solving problems without outsourcing. For example, a project manager has to make sure that all members know their roles and responsibilities and how they contribute to the completion of the project, which will help the project manager oversee the activities of the employees easily and efficiently. Besides easy monitoring of activities, collaboration among the employees helps offer different alternatives to solve a problem in case one arises during the project execution, and from this, the best innovative strategy will be employed. IMPLEMENTING KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT A project manager is tasked with ensuring the successful completion of a project; therefore, it is his role to ensure that the team members have the required competencies and skills required to fulfill their responsibilities. For instance, a project manager has to have an innovative mind to ensure they are up to date with the current skills and knowledge to carry out their activities effectively. In this sense, the project manager should research the best innovative ways to conduct activities and share them with the team members to improve the chances of the program's success. Also, the project manager should share the importance of sharing knowledge among the employees to ensure a culture of sharing knowledge is built. With improved knowledge sharing, the employees will be able to share different points of view, which can result in improved creativity in the project (Lam et al., 2021). The project manager should also restate the project's objectives to ensure that all the employees working on the project tailor their activities based on the objectives, including the timelines. Implementing knowledge management helps enhance project completion and communication between the employees and the project manager. This is because, through increased interaction with the project manager, the people working on the projects can give their views on the strategies initially proposed, and eventually, through this, better decision-making will be achieved. STAKEHOLDER SATISFACTION Project managers are responsible for delivering information on the project's progress and requesting more information from the stakeholders. The plan of a project is flexible since every project is subject to issues arising, such as more innovative ways coming up, changes in the timeline, changes in customer preference, etc. Therefore, a project manager should be able to effectively be in open, constant communication with the customers and the team workers to ensure that every detail change is discussed and implemented in time. Projects have different life cycles, and during the initial stages, such as planning, the project manager has to be in constant communication with the stakeholders to make sure that all the activities in the planning schedule are tailored according to the stakeholder's preferences and needs (Bahadorestani et al., 2020). This stage, therefore, involves correction and constant reformation in alignment with the stakeholders' directions. According to the stakeholder theory, the project manager should be able to create value for all the stakeholders in the business and, therefore, has to give regard to the interests of the stakeholders (Freeman et al., 2020). As a result, stakeholders are at the center of project requirements, so attention should be paid to them. CRITICAL SKILLS To effectively fulfill their responsibilities, a competent project manager needs to possess skills that will help drive their roles and responsibilities. For instance, a project manager has to have entrepreneurial skills. This is because, with entrepreneurship skills, they can conduct research and be conversant with market trends, and therefore tailor the project objectives accordingly (Sundarbabu & Venkatachalam, 2021). For instance, to effectively meet stakeholder satisfaction, a project manager needs to stay up to date with the market trends to deliver relevant projects that will be of value to the stakeholders (Bahadorestani et al., 2020). This also affects time management skills. For instance, to satisfy the stakeholders' needs, the project manager should be able to keep up with the timelines of every activity as per the project plan. This will help them ensure that everything is communicated promptly to allow time to work on problems arising and avoid last-minute rushes that will jeopardize the project's efficiency. Time management complements budget management. During planning, the project manager should be able to have timely activities based on the funds allocated to avoid losses and shortages. A project manager is in charge of all the activities conducted to meet the goals and objectives of the project. Therefore, the project manager also has to possess leadership skills to help complete the projects. For instance, leadership styles discourage innovation and teamwork, such as autocratic leadership, where the leader has the absolute power to instruct with minimum involvement and engagement of the subordinates (Aziz et al., 2022). This limits innovation as the team members will not have room to communicate promptly concerning problems that arise, which will affect the successful completion of the project. Therefore, a project manager has to adopt a leadership style that will contribute to the successful completion of the project, such as inclusive leadership (Khan et al., 2020). Here, the team members are given equal ground to be free and challenge themselves to creatively and innovatively execute their roles and responsibilities assigned. All projects are subject to alterations, especially in the initial stages, such as the planning and initiation, and even in the execution and closure phases. Therefore, a project manager should be able to adapt to the constantly emerging changes at any step of the project's life cycle. Furthermore, adaptability helps manage team members to perform their tasks. For instance, team members may meet unexpected challenges along the way, and the project manager's ability to flexibly develop alternative ways of managing the issue will prevent frustration that may cause hurdles in completing the project effectively. The top skill that a project manager should have is accountability. A project manager, as the leader of a project, is tasked with observing all the activities happening at every stage of the project life cycle and reviewing them against the objectives stated. There are so many areas a project manager is concerned with, including stakeholder communication on the preferences, team member education on responsibilities and activities, and the budget. Therefore, they should be able to account for every fund used, the time allocated for every activity, and also the losses and shortages encountered during the project execution. CONCLUSION The discussion on the role of a project manager has helped shed light on the crucial roles a project manager plays and the contribution of critical skills they must possess in the successful completion of the project. In order to successfully complete a project, a project manager should collectively embody skills, attitudes, and knowledge to deliver value to the stakeholders. For instance, the project manager has to ensure stakeholder satisfaction, team building, and implementing knowledge management. However, to effectively execute these roles, the project manager should have adaptability, effective time management, budget management, accountability leadership, and entrepreneurship skills that are bedrock in effective project management. 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