Information Technology Project Managers

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.

Most important skills

Critical Thinking
Reading Comprehension
Active Listening
Writing
Coordination
Time Management
Speaking
Management of Personnel Resources

Key knowledge

English Language
Customer and Personal Service
Computers and Electronics
Administration and Management
Engineering and Technology
Economics and Accounting
Administrative
Telecommunications

What the work involves

Perform risk assessments to develop response strategies.
Submit project deliverables, ensuring adherence to quality standards.
Monitor the performance of project team members, providing and documenting performance feedback.
Confer with project personnel to identify and resolve problems.
Assess current or future customer needs and priorities by communicating directly with customers, conducting surveys, or other methods.
Schedule and facilitate meetings related to information technology projects.
Monitor or track project milestones and deliverables.
Negotiate with project stakeholders or suppliers to obtain resources or materials.

Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Enterprising, Conventional, Investigative.

Qualifications and licensing

Most common education: Bachelor's Degree (38.1% of respondents)
Related experience: Over 2 years, up to and including 4 years (38.1%)
On-the-job training: Anything beyond short demonstration, up to and including 1 month (30%)
Preparation level: O*NET job zone 4: Job Zone Four: Considerable Preparation Needed
Licensing: Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.

Check before planning

Licensing for Information Technology Project Managers is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
Projection education uses SOC 15-1299 (detailed_parent); it may describe a broader group.

Limits

Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.

Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0

Work environment

How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).

Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.

Rankings compare typical U.S. occupation-level work conditions; individual jobs and employers vary. Data: O*NET 31.0 Work Context and BLS wages (May 2025).
Condition	Level	Compared with other occupations	Most common answer (O*NET survey)
Contact with others	High	Higher on contact with others than 66% of occupations compared	57% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others”
Dealing with the public	Moderate	Higher on dealing with the public than 55% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Very important”
Teamwork	Very high	Higher on teamwork than 90% of occupations compared	75% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important”
Freedom to make decisions	Moderate	Higher on freedom to make decisions than 56% of occupations compared	62% of surveyed respondents chose “Some freedom”
Time pressure	Very high	Higher on time pressure than 83% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day”
Conflict situations	Very high	Higher on conflict situations than 92% of occupations compared	52% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day”
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people	High	Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 73% of occupations compared	40% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a week or more but not every day”
Consequence of error	Moderate	Lower on consequence of error than 59% of occupations compared	40% of surveyed respondents chose “Serious”

Work-pressure profile

Time pressure: very high
Conflict situations: very high
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: high
Consequence of error: moderate

Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.

Full answer distributions