Project Management or SW Development

comad

I've got a chance move into software development (java / .net) or project management (Prince 2). Both positions would involve working on large projects. I'm fairly familar with the software development side of things but don't know much about project management. its seems to be an interesting field with excellent prospects. Does anyone here work as an IT project manager or can anyone give any comments/tips/advise?

homeOwner

It depends on the company you work for. If it is a consultancy where you would be going out to clients PM can be extremely difficult. I have seen many consultant PMs who dont know their @rse from their elbow and are not actually PMs at all but business grads put into a role that they are not able for. In smaller companies, you can get away with just handling the day to day runnings of a project rather than the higher profile aspects that tend to come with being on a client site.

PM can be a very difficult job. As a developer, I find that I dont notice a good one, but if you have a bad one it can make your life hell. If you are comfortable taking charge of a project and more importantly handling the people on a project, giving presentations to upper management on the budgets etc.... explaining why the project is running late and generally taking the crap for everything that goes wrong then the rewards are good.

DOLEMAN

Project Manager!!!

You'll have loads more options long term. Software Development is a horrible job at 40, yet Management is always good...

I'd defo take the Project Management job. It can't be offshored either.

homeOwner

DOLEMAN wrote:

Software Development is a horrible job at 40...

i know....am dreading being the oldest developer in work some day....

comad

Some good advice there. Thanks. To clarify, the company is huge and some of the projects would be international but mostly national.

I'm leaning more and more towards project management. I reckon I could be a better project manager than a developer. The whole offshore issue too is a factor I'm considering aswell. I think the best thing is to chat to managers in both sections. I'll be back later!

newestUser

DOLEMAN wrote:

Project Manager!!!

You'll have loads more options long term. Software Development is a horrible job at 40, yet Management is always good...

Could you clarify what you mean by Software Development being a horrible job at 40? I've heard this viewpoint before, that development is a young mans game, you don't want to be doing it when you're old...never had it fully explained to me. I'm not saying you're wrong, or trying to set you up for a flaming, but I'd be interested to hear why people have this view.

And if you feel that you don't need to justify your opinions to randomers on the web, and you've better things to be doing, that's a perfectly reasonable point of view as well.

newestUser

DOLEMAN wrote:

Project Manager!!!

I'd defo take the Project Management job. It can't be offshored either.

And while I'm nitpicking, why couldn't a project management job be outsourced? As with my previous post, I don't disagree with what you're saying, not trying to set you up for a fall, etc. etc., but what parts of a PMs job require their physical presence?

DOLEMAN

Hey newestUser,

OK, last point first... Projects generally need someone on site to coardinate things. I have lots of Project Manager friends and they aren't the ones worried about offshoring!

IT @ 40... It's not about being surrounded by young people, but rather developement is quite an unhealthy, soul destroying job. Realising that's it for the rest of your working days must be a horrible feeling. At least with Project Management you have lots of options...

Just my opinions...

newestUser

DOLEMAN wrote:

Hey newestUser,

OK, last point first... Projects generally need someone on site to coardinate things. I have lots of Project Manager friends and they aren't the ones worried about offshoring!

IT @ 40... It's not about being surrounded by young people, but rather developement is quite an unhealthy, soul destroying job. Realising that's it for the rest of your working days must be a horrible feeling. At least with Project Management you have lots of options...

Just my opinions...

I did a quick google for project management/offshoring/outsourcing, and got loads of results back. Clearly project managers jobs being outsourced is something that happens a lot. Perhaps you/your PM friends think that a PM is sufficiently high up enough in the food chain that their job won't ever be outsourced. That may be true in some cases, but I'm sure that there are also many situations where it may make sense for an organisation to outsource a PM. It depends on the specifics of the work involved. I don't think that just because your job title is "Project Manager", you can assume that your job is never going to Bangalore.

<edit> I realise that a quick google on the subject hardly constitutes an informed, well-researched opinion. I'm not an expert in this area, so don't take my word for all this.

Lots of people like software development, I don't think you can label the entire field as dysfunctional and unhealthy. Lots of people don't like their work. It doesn't mean that their work is intrinsically bad.

I was browsing the web yesterday when I came across an archive of the boards work forum from 2000/2001. It was funny and painful in parts to read. There was a running theme/mood through the board of "It's great to be a programmer, being a programmer is such a cool job, I am a programmer, I RULE!!! lol etc.etc". One thread was sarcastically titled "Even programmers get the blues, believe it or not!" or something similar. I find it weird that as recently as five years ago, being a programmer elevated you to a higher plane of existence, whereas today lots of people on the boards work forum deem software development to be the work of Satan Himself. What's changed? Has software development changed dramatically in the past five years? Fundamentally, no. So what's going on here? Anybody care to offer an opinion? Are peoples criticisms of software development fair and accurate judgements on the industry, or expressions of frustration because of the loss (real or perceived) of prestige/prospects in their line of work compared to 1999/2000?

onedmc

Just make sure that you have a number of years development behind you before you go into project management. You'll then have more credibility as a REAL project manager.

damnyanks

As a project manager in IT you mean

Project management isn't so great - the main draw back to it is you really don't get involved in the actual work. You may hit major issues and what not but you just need to know how to politically handle it within the company.

As for outsourceing of course they can be outsource, business analysts are whats required on site. A PM can be remote most definetly. I run projects in Asia & North America... obviously time difference is a pain but thats about it. Also I can't go up to someones desk and hammer 5 them for being late


Really it all comes down too this simple fact.

What are your career ambitions?