Becoming an IT Director: Skills & Requirements
IT directors use their passion for information technology (IT) and their desire for taking the responsibility of a department to succeed in this role. Learn about the skills and the requirements to see if this career could be the perfect fit for you.
Career at a Glance
IT directors are also known as IT managers or IT project managers, and they play an important role in ensuring that an organization's information technology is kept secure and readily available. Progressing to the position of IT director can be a fulfilling and lucrative career path. The table below provides a brief overview of the requirements for a career as an IT director and the expected salary and job growth.
<table border="1"><tr><td> <b>Degree Required</b> </td><td> Bachelor degree required, masters preferred</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Education Field of Study</b> </td><td> Computer science <br/> Information technology<br/> Information management <br/> IT management</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Salary (2022)</b> </td><td> $121,983 (IT directors)**</td></tr>
<tr><td> <b>Job Outlook (2020-2030)</b> </td><td> 11% (computer and information managers)*</td></tr>
</table><p><i>Sources: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), **PayScale.com</i>
</p><h3 id="section---WhatDoITDirectorsDo">What Do IT Directors Do?</h3><p>An IT director manages a team of IT staff and is responsible for the IT infrastructure of a company as they often determine the systems needed to match the business needs. Their tasks include overseeing technical projects, organizing the operational activities of the department, maintaining the security of an organization's data, ensuring availability of network services and data, investigating new technologies to improve the IT resources of the company and analyzing data to inform operational decisions. Other managerial duties include recruiting team members, overseeing the budgeting of the department, monitoring employee performance and dealing with contractual issues. The size of the company will generally determine the amount of responsibility given to an IT director; larger companies will have chief information and technology officers who will decide the technology and information strategy of the business and oversee the IT director.
</p><h3 id="section---HowDoYouBecomeAnITDirector">How Do You Become an IT Director?</h3><p>To become an IT director, you will need to have obtained a bachelor's degree in information technology or computer science. You will typically need approximately 5 years' experience in the role before progressing. Earning a master's degree in information management, particularly an MBA, will improve employability for this position. A degree in information management will combine IT technical skills and business skills to prepare you for the requirements of this role. Additional certification in project management and It management can also help to achieve a career as an IT director.
</p><h3 id="section---WhatSkillsAndAttributesDoINeedToBecomeAnITDirector">What Skills and Attributes Do I Need to Become an IT Director?</h3><p>In order to become an IT director you will need to have good leadership skills in order to ensure members of staff work effectively. IT directors need to be good communicators to talk to employees as well as dealing with senior staff members. An IT director will have good technical knowledge of computer systems in order to make decisions and develop and implement any changes needed. Computer programming, software engineering and network administration are some of the hard skills expected of IT managers. A successful IT director will have strong attention to detail, be analytical and have excellent problem solving skills.
</p><h3 id="section---HowMuchDoITDirectorsEarn">How Much Do IT Directors Earn?</h3><p><i>PayScale.com</i> reported that in 2022 IT directors made a median salary of approximately $121,983 annually. The BLS does not report specific data for IT directors, but it does however, mention occupational data for computer and information managers which would include IT directors. According to the BLS, in 2020, computer and information systems managers made a median salary of $151,150 a year. The BLS reported that the top 10% of earners made over $208,000 while the lowest 10% earned less than $90,430 annually in 2020.
</p><h3 id="section---WhatAreTheCareerOutlookAndAdvancementOpportunitiesForAnITDirector">What Are the Career Outlook and Advancement Opportunities for an IT director?</h3><p>IT directors will always be in demand, because nearly every company requires someone to manage the systems in an organisation and keep the information secure. According to the BLS the projected growth between 2020 and 2030 for computer and information systems managers is 11%, which is higher than the national average of all occupations, which is 8%. It is expected that during this time period more companies will rely on IT for their business needs and so IT directors will be in demand to manage the additional staff.</p>