What Is an IT Project Manager? And How to Become One

What is an IT Project Manager?

An IT (information and technology) project manager is an expert who plans and executes projects to assist organizations in accomplishing their IT goals. IT project managers may oversee initiatives to implement new software solutions, change cloud providers for a company or scale IT processes. IT project managers collaborate with IT teams from most sectors, including health care, technology, education, and more.

What Does an IT Project Manager Do?

An IT project manager oversees the implementation of new IT processes within a company. They manage teams to complete IT projects on schedule and within the budget, as well as communicate with executive leaders, internal and external stakeholders, and vendors.

How Do You Become an It Project Manager?

IT project management jobs often demand a combination of hard technical and soft skills. While a good technical background is essential, job descriptions also seek non-technical skills such as task management, scheduling, and producing detailed plans.

1. Develop Relevant Skills

Organizations expect an IT project manager to be familiar with project management methodologies, initiate, plan, execute and close tasks through proper project management processes and have technical IT skills for working on large-scale projects. 

2. Gain Experience

An IT project manager can gain experience by starting with hands-on work in IT, developing leadership skills, and going up the project management ladder. Obtaining a certification will help project managers to expand their knowledge and qualifications. Certifications such as Scrum Master and Project Management Professional (PMP) are frequently required in job descriptions.

3. Nail the Job Application Process

To land a job as an IT project manager, you must have a resume that has relevant IT experience and project management skills. Once you have advanced to the interview stage, hiring managers will ask you to elaborate on any practical experience, such as working with Agile, implementing a cloud service, ensuring its compatibility, etc.

How Much Do IT Project Managers Earn?

The average annual salary for an IT project manager ranges from $60,000-$125,000. Although this is the average salary for IT project management roles, actual payment may vary depending on criteria such as experience, certifications, geographic region, education level, and industry.

IT Project Manager Job Description: Top Duties and Qualifications

The most important duties an IT project manager is expected to perform are:

• Develop technological strategy plans.
• IT integration into the organizations for maximum efficiency.
• To ensure the company's success, understand the present and future business goals and current IT concerns.
• Create a schedule for renewing and upgrading business software applications.
• Make certain that staff is complying with computer use policies, data security, and privacy.
• Participate in the hiring, orientation, and continuous training of new IT employees.
• Direct and supervise IT workers

IT Project Manager Job Titles

The job titles for an IT project manager could include:

• Information Technology Project Manager
• Senior IT Project Manager
• IT Project Manager (Part-Time)
• IT Project Manager (with Citrix proficiency)
• IT Operations Manager

IT Project Manager Responsibilities 

An IT project manager's responsibilities are similar to those of any other project manager in that they oversee the project's planning, implementation, monitoring, and reporting. They are in charge of ensuring that resources are managed effectively and that the project is completed successfully, which means on schedule, within budget, and complying with the required quality. They also manage the IT team while reporting to top management, clients, stakeholders, and so on.

An IT project manager is also required to research and study similar organizations and their IT structures to stay up to speed on the latest technology and advancements in the organization's technology. They ensure that the technology supports the firm's ultimate objectives, strategies, and practices.

They also protect IT assets by setting up disaster recovery and backup protocols and IT security and control frameworks. The quality maintenance of all IT initiatives is the responsibility of the IT project manager.

IT Project Manager Skills

An IT project manager must have the following skills and qualifications:

• Managing the IT resources
• Understanding and updating the technology
• Capability to upgrade with the constantly changing field
• Analyzing data
• Communication skills
• Team management
• Problem-solving skills
• Data center management
• Budgeting
• Strategic planning
• Quality management

IT Project Management Methodologies

IT project managers frequently guide operations with project management approaches or frameworks. The following are examples of common project management methodologies for IT projects.

1. Agile

Instead of being firmly aligned with the plan, software development has added an agile methodology to projects, which works in short delivery cycles and is open to shifting during the project. It is frequently used for tasks when flexibility and speed are important.

2. Waterfall Methodology

A method used in major projects outside of IT, it is equally applicable to IT projects. It is a viable method for formal and linear initiatives. Work proceeds in a logical sequence between defined stages and workstations. Work in this method proceeds to the next phase only once the previous phase is completed.

3. Scrum

Scrum emphasizes transparency, scrutiny, and adaptation. Scrum promotes iterative progress, accountability, and collaboration. Work is divided into brief "sprints."

4. PRINCE2

PRINCE2 means Projects IN Controlled Environments. It centers on managing resources and risks by breaking projects into manageable stages, defining clear roles and responsibilities, and controlling the project life cycle with seven processes.

5. Traditional Project Management

It is a well-established methodology in which projects are completed in the following order: initiation, planning, execution, monitoring, and closure. The traditional approach to project management stresses linear processes, documentation, upfront planning, and priority.

6. Lean

The lean methodology provides a mechanism for organizations to reduce waste by developing continuous feedback, review, and learning procedures to increase efficiency.

Are IT Project Managers in Demand?

With the expansion of technologies across all industries, like cloud and big data, IT project managers are required to assist with projects like cloud migration and application development. IT investments have been increasing each year exponentially, leading to IT project management positions expanding to handle the implementation of these types of technology.

IT Project Manager Salary and Job Outlook

An IT project manager's job growth is projected to be strong. From 2020 to 2030, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts an 11% increase in job opportunities for IT managers. The Project Management Institute (PMI) predicts high growth for project manager roles globally, with the sector expected to rise by 33%, or 22 million new jobs, by 2027.

What are the Six Phases of an IT Project?

An IT project has six phases that are followed in conjunction with the phases of project management. The six phases are as follows.

1. Initiation

The first phase of any IT project starts with determining the project goals and objectives. Then, a project proposal, including a business strategy, must be created to match the project's requirements. A feasibility study may also be done to ensure the plan is viable.

2. Definition

The project enters the defining phase after the approval of the project proposal. It is the stage during which the project's objectives are finalized, and the requirements for the project's success are identified. The project scope may also be defined, and the project plan can be developed. Budgets and resources are also allocated.

3. Design

The design phase is initiated when the project team explores the optimal solution for achieving the project goals. It requires developing numerous designs and prototypes. After deciding on a suitable design, guidelines for the development team are prepared and distributed.

4. Development

Tasks are then given to the development team, and appropriate project management tools are chosen. Furthermore, technical details are ironed out; raw materials are sought, and so on. During this phase, the plan is developed as clearly as possible in order to minimize problems during the implementation phase.

5. Implementation

This is the lengthiest phase of the project, where the final deliverable is developed. While the team completes the project tasks, the manager oversees and regulates the tasks, resources, and costs. They manage the risk and maintain the quality.

6. Follow Up

Finally, the complete project is handed to the customer, stakeholder, or client. The follow-up phase encompasses all work after the project has been delivered, such as establishing support teams, educating end-users, producing a postmortem, and finally closing the project.

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Conclusion

Appropriate project management experience and skills will be required for IT project management. Though technical abilities are not always essential, they are frequently desired and might give you a competitive advantage in your application. Sign-up for our UMass PGP Project Management  Course and learn all the essential skills like - project, program, risk, quality, complexity management, customer-centric digital transformation, PMO implementation, and agile & scrum.