Top 20 Things I Learned: Day in the Life of an IT Manager
Top 20 Things I Learned: Day in the Life of an IT Manager
From discussions on the same over at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, an IT manager is responsible for organization-wide systems and information. The role involves maintaining the day-to-day operational stability and security of IT software and hardware. If you are wondering what it is like, this article will look to list 20 things to expect when it comes to a day in the life of an IT manager.
The work is dynamic
As per RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, the job of an IT manager is rarely boring. The work is dynamic and days are rarely the same. Some days are spent helping the team solve operational challenges while others focus on long-term planning.
An IT manager is tasked with bringing teams together
As the name suggests, an IT manager is in a managerial position. This means that it is their job to bring teams together so that all functional IT groups (software development, operations, and security) understand how their work impacts the organization’s broader goals and direction.
New responsibilities
Most IT managers start as individual contributors – writing code, maintaining systems, providing tech support, etc. – before progressing to a role in management as articulated at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. Becoming a manager means taking on new responsibilities, which is why as an IT manager, you will be charged with solving technical problems across the organization and accelerating your team’s performance.
Strategy comes first
Successful IT managers put strategy first. The IT manager needs to understand the “why” so they can be sure the information systems, resources, and infrastructure that they are building are sound. Leading with strategy means you will be able to make better decisions about what you should and shouldn’t invest in.
Mondays and days after holidays are busier than other days
IT managers will tell you that Mondays and days after holidays are always pretty busy. This is because all the issues that clients couldn’t call about during the holiday or weekend will all need fixing. Additionally, computers will have plenty of time to suffer hardware failures during the weekend or holiday.
The general meeting
The IT manager will usually start the day by calling a meeting of all the technicians under them according to RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. The morning meeting brings to light all the issues that need addressing and ensures that everyone is on the same page regarding what needs to be done.
Prioritizing issues
The day for an IT manager usually starts by responding to any critical issues that they receive. Once the IT manager has cleared up those issues, they start to work on non-critical issues and requests. This prioritizing of issues is a major consideration when it comes to the day-to-day work of an IT manager.
Getting the miscellany out of the way
IT managers like to get into the office early so that they have a jump on things as captured at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. They do this so that they can get the miscellany out of the way by the time everyone else gets there. This includes doing basic email/voicemail checks to make sure there aren’t any fires burning that need to be put out.
To-do list
Once all the miscellaneous items are taken care of, most IT managers usually put together a to-do list each day, which includes all the things that need to be done. The list of that day will have action items on it to touch base with various partners and clients. The to-do list will normally be taken out of what was planned for the week.
Individual meetings
Once the general meeting, which has already been mentioned, is out of the way, the IT manager will then meet with each project team individually to get an idea of where they are and whichever deliverable the company is putting out that week or the next one. The IT manager will also use this opportunity to get the status of each of the internal project teams.
Resolving issues as they come up
The IT manager will then start following up on wherever the clients or partners are, as covered at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. During the course of the day, they will constantly have to resolve issues that come up. Those meetings can go on for hours, depending on how many the IT manager has to do. They can also be very quick, depending on the stage one is at in the project.
Checking to see if you have learned anything that will impact the projects
After those meetings, the IT manager will usually go into scheduling to see if what they have learned will impact the projects they are managing. If there is an impact, the IT manager will have to rearrange everything else and coordinate.
Documentation
At the start of the afternoon, the IT manager will start digging into documentation, either researching, reading, or writing as described at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. This part of the job may be significant or less so depending on the needs of the company one is working at.
Checking the status of rescheduling
As already mentioned, the IT manager may have to rearrange stuff if they were impacted by meetings with clients. Later in the afternoon, the IT manager will check the status of rescheduling items, as well as also check to see if people have gotten back to them with answers that they have requested.
Cross-functional meetings
Communicating project plans, milestones, and progress to-date is a big part of an IT manager’s role. It is their job to bring visibility to what the IT department is working on and provide support when new technology is rolled out. An IT manager usually spends a good portion of their week in cross-functional meetings.
Soliciting feedback
As discussed at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com, an IT manager will also need to solicit feedback and ideas from other departments. They usually spend a portion of their day asking internal and external customers what they need – then proceed to distill those requirements into future enhancements, tools, and platforms.
Identifying and addressing customer issues
The IT manager will also spend most of their day identifying customer problems and working with the product team to design solutions. They will also be addressing customer issues that have been escalated by the support team.
Presenting IT progress
As the IT manager, it is on you to showcase the work done by your department as outlined at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com. This is why IT managers spend time also during the day presenting IT progress to the broader team or entire organization.
Training
While this is not part of the day-to-day tasks of an IT manager, they are still tasked with setting up and developing ongoing technical training for the IT team to ensure that team members continue improving. IT managers will also conduct reviews with new candidates and lead new hire onboarding.
Ongoing projects
Towards the end of the day, IT managers dedicate time to ongoing projects. This is where the IT manager checks to see the progress of projects, identifying issues that have cropped up and finding solutions to said issues to ensure the projects go on smoothly.
These are some of the things to expect when it comes to a day in the life of an IT manager, with more on this topic, and much more, to be found over at RunRex.com, guttulus.com, and mtglion.com.
