How To Become A Computer Systems Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a computer systems manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Mario Bkassiny Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a computer systems manager. For example, did you know that they make an average of $64.36 an hour? That's $133,879 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 16% and produce 82,400 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a computer systems manager?

Mario Bkassiny Ph.D.

Associate Professor, SUNY Oswego

Young graduates should continuously seek every learning opportunity to enhance their professional skills. With the fast growth of engineering technology, it is important for engineers to remain up to date with the most recent innovations in their fields. The learning process does not stop at graduation, but instead, it extends beyond college to the workplace where engineers can gain expert knowledge in their fields.

ScoreComputer Systems ManagerUS Average

Salary

8.5

Avg. Salary $133,879

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 16%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.7

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.21%

Asian 12.61%

Black or African American 6.77%

Hispanic or Latino 10.16%

Unknown 5.21%

White 65.04%

Gender

female 16.03%

male 83.97%

Age - 47

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 47

Stress level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.7

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.1

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a computer systems manager

Explore computer systems manager education requirements

Most common computer systems manager degrees

Bachelor's

57.3 %

Associate

25.7 %

Master's

8.6 %

Start to develop specific computer systems manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Computer System	25.33%
FDA	9.72%
Software Development	7.60%
ISO	7.42%
Customer Service	4.93%

Complete relevant computer systems manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New computer systems managers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a computer systems manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real computer systems manager resumes.

Research computer systems manager duties and responsibilities

Manage a multi-vendor UNIX environment (HP/SUN).
Develop, manage and perform maintenance on SharePoint web applications with a concentrate focus on physical, information and personnel security.
Help train employees to troubleshoot network problems.
Maintain all phases of personal computer and UNIX workstation hardware and software.

Prepare your computer systems manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your computer systems manager resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a computer systems manager resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable computer systems manager resume templates

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