Career profile · SOC 15-1299.09

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.

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. The role reports a median annual salary of $108,970 in the US with the middle 80% earning between $54,360 and $162,440 and is projected to grow 8% over the next decade (faster than average). Entry typically requires a Bachelor's degree, and shows moderate AI exposure (0.57 on a 0-1 scale) — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. The most in-demand skills for the role include Critical Thinking, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Programming, Systems Analysis.

US median pay
$108,970
per year
Growth outlook
Faster Than Average
BLS 10-yr
Education
Bachelor's degree
AI exposure
5.7/10
automation risk

Salary distribution (US)

Real salary data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The p10–p90 spread tells you more than the median alone.

Bottom 10%
$54,360
25th %ile
$74,960
Median
$108,970
75th %ile
$130,090
Top 10%
$162,440

Pay in the UK

UK: median £54,647 a year for Cyber security professionals (ONS ASHE 2025, full-time)

Middle half of full-time jobs: £42,761 to £71,808 a year

UK jobs are grouped differently; this is the closest UK occupation group (ONS SOC 2020 2135). ONS rates this estimate reasonably precise. 2025 provisional figures; ONS revises them a year later. Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Open Government Licence)

Pay in India (occupation group)

No official India pay figure for this career: it falls in more than one occupation group, and the Government of India's labour survey (PLFS) publishes pay only by occupation group.

How to get here in India

No single fixed route is listed for this career. These Indian degrees lead to it, according to the US CIP–SOC education-to-occupation crosswalk; open a degree for its entrance exams and colleges.[1]

Rules change: check the exam body's and regulator's current notice before you apply.

Sources:
  1. CIP 2020 – SOC 2018 crosswalk (NCES / BLS) (read on 2026-09-27)

Top skills

Critical Thinking Active Learning Complex Problem Solving Programming Systems Analysis Reading Comprehension Judgment and Decision Making Active Listening Writing Operations Analysis

Knowledge you'll build

  • Computers and Electronics
  • Mathematics
  • English Language
  • Engineering and Technology
  • Design
  • Administration and Management
  • Customer and Personal Service
  • Education and Training

A day in the life

You start the day reviewing the project plan and the status board, checking which tasks slipped yesterday and which milestones are coming up. At the morning stand-up the developers and testers share progress and blockers, and you note a delay caused by a missing data feed from another department. By mid-morning you are on a call with that department to agree a delivery date, then you update the schedule and warn the client. After lunch you meet the client's representatives to review a demonstration, gathering feedback and checking whether their priorities have changed. One request would change the scope, so you assess its cost and time and put it forward for approval. Later you review the budget against actual spending and check that finished work meets the agreed quality standards before signing it off. Constant meetings and status reports can be draining, but guiding a team to deliver a working system on time is deeply satisfying.

Illustrative: one typical day, written from the O*NET task statements for this occupation. Real days vary by employer and seniority.

What you'd actually do

  • Manage project execution to ensure adherence to budget, schedule, and scope.
  • Confer with project personnel to identify and resolve problems.
  • Monitor or track project milestones and deliverables.
  • Submit project deliverables, ensuring adherence to quality standards.
  • Assess current or future customer needs and priorities by communicating directly with customers, conducting surveys, or other methods.
  • Initiate, review, or approve modifications to project plans.

Tools & technology you'd use

Atlassian JIRA hot Microsoft Azure software hot Microsoft Excel hot Microsoft Office software hot Microsoft PowerPoint hot SAP software hot ServiceNow hot Structured query language SQL hot Adobe Acrobat hot Adobe Creative Cloud software hot Adobe Illustrator hot Adobe InDesign hot

Frequently asked questions

What does Information Technology Project Managers do?

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.

What does a typical day look like in Information Technology Project Managers?

You start the day reviewing the project plan and the status board, checking which tasks slipped yesterday and which milestones are coming up. At the morning stand-up the developers and testers share progress and blockers, and you note a delay caused by a missing data feed from another department. By mid-morning you are on a call with that department to agree a delivery date, then you update the schedule and warn the client.

How much does Information Technology Project Managers earn?

The median annual salary for Information Technology Project Managers in the US is $108,970. The middle 80% of workers earn between $54,360 and $162,440 annually. Entry-to-mid-career earners typically fall between $74,960 and $130,090.

What is the job outlook for Information Technology Project Managers?

The role is projected to grow 8% over the next decade (faster than average). Current US employment is approximately 472,000 workers.

How do I become information technology project managers?

The typical entry education is a Bachelor's degree. Building a foundation in the top skills below will strengthen your application.

What skills does Information Technology Project Managers need?

The most in-demand skills for this role include Critical Thinking, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Programming, Systems Analysis, Reading Comprehension. These are the skills O*NET identifies as most important for competent performance.

Will AI replace Information Technology Project Managers?

Our AI-durability model gives Information Technology Project Managers a score of 0.57 on a 0-1 scale (higher = more exposure). That places it at moderate AI exposure — some tasks are being automated but the role adapts. Learning to work with AI tools rather than against them is the path forward.

How hard is it to enter this field?

Information Technology Project Managers has moderate barrier to entry — moderately gated — a bachelor's degree or equivalent training is typically required.

Take it further

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