ICT vendor relationship manager to ICT operations manager
An ICT vendor relationship manager already meets 30% of what the ICT operations manager role asks for. The move turns on 13 required skills not yet in the profile.
71/ 100
1 How much of what an ICT operations manager is expected to do is already part of an ICT vendor relationship 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 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 5 of its required skills as things an ICT vendor relationship manager already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- design process
- maintain relationship with suppliers
- manage budgets
- manage staff
- perform project management
What stands in the way is 13 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 13 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 vendor relationship manager background worth leading with.
- already held crowdsourcing strategy business, administration and law
- already held insourcing strategy business, administration and law
- already held software components suppliers information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held hardware components suppliers business, administration and law
- already held outsourcing strategy business, administration and law
- already held design process communication, collaboration and creativity
All 13 carried skills, including the 5 the ICT operations manager role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 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 define technology strategy required
- still to learn develop ICT workflow required
- still to learn improve business processes required
- optional, not held coordinate technological activities optional
- optional, not held apply organisational techniques optional
- optional, not held develop information standards optional
- optional, not held recruit employees 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
- still to learn train employees required
- still to learn use different communication channels 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 software components libraries optional
- optional, not held hardware components 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 define technology strategy practise this
- 03 develop ICT workflow practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 13 skills that carry over
- already held design process skill
- already held maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held manage staff skill
- already held perform project management skill
- already held contract law knowledge
- already held crowdsourcing strategy knowledge
- already held hardware components suppliers knowledge
- already held insourcing strategy knowledge
- already held manage contracts skill
- already held outsourcing strategy knowledge
- already held perform procurement processes skill
- already held software components suppliers knowledge
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- still to learn oversee quality control required
- optional, not held comply with legal regulations optional
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
15 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ICT process quality models optional
- optional, not held coordinate technological activities optional
- optional, not held core banking software 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 software components libraries optional
- optional, not held apply organisational techniques optional
- optional, not held comply with legal regulations optional
- optional, not held develop information standards optional
- optional, not held hardware components optional
- optional, not held provide cost benefit analysis reports optional
- optional, not held recruit employees optional
- optional, not held systems development life-cycle optional
20 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 adhere to organisational guidelines skill
- not needed by the target role analyse supply chain strategies skill
- not needed by the target role analyse supply chain trends skill
- not needed by the target role assess supplier risks skill
- not needed by the target role build business relationships skill
- not needed by the target role business processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role carry out tendering skill
- not needed by the target role compare contractors' bids skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate purchasing activities skill
- not needed by the target role electronic communication knowledge
- not needed by the target role forecast workload skill
- not needed by the target role identify suppliers skill
- not needed by the target role issue purchase orders skill
- not needed by the target role maintain relationship with customers skill
- not needed by the target role negotiate buying conditions skill
- not needed by the target role prepare purchasing reportings skill
- not needed by the target role supply chain management knowledge
- not needed by the target role track price trends skill
9 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 engineering processes optional
- optional, not held software components libraries optional
- optional, not held hardware components optional
- optional, not held systems development life-cycle optional
Other moves recorded from ICT vendor relationship manager
Common questions about this move
Can an ICT vendor relationship manager become an ICT operations manager?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An ICT vendor relationship manager already covers 30% of what an ICT operations manager is expected to do: 13 skills carry over, 5 of which the ICT operations manager role treats as required.
What skills does an ICT vendor relationship manager need to become an ICT operations manager?
13 required skills are missing, plus 15 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 vendor relationship manager to ICT operations manager?
Its learning distance is 71 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.