You're at your limit, but it's not always clear whether it's the type of PM work or the environment that's draining you. That distinction matters more than most people realise.
The six sigma and PMP world sits firmly inside megacorp IT - think big banks, insurers, healthcare giants. That's a fundamentally different current to agency life. I held a PMP cert years ago at a telecom giant, and I haven't seen it mentioned in a job spec since. In those places you're still a cost centre, just like an agency. You get stability and a better quality of life in exchange for layers of interdepartmental politics that would make any creative shudder.
Agile is another beast entirely. It's used by leaner, software-driven firms. You could argue agile is just process theatre - writing code before you truly understand the requirements - but at least the product is the deliverable, much like in agency work. Many PMs in that model end up as resource allocation and status tracking rather than true stewardship.
My instinct says you'd do well targeting a smaller professional services firm. It'll feel more like an agency, but the PM role carries more client ownership and a real upward path. Interactive, email marketing, even outdoor agencies - they'll recognise your background as a lateral move, not a pivot.
All of this sits against a backdrop of macroeconomic uncertainty. Hiring is glacial right now, and the rise of generative AI, vibe coding and agentic development is reshaping what a PM even does. The ground is shifting under everyone's feet.
