The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.
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.
Sample of reported job titles: Cloud Product Director, Cybersecurity Project Manager, Data Center Product Director, Information Systems Project Manager (IS Project Manager), IT Manager (Information Technology Manager), IT Program Manager (Information Technology Program Manager), IT Project Manager (Information Technology Project Manager), Scrum Master, Transition Program Manager
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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).
Identify need for initial or supplemental project resources.
Develop or update project plans for information technology projects including information such as project objectives, technologies, systems, information specifications, schedules, funding, and staffing.
Perform risk assessments to develop response strategies.
Prepare project status reports by collecting, analyzing, and summarizing information and trends.
Identify, review, or select vendors or consultants to meet project needs.
Develop and manage annual budgets for information technology projects.
Establish and execute a project communication plan.
Develop and manage work breakdown structure (WBS) of information technology projects.
Monitor the performance of project team members, providing and documenting performance feedback.
Coordinate recruitment or selection of project personnel.
Assign duties, responsibilities, and spans of authority to project personnel.
Negotiate with project stakeholders or suppliers to obtain resources or materials.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Working with Computers — 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 — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
Scheduling Work and Activities — Scheduling events, programs, and activities, as well as the work of others.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Monitoring and Controlling Resources — Monitoring and controlling resources and overseeing the spending of money.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Developing Objectives and Strategies — Establishing long-range objectives and specifying the strategies and actions to achieve them.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates — Providing guidance and direction to subordinates, including setting performance standards and monitoring performance.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Analyzing Data or Information — Identifying the underlying principles, reasons, or facts of information by breaking down information or data into separate parts.
Communicating with People Outside the Organization — Communicating with people outside the organization, representing the organization to customers, the public, government, and other external sources. This information can be exchanged in person, in writing, or by telephone or e-mail.
Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
Monitoring Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Estimating the Quantifiable Characteristics of Products, Events, or Information — Estimating sizes, distances, and quantities; or determining time, costs, resources, or materials needed to perform a work activity.
Providing Consultation and Advice to Others — Providing guidance and expert advice to management or other groups on technical, systems-, or process-related topics.
Coaching and Developing Others — Identifying the developmental needs of others and coaching, mentoring, or otherwise helping others to improve their knowledge or skills.
Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
Performing Administrative Activities — Performing day-to-day administrative tasks such as maintaining information files and processing paperwork.
Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
Selling or Influencing Others — Convincing others to buy merchandise/goods or to otherwise change their minds or actions.
Staffing Organizational Units — Recruiting, interviewing, selecting, hiring, and promoting employees in an organization.
Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor’s degree, but some do not.
Related 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.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.
Job Zone Examples
Many of these occupations involve coordinating, supervising, managing, or training others. Examples include real estate brokers, sales managers, database administrators, graphic designers, conservation scientists, art directors, and cost estimators.
Critical Thinking — Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions, or approaches to problems.
Active Listening — 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 — Adjusting actions in relation to others’ actions.
Reading Comprehension — Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
Time Management — Managing one’s own time and the time of others.
Writing — Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.
Management of Personnel Resources — Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
Speaking — Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Systems Analysis — Determining how a system should work and how changes in conditions, operations, and the environment will affect outcomes.
Judgment and Decision Making — Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
Monitoring — Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Systems Evaluation — Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
Active Learning — Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
Complex Problem Solving — Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
Negotiation — Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
Social Perceptiveness — Being aware of others’ reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Service Orientation — Actively looking for ways to help people.
Instructing — Teaching others how to do something.
Management of Financial Resources — Determining how money will be spent to get the work done, and accounting for these expenditures.
Management of Material Resources — Obtaining and seeing to the appropriate use of equipment, facilities, and materials needed to do certain work.
Persuasion — Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
Learning Strategies — Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
English Language — 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 — 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 — Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
Administration and Management — 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 — 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 — Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
Administrative — Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
Telecommunications — Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
Mathematics — Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
Personnel and Human Resources — Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Communications and Media — Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
Oral Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Written Comprehension — The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Written Expression — The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Deductive Reasoning — The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Inductive Reasoning — The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering — 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 — The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Problem Sensitivity — The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Fluency of Ideas — 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 — The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Speech Clarity — The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Speech Recognition — The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Category Flexibility — The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Originality — The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
Number Facility — The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
Flexibility of Closure — The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
Mathematical Reasoning — The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
Enterprising — 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 — 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.
Achievement — 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 — 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 — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions.
Leadership — Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
Integrity — Job requires being honest and ethical.
Initiative — Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
Stress Tolerance — Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high-stress situations.
Adaptability/Flexibility — Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
Dependability — Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
Cooperation — Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
Self-Control — Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
Persistence — Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
Analytical Thinking — Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
Attention to Detail — Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
Concern for Others — Job requires being sensitive to others’ needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
Achievement/Effort — Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
Social Orientation — Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.
Independence — Job requires developing one’s own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
Innovation — Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
Median wage data for Computer Occupations, All Other.
Employment data for Computer Occupations, All Other.
Industry data for Computer Occupations, All Other.
Median wages (2021)
$45.80 hourly, $95,270 annual
State wages
Local wages
Employment (2020)
442,200 employees
Projected growth (2020-2030)
Average (5% to 10%)
Projected job openings (2020-2030)
37,500
State trends
Top industries (2020)
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2021 wage data external site and 2020-2030 employment projections external site. “Projected growth” represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2020-2030). “Projected job openings” represent openings due to growth and replacement.
Disclaimer: Sources are listed to provide additional information on related jobs, specialties, and/or industries. Links to non-DOL Internet sites are provided for your convenience and do not constitute an endorsement.
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