Project Manager
Career overview
Manages and oversees all facets of a project, incorporating knowledge from industry accredited project management methodologies. Duties range from project scoping and costing, through to resourcing, development and implementation. A Project Manager is responsible for ensuring the project is delivered on time, within budget and with minimal risk. Project Managers require a solid understanding of the IT industry, as well as strong communication and interpersonal skills to manage a wide range of technical and business related staff.
Average salary
$101,696, based on 3-5 years of relevant IT experience
Case study: Adrienne, late 20s
What do you do?
I am currently an account director at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu in their Enterprise Risk Services Group. My primary focus involves investigating the security of clients' IT infrastructure and environment. The majority of my work revolves around project management, including the responsibility of coordinating the project team. To use a recent project as an example I was the security team leader on one of the biggest implementations of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) package in Australia. An ERP package handles everything from a company's financial systems through to its purchasing, accounts and human resources systems. The project team utilised the skills of 250 people and it took 18 months to complete including the roll out to 40,000 people. It was a huge job, but extremely rewarding and successful.
Describe an average day
Every day is different which ensures variety in my role. However, my project management responsibilities include overseeing the progress of the project team, budget management, direct client consultation team member counselling and career progression advice. My time appears to be equally divided between working with clients on site and working in the office, which involves planning business development and marketing activities surrounding the promotion of security services.
What technology skills are necessary in your job?
It is essential to have a broad understanding of the current technology environment to implement security controls for ICT systems. The basic knowledge required includes a thorough understanding of the business you are working in or the client you are servicing. While you can not be an expert in all areas, it is important to understand the relevant business applications, system architecture, basic programming languages and network configuration. It is essential to understand the three components of an enterprise wide security framework - the people, the processes and the technology. It is also important to know how people gain access to networks and applications and to keep up with all the security applications and products on the market.
How did you get to where you are today?
Surprisingly, during secondary school I was interested in outdoor education but focused on accounting and business because it was more practical. It wasn't until I started university and there was a focus on recruiting women into the IT industry, that I actually considered IT as a career option. I qualified with a double degree in Computer Science and Business Accounting at Latrobe University and was accepted as a graduate at Deloitte, initially working on IT auditing and financial auditing. After completing my professional year to become a certified chartered accountant it was time to choose whether to focus on accounting or Security Services. Due to the opportunities within the IT sector I chose Security Services. As a result I have consulted on multi-million dollar projects and had the opportunity to travel extensively within Australia and overseas.
What made you decide on a career in IT?
I focused on working in the IT sector through the Security Services group because it offers challenges and constantly creates new opportunities. By working in a fast paced environment, you are required to keep up with the technology available - therefore you are constantly able to add value to your client.
What do you like about your job?
The flexibility and the opportunities within the IT sector ensure that everyday is a challenge. There are a lot of travel opportunities and the work varies from system selection and implementations through to operations and system reviews. Working at Deloitte offers exposure to a large amount of highly driven people and a wide range of products and services.
Is there anything you would change?
The rate of change can be overwhelming. Therefore there can be the occasional issue maintaining a balance between work and life.
Where do you see your career going next?
I currently manage the Application Integrity group on a national level. I have just been attending Deloitte's Partner Development Centre. Becoming a partner at Deloitte would be the next exciting step. Working across our Security Services Group as a key Account and Sales partner is appealing to me.
What advice would you give to anyone considering a career in IT?
Go for it! Most importantly, there are enormous opportunities for women to get into IT and some of the leaders in the field are women. The opportunities include: IT audit, consulting, project management and operational management or executive roles in medium to large corporations. I think it's also worth considering doing a double degree in IT and business, which will place in context how to do your job and why you are doing it. It allows you to understand how the systems can assist the business to become more competitive in the market place.
Skills listing
The ideal candidate possesses a combination of skills and experience in a variety of areas. Below is a list of the most commonly sought after skills, with highly sought after examples listed in brackets. This list is meant as a guide only.
Technical skills
- Knowledge of System Development Life Cycle (SDLC)
- Ability to document technical project plans and outcomes
- Knowledge of industry accredited project methodologies
- Project management skills in specialised technology (eg. networking, web-based, telecommunication)
- Knowledge of risk management
- Understanding of software development
- Knowledge and ability to conform to accredited industry standards (eg. ISO accreditation)
- Knowledge of ERP systems (eg. SAP)
- Knowledge of Project Management software (eg. MS Project)
Non-Technical skills
- Leadership and people management skills
- Ability to manage multiple projects
- Strategic thinking
- Negotiation skills
- Problem solving skills
- Ability to make decisions
- Interpersonal skills
- Ability to delegate
- Negotiating skills
- Flexible approach
