Technology project management beyond software development.
Explore your options in technology project management outside coding.
Hi there, it's Dipo. Welcome to The Console newsletter, where I share information to help you deliver technology projects and become a better project manager (whether you have that title or not).
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Starting as a project manager in technology often requires deciding what domain you ideally want to work in. The options might not be apparent when looking down your potential career path. Sure, studying for certification exams gives you theoretical knowledge about project management, but guidance on the available work options is less abundant. This is true whether you are transitioning from a different field to project management or starting off at the beginning of your career.
This lack of clarity might also be worsened because technology news is often dominated by software development and start-up ecosystems. This trend often paints a lopsided picture of the opportunities available for you as a project manager in technology. You might think, "If I'm going to work in technology, I'm going to have to work with software development teams".
While this might be the target for several aspiring project managers, the opportunities are broader than these fields. There is more to technology-focused project management than software development.
Gartner projected a worldwide IT spend of $4.6 Trillion in 2023 spread across the following segments:
Data Center systems (4%)
Software (15%)
Devices (20%)
IT Services (30%)
Communications Services (31%)
All of this spending on IT translates to a need for technology-savvy project management professionals across different industries and services.
My experience in multiple technology infrastructure and digital transformation project roles has provided insight into the possibilities. There is a demand for project management skills that might not be as evident as the well-publicized start-ups. This demand comes from small to large organizations, even public sector initiatives.
As a project manager, here are some areas in which you can apply your knowledge for a rewarding career in technology.
Cloud computing: Organizations are moving from building and operating their data centres to the cloud. Yes, there is still big spending on privately owned data centres for several reasons, but most organizations are either moving entirely to the cloud or distributing their workloads across public clouds and their data centres.
This trend is true for all types of organizations for different reasons. Among these are the speed of deployment on public clouds due to on-demand access to resources or the reduction in data centre Opex and the elimination of Capex due to the pay-as-you-use model.
In my experience, project managers are required in this space for several reasons;
Setting up new infrastructure/landing zones in preparation for application deployments,
Migration of legacy applications,
Deploying new applications/services.
The top providers of public cloud services are Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform. Any project manager interested in this field should take foundational or intermediate-level certification from these providers to understand the technology, leading to a better understanding of project/program objectives.
Telecommunication and ISPs: Telecommunication organizations are ubiquitous all over the world. They constantly provide different services to a wide array of customers, from mobile services and fixed lines to enterprise customer-focused connectivity. Telecommunication companies usually have large-scale technology investments to provide customers with the right quality of service and deploy the newest technology within their networks.
This investment includes the rollout of networks, access technology, OSS (operations support systems) and BSS (business support systems) to support industry-wide targets such as 5G. Telecommunication companies also maintain and deploy network connectivity using fibre, microwave and satellite technology. Project managers in this field will not only deal with technology but could also be exposed to civil engineering, regulatory and product management.
Submarine cable and data centre: Most of the world's internet traffic is carried across submarine fibre optic cables deployed worldwide. These cables are deployed between countries and across continents and are a huge investment to buy, maintain and operate. They are usually owned wholly by telecommunication companies, consortiums of companies, governments or substantial data players like Google and Facebook. Building and operating a submarine cable is an exciting proposition if you are interested in large-scale projects that can span several years.
There are also data centre providers that provide collocation services. This is a midpoint for customers who do not want to build and maintain their own data centre but want to maintain their physical hardware for several reasons. This could be due to regulatory reasons, for example.
Project managers in these environments can work on building these data centres or relocating customers to the data centres and migrating their workloads.
Organizational application and infrastructure: Organizations use applications to run their businesses. These could be different applications used by the departments within the organization, such as their CRM for customer-facing roles and the ERP for running the financial operations and business processes. Project managers involved in this field could either be staff of the organization or project managers assigned from service providers working to deploy the services for the organization.
Organizations are also deploying new technologies, such as the Internet of Things, within their products or the organization's infrastructure. Working as a technology project manager within an organization will often expose you to a variety of technology projects, as you will often work as a generalist to help the team meet its goals.
Apart from these few examples I have listed from my experience in technology, there are several domain-specific technology roles in different industries that also require project management skills, such as in gaming, art and media, financial services, e-government, etc.
So, if you plan to start in technology project management, you can look within your target industry and find opportunities to apply your project management and technology knowledge.
Building your career in technology project management can take many shapes and forms, explore and enjoy.
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Do you have any questions or feedback, please reach out on substack or email me at info@theconsole.tech
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