An IT Project Manager is like the captain of a ship that sails on a very important mission. One of ensuring that the ‘cargo’ of a user-friendly application reaches its destination; while navigating the ‘storms’ of cost overruns, coding errors, resource crunches, and implementation glitches along the way.
An IT Project Manager’s Resume should focus on a few important points:
- Technology expertise
- Industries/ domains handled
- Key projects
- Project metrics achieved
- Critical turnarounds
In addition to being an inspiring leader, an IT Project Manager needs to anticipate effort & allocate resources, control costs, manage delays and ensure error-free development. They are the executors who drive change, transfer ideas, and blueprints into applications that benefit their clients. Continuous learning is a hallmark of a Project Manager’s Resume; a PMP and the latest certifications will always take one ahead.
If not leading a project yet, people with a strong development/testing/Infrastructure backgrounds and management skills can become future IT Project Managers. If that is your goal, a well-written, crisp resume with certifications, IT skills, and projects along with strengths in people management, client management, and stakeholder management can make the difference. Remember to focus on the industry need and recruiter preferences.
Let us remember that the resume is the face of a jobseeker, it has to be well written and presented in a readable format. The resume should match the requirement of the recruiter in terms of experience, skills, and domain. If we are able to add relevant keywords and experience to the resume, we are there!
The IT Project Manager Resume sample throws light on key essentials of an IT Project Manager Resume.
Preparing the Project Manager Resume format should start with a selection of the right and simple template. The resume should be well formatted, and structured with readable fonts. A good IT Project
Manager Resume format should have a proper flow of information with white space being utilized very well.
Use a Mixed Resume format: Up it further in your Resume for IT Project Manager with clearly defined sections for a Summary, Core Competencies, Technical Skills, Certifications, and Work Experience
(in reverse chronological order). Place projects in a separate annexure.
Share the resume as a PDF with recruiters. Use the Word version for amendments and PDF for uploading on websites and sharing with recruiters. The length of the resume should be 2-3 pages depending
on experience.
Start with a strong Summary:
- Focus on an introduction that highlights your knowledge of technology, key projects, and industries covered. Give examples of success in projects. Writing 4-5 lines about experience and skills with a couple of key achievements adds value to the overall IT Project Manager resume.
- · Start the profile summary with the overall experience in domain/industry, which recruiters from a similar domain/industry will find relatable. Highlight experience in different industry verticals. Write how you have managed projects for clients from different industries, in effect, showing how you can lead a team in leveraging technology towards creating real-time, cutting-edge applications
- Create a list of key applications developed, technologies used, on site assignments, successful projects, and clients. Choose the most relevant information from amongst these to be included in the
- Summary match it to the job description.
- · An important aspect of an IT Project Manager’s resume is team management/people management. Add experience regarding team management, hiring, multi-cultural teams, service delivery, people development and productivity improvement.
- · Focus on instances where you turned a project around or successfully delivered it with reduced cost. Also mention how you upskilled your team through Scrum sessions and continuous training.
Language and Content:
Simple language plays a very strong part in developing a good resume. Recruiters these days take just 10 to 15 seconds in glancing through and shortlisting resumes. Using
point and simple sentences will definitely help in the process.
IT Project Manager Resume Examples
Avoid such sentences
A keen planner, strategist, and implementer with demonstrated success in end-to-end project management and ensuring effective management of various resources to meet project specifications.
Be more specific:
Forward-focused Project Manager with 10+ years of rich experience in concepts of end-to-end project planning & implementation management in line with the guidelines & norms using Agile & Hybrid Methodologies.
Avoid such sentences:
Ordinary sentence: Coordinating with multiple stakeholders
Be more specific:
Worked closely with Product Owners, Scrum Masters, Engineering and QA Lead, Support and Marketing to resolve issues discovered during SDLC, Beta programs, and Release Milestones.
Work History:
Reverse chronological is the best IT Project Manager Resume format for work experience, with the current experience being mentioned first, followed by previous ones.
Focus more on achievements rather than responsibilities; gives more scope for an interesting conversation during the interview. Similarly, writing achievements in the resume shows that you can deliver
results over and above your normal work duties. A couple of rules in the IT Project Manager Resume that will forever stand by you:
Mention key projects: Include key projects as part of your work experience. Create an Annexure if there is a long list of projects. Mention project impact at the end of the description; use the\
Situation-Task-Action-Result (STAR) methodology to write about challenges encountered, actions taken, and quantifiable results.
· Mention Project Management metrics: Focus on instances where you turned a project around or successfully delivered it with reduced cost. Also mention how you upskilled your team through
Scrum sessions and continuous training.
Other takeaways:
· It is important to mention the company's name, joining & relieving dates, location, and designation
· Assign less space to key responsibilities. Just give 3-4 points describing your work as a project manager.
· Tenses are very important here. Current organization in present tense and previous in the past tense.
· Add quantifiable achievements Let us see a few examples of responsibilities and achievements in an IT Project Manager’s resume:
Try such sentences with strong action verbs
· Mapping requirements and providing appropriate solutions
· Evaluating and defining the scope of the project and finalising project requirements
· Providing leadership, direction, strategy, and vision on technology
· Leading the end-to-end management of multiple projects from conceptualisation to implementation
Try adding achievement-oriented sentences:
· Delivered $XX USD projects with multiple cross-functional teams geographically segregated across different time zones
· Steered the migration of XX team to XX, India within 2 months much ahead of the initial target of 3.5 months, and saved XX cost for the organization.
· Served as the first point of contact for the customers and XX team
· Efficiently managed three UK Customers and two US Customers
Education Details.
Next comes the question of adding education to the IT Project Manager resume. How to write education? Where to write? It is easy. Education if recently completed can be added on
the 1st page so that the recruiter can notice your education details. Otherwise, it is good to add it to the bottom of the resume. You can add academic achievements, internships, events, projects, as part of
the Education section.
A resume with a proper mix of work experience & education gives extra weightage to your profile, which increases the chances of shortlisting. It is important to mention affiliating institutes/universities
along with the passing year for degrees and certifications
Qualifications from a premier institute:
Leverage education and certifications from premium institutes by mentioning the Education section on Page 1 of the resume. Key IT Project Manager Certifications that add value include PMP, CAPM, CSM, PRINCE2 Practitioner, PMITS, and so on.
We usually write:
M.Tech. from Mumbai University with xx% in 2015
Try:
Mumbai University, M.Tech. – Software Engineering, 2015
Name of University, Degree, Graduation Year
Academic Achievements
· Completed internship with XX organization in yyyy
· Participated in Robotics Workshop, learned XX new technologies at the location in yyyy
· Organized multiple events/workshop during B.Tech / M.Tech.
· Worked on Academic Project – Title XXX
Importance of Keywords.
Adding the right keywords as per level is a key contributor to the creation and shortlisting of an IT Project Manager’s resume. For example, a developer will add skills like
Coding / Designing / Development / Requirement Gathering, whereas a Project Manager would add Project Management, Stakeholder Management, Agile/Scrum/Waterfall Methodologies, and Team
Management.
Keywords should be added across the resume so that the profile is highlighted and matches the job description with the recruiter at the other end. Information should leap out of the page through
important, commonly used keywords.
Adding appropriate liners also helps make a strong IT Project Manager resume
· Managing on-site teams, quickly scaling up teams and resources as per project requirements
· Taking projects to successful completion
· Turning around a project in the red
· Writing about cost-saving or time saving-effort
· Learning a new skill or technology
Try to add phrases:
· Hands-on Agile and Scrum experience
· PMP Certified Project Manager
· Successfully managed multiple projects using XX technologies for organizations in XX industries
IT Project Manager Resume Examples for Skills
SOFT SKILLS | HARD SKILLS |
Communication | Strategy Planning & Implementation |
Time Management | Project Management |
Decision Making | Stakeholder Management |
Motivation | Agile Methodologies |
Leadership | IT Consulting & Solution Delivery |
Problem-solving | Risk Management |
Collaboration | Team Building & Leadership |
Remember to validate these skills with actual examples.
Projects:
Include key projects as part of your work experience. Create an Annexure if there is a long list of projects. Mention project impact at the end of the description; use the Situation-Task-Action
Result (STAR) methodology to write about challenges encountered, actions taken, and quantifiable results.
The following details can be added:
Title:
Client:
Location:
Designation:
Software Used:
Description:
Roles and Responsibilties:
Project Highlights:
Certifications:
Scrum Master, ITIL Certified, Prince2 Certified, and Project Management Professional (PMP). In addition to adding value to the portfolio, Certifications provide an upper edge to IT
Project Managers in managing projects and leading teams.
Contact information should be updated on top of the Resume: Always add contact information at the start of the IT Project Manager resume. Ensure that you use a current email address and not your
official email address. Mention your current personal phone number with your country code.
Cover Letter:
A Cover Letter is a short 1-page document showing your skills, education, and achievements and is an introduction that precedes your IT Project Manager resume. One should make an
impactful, crisp, and short Cover Letter to make a good first impression and explain why recruiters should choose you over others. It should be created in a way that suits requirements and matches the job
description listed by the hiring company.
Personal Details:
The resume should ideally be concluded with a Personal Details section, you might wish to add your birth date (not mandate), languages known, and postal address. In case, you are
applying for International locations, the personal details section can be customized as per country requirements (passport/ visa details, languages known).
Recap — some essentials for an IT Project Manager Resume:
· Good & simple resume layout to maximize clarity and acceptability
· Add sections like profile summary, core skills, work experience, achievements, and annexure
· The certification section helps highlight your suitability as per the growing needs of the role and market competition
· The Education section should be updated and correct
· Professional and well-written cover letter