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Information Technology Project Managers
Overview
Salary
Demand
Core Tasks
Technology Skills
Tools Used
Top 10 Knowledge Required
Top 10 Skills
Top 10 Abilities
Top 10 Work Activities
Detailed Work Activities
Work Context
Education
Majors
Interests
Top 10 Work Styles
Work Values
Overview
Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Experience
A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.
Education
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Examples
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include real estate brokers, sales managers, database administrators, graphic designers, chemists, art directors, and cost estimators.
Plan, initiate, and manage information technology (IT) projects. Lead and guide the work of technical staff. Serve as liaison between business and technical aspects of projects. Plan project stages and assess business implications for each stage. Monitor progress to assure deadlines, standards, and cost targets are met.
Salary Salary
Salary at 10th Percentile: $45K
Salary at 25th Percentile: $65K
Median Salary: $92K
Salary at 75th Percentile: $122K
Salary at 90th Percentile: $152K
Demand
Core Tasks
Manage project execution to ensure adherence to budget, schedule, and scope.
Confer with project personnel to identify and resolve problems.
Monitor or track project milestones and deliverables.
Submit project deliverables, ensuring adherence to quality standards.
Assess current or future customer needs and priorities by communicating directly with customers, conducting surveys, or other methods.
Initiate, review, or approve modifications to project plans.
Schedule and facilitate meetings related to information technology projects.
Direct or coordinate activities of project personnel.
Develop implementation plans that include analyses such as cost-benefit or return on investment (ROI).
Develop or update project plans for information technology projects including information such as project objectives, technologies, systems, information specifications, schedules, funding, and staffing.
Identify need for initial or supplemental project resources.
Perform risk assessments to develop response strategies.
Prepare project status reports by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing information and trends.
Develop and manage annual budgets for information technology projects.
Identify, review, or select vendors or consultants to meet project needs.
Develop and manage work breakdown structure (WBS) of information technology projects.
Establish and execute a project communication plan.
Coordinate recruitment or selection of project personnel.
Monitor the performance of project team members, providing and documenting performance feedback.
Assign duties, responsibilities, and spans of authority to project personnel.
Negotiate with project stakeholders or suppliers to obtain resources or materials.
Technology Skills
Technology
Example
Hot Technology
Tools Used
Tool
Example
Top 10 Knowledge Required
English Language
86%
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Customer and Personal Service
85%
Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
Computers and Electronics
84%
Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Administration and Management
80%
Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Engineering and Technology
72%
Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
Economics and Accounting
67%
Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Clerical
66%
Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
Telecommunications
64%
Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Mathematics
63%
Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Personnel and Human Resources
63%
Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Top 10 Skills
Critical Thinking
83%
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
Active Listening
80%
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Coordination
80%
Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
Reading Comprehension
80%
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Time Management
80%
Managing one's own time and the time of others.
Writing
80%
Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Management of Personnel Resources
78%
Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Speaking
78%
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Systems Analysis
75%
Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Judgment and Decision Making
73%
Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Top 10 Abilities
Oral Expression
80%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension
80%
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression
80%
The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Deductive Reasoning
78%
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning
78%
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering
78%
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Oral Comprehension
78%
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Problem Sensitivity
78%
The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
Fluency of Ideas
73%
The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Near Vision
73%
The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Top 10 Work Activities
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others
98%
Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates
94%
Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Getting Information
94%
Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work
93%
Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Interacting With Computers
91%
Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
Developing and Building Teams
89%
Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
Scheduling Work and Activities
89%
Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems
88%
Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Monitoring and Controlling Resources
88%
Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge
88%
Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Detailed Work Activities
Analyze security of systems, network, or data.
Supervise information technology personnel.
Collaborate with others to resolve information technology issues.
Collect data about customer needs.
Manage information technology projects or system activities.
Coordinate resource procurement activities.
Develop detailed project plans.
Participate in staffing decisions.
Develop information communication procedures.
Identify information technology project resource requirements.
Develop guidelines for system implementation.
Manage budgets for appropriate resource allocation.
Assign duties or work schedules to employees.
Analyze data to identify trends or relationships among variables.
Prepare analytical reports.
Work Context
Electronic Mail
How often do you use electronic mail in this job?
Telephone
How often do you have telephone conversations in this job?
Indoors, Environmentally Controlled
How often does this job require working indoors in environmentally controlled conditions?
Work With Work Group or Team
How important is it to work with others in a group or team in this job?
Face-to-Face Discussions
How often do you have to have face-to-face discussions with individuals or teams in this job?
Contact With Others
How much does this job require the worker to be in contact with others (face-to-face, by telephone, or otherwise) in order to perform it?
Time Pressure
How often does this job require the worker to meet strict deadlines?
Coordinate or Lead Others
How important is it to coordinate or lead others in accomplishing work activities in this job?
Spend Time Sitting
How much does this job require sitting?
Structured versus Unstructured Work
To what extent is this job structured for the worker, rather than allowing the worker to determine tasks, priorities, and goals?
Education
Majors based on the broader career Computer Occupations, All Other
Major
Interests
Enterprising
96%
Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
Conventional
48%
Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.
Investigative
43%
Investigative occupations frequently involve working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. These occupations can involve searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally.
Artistic
29%
Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.
Social
29%
Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
Realistic
24%
Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
Top 10 Work Styles
Leadership
96%
Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Integrity
95%
Job requires being honest and ethical.
Initiative
93%
Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Stress Tolerance
92%
Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
Adaptability/Flexibility
91%
Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Dependability
91%
Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation
90%
Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Self Control
90%
Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Persistence
89%
Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Analytical Thinking
88%
Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Work Values
Achievement
86%
Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.
Independence
81%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
Working Conditions
74%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Recognition
72%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious. Corresponding needs are Advancement, Authority, Recognition and Social Status.
Relationships
48%
Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.
Support
48%
Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
