ICT presales engineer to ICT operations manager
An ICT presales engineer already meets 20% of what the ICT operations manager role asks for. The move turns on 15 required skills not yet in the profile.
78.9/ 100
1 How much of what an ICT operations manager is expected to do is already part of an ICT presales engineer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the ICT operations manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An ICT operations manager role treats 3 of its required skills as things an ICT presales engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- define technology strategy
- perform project management
- use different communication channels
What stands in the way is 15 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An ICT operations manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an ICT presales engineer background worth leading with.
- already held software components suppliers information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held hardware components suppliers business, administration and law
- already held software components libraries information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held hardware components information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held coordinate technological activities management skills
- already held define technology strategy management skills
All 9 carried skills, including the 3 the ICT operations manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 32 missing skills fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn develop ICT workflow required
- still to learn improve business processes required
- still to learn manage budgets required
- still to learn manage staff required
- optional, not held apply organisational techniques optional
- optional, not held develop information standards optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- still to learn maintain relationship with suppliers required
- still to learn design process required
- still to learn train employees required
- optional, not held manage contracts optional
- optional, not held perform procurement processes optional
- still to learn attend to ICT systems quality required
- still to learn manage changes in ICT system required
- still to learn use ICT ticketing system required
- optional, not held implement ICT security policies optional
- optional, not held implement a virtual private network optional
- still to learn innovation processes required
- still to learn operations management required
- optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- still to learn digital systems required
- optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
- optional, not held core banking software optional
- optional, not held systems development life-cycle optional
- still to learn track key performance indicators required
- optional, not held implement ICT risk management optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an ICT operations manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 attend to ICT systems quality practise this
- 02 develop ICT workflow practise this
- 03 innovation processes study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held define technology strategy skill
- already held perform project management skill
- already held use different communication channels skill
- already held comply with legal regulations skill
- already held coordinate technological activities skill
- already held hardware components knowledge
- already held hardware components suppliers knowledge
- already held software components libraries knowledge
- already held software components suppliers knowledge
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn oversee quality control required
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
- optional, not held core banking software optional
- optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held implement ICT risk management optional
- optional, not held implement ICT security policies optional
- optional, not held implement a virtual private network optional
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held apply organisational techniques optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- optional, not held develop information standards optional
- optional, not held manage contracts optional
- optional, not held perform procurement processes optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held systems development life-cycle optional
26 held skills the ICT operations manager role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role ICT market knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT sales methodologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT system user requirements knowledge
- not needed by the target role SAS language knowledge
- not needed by the target role apply conflict management skill
- not needed by the target role apply statistical analysis techniques skill
- not needed by the target role business intelligence knowledge
- not needed by the target role customer segmentation knowledge
- not needed by the target role define technical requirements skill
- not needed by the target role deliver a sales pitch skill
- not needed by the target role develop account strategy skill
- not needed by the target role develop revenue generation strategies skill
- not needed by the target role digital marketing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role emergent technologies knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role identify training needs skill
- not needed by the target role implement marketing strategies skill
- not needed by the target role keep up to date on product knowledge skill
- not needed by the target role market pricing knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform market research skill
- not needed by the target role prepare scientific reports skill
- not needed by the target role produce sales reports skill
- not needed by the target role product comprehension knowledge
- not needed by the target role set sales goals skill
- not needed by the target role statistical analysis system software knowledge
- not needed by the target role supervise sales activities skill
11 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn innovation processes required
- still to learn operations management required
- still to learn digital systems required
- optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
- optional, not held core banking software optional
- optional, not held crowdsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held insourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held outsourcing strategy optional
- optional, not held contract law optional
- optional, not held systems development life-cycle optional
Common questions about this move
Can an ICT presales engineer become an ICT operations manager?
Yes, and it is a career change move. An ICT presales engineer already covers 20% of what an ICT operations manager is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 3 of which the ICT operations manager role treats as required.
What skills does an ICT presales engineer need to become an ICT operations manager?
15 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is attend to ICT systems quality.
How hard is the move from ICT presales engineer to ICT operations manager?
Its learning distance is 78.9 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.