To handle the complexities that come with a typical project, you need a project manager (PM) with excellent communication and organizational skills. But when a project involves IT or engineering objectives, you need a technical project manager.
What Is Technical Project Management
Complex IT or engineering projects shouldn’t be handled by anyone but an expert. Technical project managers leverage their IT management background, technical domain expertise, and product knowledge to provide practical solutions and manage risks.
A typical technical project manager’s background includes:
- A bachelor’s degree in project management or a related field
- Certifications such as PMP, PgMP, or CSM
- Coaching/mentoring experience
- Time management skills
- Experience with information technology project management software
- Analysis and problem-solving skills
What’s the Difference Between a Project Manager and a Technical Project Manager?
Although some aspects of the job overlap, a technical PM’s responsibility goes beyond facilitating communication between the client and their team. Technical PMs seek opportunities to create technical solutions for their clients. This includes optimizing project management software to help your project move forward.
Technical PMs can be found in various IT industries such as:
- Software
- IT consulting
- Information security
- Robotics
- Gaming
What Do Technical Project Managers Do?
A technical project manager’s day-to-day responsibilities often change as they move through the project life cycle, but they typically involve a combination of the below:
Brainstorming
Finding the right solution to your problem often takes more heads than one. Technical PMs are responsible for gathering team members to come up with multiple practical solutions.
Planning
From beginning to end, a technical PM is heavily involved in every step of your project. First, they’ll establish timelines and deadlines for goals and develop a plan for achieving them.
Scheduling
Once the plan is in motion, a technical PM will shift focus to assigning tasks to their team. This may be done by coordinating with team leads or individual department members.
Execution
Technical PMs monitor project progress closely, ensuring tasks are completed efficiently. They may not always contribute to day-to-day activities, but they’ll ensure your overarching goal is on schedule.
Communicating With Stakeholders
To keep the project on track, technical PMs will keep all stakeholders informed through regularly scheduled meetings, email updates, and more. Keeping everyone involved on the same page leads to success.
Evaluate Project Feasibility
Technical PMs will go over budgeting, timelines, task assignments, and more to review the feasibility of the project proposal. It’s a crucial aspect of any project’s success.
Best Practices for Achieving Success as a Technical Project Manager
Successful leadership in technical projects leads to desired results. Here are some best practices technical PMs use to reach success.
Communication
With their background in IT, technical PMs understand the technologies and architectures used to support a project. But not everyone involved may have the same understanding. Effectively communicating complex terms regardless of someone’s understanding is a huge part of their job.
Planning & Organizing
Once a project is initiated, a technical PM will begin the planning phase. This includes everything from scheduling out tasks, going over budgets, and more. To ensure tasks are delegated efficiently—some technical PMs use the RACI matrix. This allows them to assign roles for their team, including deliverables and deadlines.
Risk Management
At different points in a project’s timeline, new challenges may arise. Budgetary constraints, loss of data, and other unforeseen events can disrupt a project’s progress. A technical PM’s job is to devise plans to mitigate them. During the planning phase, a technical PM will start identifying potential problems.
Stakeholder Management
Technical PMs use several communication forms to remove the confusion that may arise during a project’s life cycle. This may include one-on-one meetings, project summary reports, conference calls to discuss project challenges, and more.
Outsourcing Technical Project Management
Are you in need of technical project management? Don’t wait for the perfect candidate to apply. We can help ensure your project goes off without a hitch by providing you with highly-skilled PMs. To understand your expectations, we’ll collaborate closely with you and work hard to exceed expectations.
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