Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

ICT project manager to software manager

An ICT project manager already meets 34% of what the software manager role asks for. The move turns on 15 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From ICT project manager
34 % overlap
Distant match
To software manager
16 You already bring
15 Still to learn
48 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

71.9/ 100

1 How much of what a software manager is expected to do is already part of an ICT project manager’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 software manager role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

A software manager role treats 8 of its required skills as things an ICT project manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • ICT project management
  • ICT project management methodologies
  • define technology strategy
  • digital systems
  • manage ICT project
  • quality assurance methodologies

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

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 16 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A software manager role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an ICT project manager background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held manage ICT project management skills
  • already held use ICT ticketing system working with computers
  • already held ICT project management business, administration and law
  • already held ICT system user requirements information and communication technologies (icts)
  • already held define technology strategy management skills
  • already held digital systems information and communication technologies (icts)

All 16 carried skills, including the 8 the software manager role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 32 missing skills fall into 7 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.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 information skills 4 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn evaluate cost of software products required
  • still to learn manage data required
  • still to learn execute analytical mathematical calculations required
  • still to learn monitor technology trends required
  • optional, not held analyse ICT technical proposals optional
  • optional, not held identify ICT user needs optional
  • optional, not held monitor ICT research optional
02 information and communication technologies (icts) 3 required, 5 supplementary
  • still to learn data storage required
  • still to learn software metrics required
  • still to learn unified modelling language required
  • optional, not held Android (mobile operating systems) optional
  • optional, not held BlackBerry optional
  • optional, not held iOS optional
  • optional, not held mobile operating systems optional
  • optional, not held trading software optional
03 assisting and caring 3 required
  • still to learn apply ICT system usage policies required
  • still to learn ensure adherence to organisational ICT standards required
  • still to learn apply system organisational policies required
04 working with computers 2 required
  • still to learn analyse software specifications required
  • still to learn use an application-specific interface required
05 communication, collaboration and creativity 1 required, 6 supplementary
  • still to learn create software design required
  • optional, not held interact with users to gather requirements optional
  • optional, not held use methodologies for user-centered design optional
  • optional, not held give live presentation optional
  • optional, not held negotiate buying conditions optional
  • optional, not held provide user documentation optional
  • optional, not held use different communication channels optional
06 management skills 1 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn manage business knowledge required
  • optional, not held manage software localisation optional
  • optional, not held manage schedule of tasks optional
  • optional, not held manage tender processes optional

1 further area in the appendix

Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries a software manager role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 16 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held ICT project management knowledge
  • already held ICT project management methodologies knowledge
  • already held define technology strategy skill
  • already held digital systems knowledge
  • already held manage ICT project skill
  • already held quality assurance methodologies knowledge
  • already held systems development life-cycle knowledge
  • already held use ICT ticketing system skill
  • already held Agile project management knowledge
  • already held ICT system user requirements knowledge
  • already held Process-based management knowledge
  • already held apply conflict management skill
  • already held coach employees skill
  • already held lean project management knowledge
  • already held manage staff skill
  • already held train employees skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
Skill to pick up Tier
07 business, administration and law 1 required
  • still to learn organisational policies required
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held analyse ICT technical proposals optional
  • optional, not held manage software localisation optional
  • optional, not held Android (mobile operating systems) optional
  • optional, not held BlackBerry optional
  • optional, not held iOS optional
  • optional, not held identify ICT user needs optional
  • optional, not held interact with users to gather requirements optional
  • optional, not held mobile operating systems optional
  • optional, not held monitor ICT research optional
  • optional, not held trading software optional
  • optional, not held use methodologies for user-centered design optional
  • optional, not held give live presentation optional
  • optional, not held manage schedule of tasks optional
  • optional, not held manage tender processes optional
  • optional, not held negotiate buying conditions optional
  • optional, not held provide user documentation optional
  • optional, not held use different communication channels optional
55 held skills the software manager role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role Agile development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role DevOps knowledge
  • not needed by the target role ICT process quality models knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Open source model knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Outsourcing model knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Prototyping development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Rapid application development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Spiral development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role Waterfall development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role analyse business plans skill
  • not needed by the target role apply change management skill
  • not needed by the target role apply organisational techniques skill
  • not needed by the target role blockchain mining principles knowledge
  • not needed by the target role build business relationships skill
  • not needed by the target role carry out project activities skill
  • not needed by the target role create project specifications skill
  • not needed by the target role create solutions to problems skill
  • not needed by the target role crowdsourcing strategy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role define roadmap for blockchain in applications skill
  • not needed by the target role define technical requirements skill
  • not needed by the target role develop blockchain technology skill
  • not needed by the target role develop information standards skill
  • not needed by the target role document management knowledge
  • not needed by the target role draft project documentation skill
  • not needed by the target role estimate duration of work skill
  • not needed by the target role execute ICT audits skill
  • not needed by the target role hybrid model knowledge
  • not needed by the target role identify legal requirements skill
  • not needed by the target role implement ICT risk management skill
  • not needed by the target role incremental development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role insourcing strategy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role internal risk management policy knowledge
  • not needed by the target role iterative development knowledge
  • not needed by the target role legal requirements of ICT products knowledge
  • not needed by the target role maintain a central project repository skill
  • not needed by the target role maintain relationship with suppliers skill
  • not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
  • not needed by the target role manage localisation skill
  • not needed by the target role manage project changes skill
  • not needed by the target role manage project information skill

15 further entries not listed here

9 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn data storage required
  • still to learn organisational policies required
  • still to learn software metrics required
  • still to learn unified modelling language required
  • optional, not held Android (mobile operating systems) optional
  • optional, not held BlackBerry optional
  • optional, not held iOS optional
  • optional, not held mobile operating systems optional
  • optional, not held trading software optional
Index

Other moves recorded from ICT project manager

Full index of moves from ICT project manager

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can an ICT project manager become a software manager?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. An ICT project manager already covers 34% of what a software manager is expected to do: 16 skills carry over, 8 of which the software manager role treats as required.

What skills does an ICT project manager need to become a software manager?

15 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is evaluate cost of software products.

How hard is the move from ICT project manager to software manager?

Its learning distance is 71.9 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

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.