Management of a program is the process of using the program’s knowledge, skills, resources, and methods to reach its goals. Program managers use this method to make their organizations grow. This article talks about the program management technical job description and salary. It also talks about project management vs program management.
Overview
When several related projects are managed at the same time, the benefits of each can be maximized in ways that wouldn’t be possible if they were managed separately. Studies show that businesses with good program management are much more likely to be successful than those without.
Management by the program is a smart way to coordinate and oversee the completion of many projects that are linked to each other. However, sharing project resources, costs, and activities is a key part of program management’s goal to get the most out of the program as a whole.
When several related projects are managed at the same time, synergies can happen that would be hard to reach otherwise. Program management has a bigger scope than managing a single project, so it requires more management skills.
When they take on the challenge of managing a program, program managers use powerful software tools that help them plan, track, and report on performance. With the help of ProjectManager’s online program management tools, you can make better decisions for yourself and your business.
With these apps, program managers can organize groups of related projects. Then, they combine their resources and use a wide range of skills and experience to manage them in a way that makes the most money possible.
Program Management Job Description
A program manager is someone who is in charge of many projects at the same time and makes sure they all work together for the company’s good. They are different from project managers because they are not in charge of keeping an eye on each task.
To do well in this job, you should have experience with both managing programs and managing teams. Anyone who wants to apply must have at least a bachelor’s degree.
Program Management Responsibilities
The program management job description team has to do the following:
- Putting together activities and events that help the organization reach its goals.
- Creating new ideas that help the company reach its overall goals.
- Making and sticking to plans for the future.
- Setting up a plan for how the program will be funded and run.
- making a plan for figuring out how effective the program is and where it could be improved.
- Putting together grant applications for funding programs so that they can keep running.
- Taking charge of a group with a lot of different skills and jobs.
- Making sure things like customer happiness, safety, quality, and productivity will lead to success.
- Putting changes and interventions into action and keeping an eye on them to reach project goals.
- By having regular meetings, project participants and the people who make decisions about the service can talk to each other in an open and honest way.
- Throughout the program’s life, make reports that are accurate and up-to-date on its progress.
- They Assess the program’s possible risks.
- Working together with the advertising group on a plan.
Program Management Requirements
In the job description of program management to work well, you need the following;
- Have a four-year degree or higher in business or a field that is closely related.
- Solid track record in the role of the program manager.
- Proven ability to manage relationships with a lot of different people.
- A history of leading a group of people well.
- Having worked in different ways with computers.
- Know how to run projects well.
Program Management Salary
A typical annual salary for program management is $78,576. Salaries in this range can change depending on a number of things, such as the candidate’s level of experience, education, and location, as well as the type of business they work for. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics says that the average salary for a project manager is $94,500 per year.
As of February 27, 2023, the salary program management in the United States can expect to make an average of $144,635, with a range that often goes from $124,478 to $166,024. Also, several factors, like education level, certifications, extra skills, and number of years in the field, can have a big effect on program management salary.
Technical Program Management
Managers of technical programs are usually in the upper levels of management, and their job is to help companies reach their product goals. They often work with upper management and their own teams from different departments and divisions to keep an eye on the production and release of products.
In technical program management, people with a technical background run a company’s projects (TPMs). Also, they take care of the whole project, from figuring out what needs to be done to analyzing the end result. TPMs often work with engineers to set up the company’s technology and product architecture.
What a Technical Program Manager Does at Work
As a general rule, the technical program manager is responsible for the following:
#1. Details of What’s Needed
Technical project managers talk to business stakeholders to figure out what features a piece of software must have. This could involve both the technology inside the company and the software and hardware that customers see. When setting up the scope of the project, the technical project manager may try to figure out how much time and people will be needed for development and testing, as well as whether or not the necessary resources are available.
#2. Start the Process of Defining the Scope
TPMs can be in charge of different projects within a program. There may be several stages of making and testing the technology before it is ready to be used. Some of the things that technical project managers might plan are schedules, deliverables, and the use of resources. For example, one stage could include a round of coding, technical quality assurance, and user quality assurance, as well as a new version of the product.
#3. Time Management
Technical project managers can keep an eye on the entire program, from the budget to the schedule and everything in between. Even though a program may be made up of more than one project, the TPM may look at the whole schedule to make sure that everything is going as planned. It could also mean coordinating the work of technical teams with that of other departments, whose members could give feedback.
#4. Analyzing and Evaluating Results
Tests and reviews of proposed solutions may also be part of the TPM program. This can be done by testing with users or by testing the code. Even if it’s up to specialized QA teams to test the code in detail, the TPM may do broad tests to make sure the product works the way the business requirements document says it should.
#5. Making Reports
Organizational TPM may be needed to change the format of reports for different groups of people.
Skills a Technical Program Management Needs to Have
If you want to do well in the field of technical program management, you should be able to:
#1. Communication Skills
As a technical project manager, you have to talk to people from different groups a lot. Some of the people who might be involved in making a product are strategists, developers, managers, and vendors. It’s important to be able to talk to business users about technical issues with code in a clear and concise way, especially when those issues affect how a product is made or shipped.
#2. Know-How in a Technical Area
Managers of technical projects might use their knowledge of the field to keep an eye on how their companies’ goods are made. This could require a thorough understanding of the company’s IT infrastructure and procedures, as well as coding languages and frameworks. Even if your company doesn’t need you to write code, knowing how to do so will make you a more valuable team member and help you plan future programs more accurately.
#3. Taking Charge of How a Project Goes
Because TPM is made up of many smaller projects, it requires many of the same skills as program management. As part of agile project management, businesses can respond quickly to changes in the market and customer expectations by releasing features in short “iterations.” Managers often use many other skills in addition to being able to manage time, communicate well, solve problems, and think strategically.
#4. Taking Safety Measures
Program managers often try to predict and prepare for possible problems when running a project. As part of this process, you may have to decide if a certain risk is okay or not so that product development can continue. This can include the possibility that a problem or feature could hurt the sales of a technological program or that more resources will be needed to finish the program than were originally planned.
#5. Leadership
As they oversee the design, development, and use of new technology, program managers often take on leadership roles for people on different teams. One of the most important parts of being a leader is being able to motivate your team and come up with new ways to solve problems that keep coming up. Program road maps show the steps that need to be taken and the major goals that need to be reached. However, this makes sure that everyone on the product development team is on the same page and working toward the same goal.
#6. Being Business Savvy
TPMs work in a very technical field, but they also use basic business skills in their jobs. This requires knowing how business and IT departments are set up, as well as basic financial ideas like budgeting and making a profit. By becoming experts in these areas, TMPs can help leadership make decisions about product strategy and schedules.
Project Management vs Program Management
Even though program management and project management look similar, they are actually very different fields. Larger, more established businesses often use program management because it becomes more important as companies grow and change to meet market needs and coordinate the work of different departments.
The intended results of a program can help a company reach one or more of its big-picture goals. Also, most of the time, the tasks at hand have a lot of moving parts and are hard to predict. However, they affect different parts of the business, require different sets of resources to be coordinated, and cause policy changes.
Program management also called “programme management” is different from project management in that it coordinates a group of related tasks. These programs are the norm. They are bigger, cover more ground, and have a longer time frame.
More Information
In project management vs program management, Programs are made with the whole business in mind, while projects tend to be much more narrowly focused. Organizations make plans for their programs to help them reach their long-term and strategic goals. They are also willing to change deadlines and keep an eye on the big picture. On the other hand, projects try to make sure that their results are good, efficient, and done quickly.
While a project’s deliverables determine its scope, a program’s scope can expand or contract as necessary. It’s important to remember that programs go on for a long time, but projects have a clear beginning and ending dates.
Usually in project management vs program management, in order for an organization to reach its strategic plan and goals, it needs a number of separate long-term programs. The program management plan and program governance describe how these projects will be run. Large companies often have several projects that need to be done at the same time.
What Are Some Things to Think About When It Comes to Managing a Program?
There are many things to think about when it comes to program management:
#1. Mix Day-To-Day Concerns Into the Way You Carry Out a Long-Term Plan
Change is what programs are for. They use a set of initiatives to make the change happen gradually, keeping track of the benefits each one brings in terms of the overall strategic goals. This lets the software keep track of the changes it makes and adjust to new situations as it learns from experience.
#2. To Put a Strategic Plan Into Action, You Have to Work Across Functional Lines and Break Down Silos
It’s hard to deal with situations that involve several different departments, a lot of different things, or goals that change all the time. If there is a road map, everyone in the organization knows what they should be working on. When you have a strategic plan outlining the work that needs to be done across the organization, it’s easier to see the interconnections between tasks and to find common ground among competing goals.
#3. Have a Sense of What’s Going On
The value that programs create should help achieve strategic goals, and this value should be measured and tracked over time. The impact of the program on the organization will be taken into account when making decisions about the program and its projects. To be successful, you need to be able to adjust, set priorities, and make choices.
Also, program and project managers can learn more about how work schedules can affect each other by seeing and managing the complex links between projects in a program. This level of detail helps solve any scheduling problems and makes it easier to make the changes that need to be made to make sure the delivery goes smoothly.
#4. Like Working With Other People
Most of a program manager’s day is spent talking to coworkers from different departments and coordinating activities across the business. Also, they have a lot of experience in the field and know how to get things done best. They trusted the project managers to get the job done and keep an eye on how things were going. However, this allowed the rest of the team to focus on adding value and meeting the company’s long-term goals.
What Is an Example of Program Management?
Management roles can be broken down into program management for larger sets of initiatives and project management for smaller, more specific tasks. Program managers are more concerned with the long-term goals of the company, while project managers are more focused on the short-term results of their work. Program management is more strategic, while project management is more hands-on.
They might have to report on the progress of the project to many different groups, from the executive team to the IT department. You could use these summaries to figure out how well your current plans are working or to make plans for the future. For example, if Business Yield’s HR is in charge of three projects that are all connected to each other—making graphics, writing articles, and making a website to advertise the company’s services—then HR is helping Business Yield grow by using the program management.
What Are the 3 Concepts of a Program Manager?
The following are;
- Leadership.
- Organization.
- Communication.
What Are Program Management Skills?
A good program manager needs to be good at organization, planning, scheduling, program strategy, reporting, writing proposals, and budgeting. This will depend on what your organization needs and how well they fit with the team you already have.
What Are the Steps for Program Management?
The following are;
- Putting together a plan for running and managing the program.
- How much it will cost to put the plan into action?
- What a program does.
- Think about the possible risks.
- Dependencies between programs are determined.
- Anything that gets in the way of the program’s progress.
What Is the Role of Program Management?
Program management is, in a nutshell, the oversight of projects that are meant to make an organization more efficient and effective so they are aligned with strategic goals. Program managers are in charge of leading and coordinating the strategic projects and activities of the organization.
What Are the Roles of a Program Manager?
The following are;
- Plan, set up, and keep track of a group of projects that work together.
- Pick the best plans and goals.
- Manage how projects affect each other.
- In charge of overseeing the work of project managers and other employees and judging how well they did their jobs.
- Make a plan, make a budget, and make sure everything stays on track.
- Use good strategies to deal with changes, risks, and limited resources.
Conclusion
Program management is more likely to go well for businesses that are okay with uncertainty and use continuous planning as part of their strategic roadmap and portfolio funding process. Investing in the most effective programs will lead to growth.
Program Management FAQs
What are the 5 cornerstones of program management?
Excellent leaders accomplish this with crucial initiatives. Plan, People, Process, Polish-off, and Post-Completion are the five pillars of project management that are put into action and monitored.
What do good program managers do?
Effective verbal and nonverbal communication skills. Characteristics of a good leader. Competent in financial analysis and budgeting. Capacity to distill high-level leadership inputs down to practical findings.
What are the program manager's KPI?
Typical key performance indicators in program management can be broken down into four groups: financial, customer-focused, operational, and business capability.
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