What does a Development & Program Manager do?
The responsibilities of a development and program manager depend on one's place or industry of employment. Typically, they are in charge of overseeing the operations behind various projects and programs, ensuring everything is running smoothly and efficiently. They must also devise new strategies to improve workforce performance and services, identify new opportunities for profit growth, and determine the needs of clients. Furthermore, as a manager, it is essential to lead and encourage the team in the joint effort to reach goals, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations.
Development & program manager responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real development & program manager resumes:
- Manage PLM data integrity report and PLM post launch report by project.
- Manage a budget of $600,000 each year to maintain annual KPIs.
- Develop, establish, and manage product families OEM in and out relationships.
- Shape the strategic direction and implement CRM strategies to manage a corporate loyalty program.
- Manage the vendor selection process among OEM candidates and manage requirements lock down across vendors.
- Manage direct and indirect sales channels and strategic partners within the Americas for new development products.
- Collaborate on the implementation and use of Salesforce CRM.
- Apply ISO standards, cGMP, GLP, and FDA regulations/guidelines.
- Conduct scrum of scrum meetings & retrospectives.
- Create and communicate quality assurance documents and business unit processes via CRM tool: SalesForce.com.
- Propose customer loyalty program structure changes base on market segmentation to increase SMB market resellers.
- Select to participate in special team to customize and implement new company ERP and PLM systems.
- Work with team to create and define new metrics and KPIs to clarify team's duties.
- Utilize javascript to code front-end interactions.
- Present trainings including PowerPoint and written materials.
Development & program manager skills and personality traits
We calculated that 22% of Development & Program Managers are proficient in Professional Development, Project Management, and Program Management. They’re also known for soft skills such as Creativity, Interpersonal skills, and Analytical skills.
We break down the percentage of Development & Program Managers that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Professional Development, 22%
Developed level III/IV professional development curriculum for youth-serving organizations
- Project Management, 10%
Lead all aspects of program/project management including planning, budgeting, forecasting, execution to delivery and executive level reporting.
- Program Management, 8%
Coordinate and lead proposal reviews consisting of engineering, logistics and program management personnel.
- Business Development, 4%
Directed all activities of the Business Development Program that trained and financed entrepreneurs/investors in starting and managing new small businesses.
- HR, 4%
Performed procedural oversight audits for 20 government installations assessing program compliance of personnel files, benefits and HR systems management.
- Program Development, 3%
Included assignments as Program Development Manager, Program Manager and Business Area Manager in a small innovative rapidly growing Satellite Company.
Most development & program managers use their skills in "professional development," "project management," and "program management" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential development & program manager responsibilities here:
Creativity. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a development & program manager to have is creativity. Their role and responsibilities require that "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to generate new and imaginative ideas." Development & program managers often use creativity in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "directed motor vehicle fleet operations, unit weapons program and inventory, and maintenance of all dod properties. "
Interpersonal skills. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling development & program manager duties is interpersonal skills. The role rewards competence in this skill because "managers must deal with a range of people in different roles, both inside and outside the organization." According to a development & program manager resume, here's how development & program managers can utilize interpersonal skills in their job responsibilities: "lead and motivated people; excellent interpersonal skills; and promotes and models effective teamwork. "
Analytical skills. Another skill that relates to the job responsibilities of development & program managers is analytical skills. This skill is critical to many everyday development & program manager duties, as "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must be able to analyze industry trends to determine the most promising strategies for their organization." This example from a resume shows how this skill is used: "utilized my extensive program management and systems engineering lifecycle experience in schedule formulation, analysis and status reporting to the government. "
Organizational skills. A big part of what development & program managers do relies on "organizational skills." You can see how essential it is to development & program manager responsibilities because "advertising, promotions, and marketing managers must manage their time and budget efficiently while directing and motivating staff members." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical development & program manager tasks: "designed and adapted a professional development training program to create practical solutions for staff efficacy and organizational goals. "
Communication skills. Another crucial skill for a development & program manager to carry out their responsibilities is "communication skills." A big part of what development & program managers relies on this skill, since "managers must be able to communicate effectively with a broad-based team made up of other managers or staff members during the advertising, promotions, and marketing process." How this skill relates to development & program manager duties can be seen in an example from a development & program manager resume snippet: "developed key communications and presentations for internal and external parties on economic development outcomes and the mayor's economic equity agenda. "
The three companies that hire the most development & program managers are:
- General Dynamics Mission Systems
234 development & program managers jobs
- Bank of America184 development & program managers jobs
- General Dynamics91 development & program managers jobs
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Compare different development & program managers
Development & program manager vs. Director of product development
A Director of Product Development supervises and implements product development policies, initiatives, and objectives. They conduct market research to determine consumer needs and identify competitors.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a development & program manager are more likely to require skills like "professional development," "securities," "program management," and "hr." On the other hand, a job as a director of product development requires skills like "product management," "product strategy," "product roadmap," and "fda." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
Directors of product development really shine in the manufacturing industry with an average salary of $142,193. Comparatively, development & program managers tend to make the most money in the technology industry with an average salary of $115,484.The education levels that directors of product development earn slightly differ from development & program managers. In particular, directors of product development are 0.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a development & program manager. Additionally, they're 1.3% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Development & program manager vs. Web manager
Web Managers are responsible for managing websites for organizations. Their duties include managing website upgrades, testing for website performance, implement a strategy to increase web traffic and subscribers, troubleshooting website issues, and responding to security breaches. They create content audits as well as ensuring the website has brand strategy alignment. A Web Manager ensures website compliance with all regulations and keeps abreast of the best practice of the industry. They must possess good problem-solving skills and knowledge in search engine optimization.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real development & program manager resumes. While development & program manager responsibilities can utilize skills like "professional development," "securities," "program management," and "business development," web managers use skills like "digital marketing," "wordpress," "html css," and "b testing."
Average education levels between the two professions vary. Web managers tend to reach lower levels of education than development & program managers. In fact, they're 8.1% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 1.3% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Development & program manager vs. Market manager
A marketing manager is an executive who manages a brand or product's promotion positioning. Marketing managers analyze the trends in the industry and the demand for certain products and services. Typically, they attract more customers to purchase products and/or services and raise brand awareness through marketing campaigns. They research, identify, examine, and evaluate product demand. Also, they review advertising materials like print ads to boost the marketing strategy of the company and strengthen its campaign.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a development & program manager is likely to be skilled in "professional development," "securities," "program management," and "hr," while a typical market manager is skilled in "customer service," "strong analytical," "excellent interpersonal," and "human resources."
Market managers earn the highest salary when working in the manufacturing industry, where they receive an average salary of $85,133. Comparatively, development & program managers have the highest earning potential in the technology industry, with an average salary of $115,484.Most market managers achieve a lower degree level compared to development & program managers. For example, they're 7.0% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 1.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Development & program manager vs. Media manager
Media managers oversee the department that works on the different communication needs of the company. They execute the communications strategies of the company. They are expected to be updated with the current trends on media platforms. They should also be very familiar with the company and are attuned to the company's brand and image so that they can create relevant communications campaigns. Media managers oversee content creation on different media platforms. They manage the research related to the content they are working on. They develop materials and ensure that these materials are engaging and relatable to the target audience.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between development & program managers and media managers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a development & program manager might have more use for skills like "professional development," "securities," "program management," and "hr." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of media managers require skills like "digital marketing," "kpis," "media planning," and "media management. "
Media managers enjoy the best pay in the automotive industry, with an average salary of $108,113. For comparison, development & program managers earn the highest salary in the technology industry.In general, media managers hold lower degree levels compared to development & program managers. Media managers are 9.3% less likely to earn their Master's Degree and 1.1% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Types of development & program manager
Updated January 8, 2025
