Explore jobs
Find specific jobs
Explore careers
Explore professions
Best companies
Explore companies
The differences between product managers and information technology project managers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 8-10 years to become a product manager, becoming an information technology project manager takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, a product manager has an average salary of $111,729, which is higher than the $106,981 average annual salary of an information technology project manager.
The top three skills for a product manager include product management, QA and product strategy. The most important skills for an information technology project manager are project management, infrastructure, and scrum.
| Product Manager | Information Technology Project Manager | |
| Yearly salary | $111,729 | $106,981 |
| Hourly rate | $53.72 | $51.43 |
| Growth rate | 10% | - |
| Number of jobs | 125,678 | 207,249 |
| Job satisfaction | 5 | 3 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 10 | 6 |
A product manager is responsible for ensuring product development, providing the best marketing strategies, and effectively handling the sales and marketing team. Product managers' duties include monitoring the market trends and conditions, identifying business opportunities and plan initiatives, and collaborating the product launch process with the appropriate departments. A product manager is also responsible for generating ideas on improving product features, determining timetables and reasonable pricing, and analyzing product sales. A product manager must have excellent strategic and decision-making skills to contribute to its growth and profitability.
An information technology project manager is responsible for supervising the technology department, ensuring that all tasks are being done by following technological strategies and solutions. Information technology project managers' duties include monitoring the technology team's daily operation, handling team members' concerns, managing customers' inquiries and complaints, helping team members' in achieving their professional growth, creating reports, sharing updates during team and board meetings, and maintaining effectivity of operational procedures. An information technology project manager must have excellent leadership and decision-making skills to decide on the best strategies in meeting the company's objectives.
Product managers and information technology project managers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Product Manager | Information Technology Project Manager | |
| Average salary | $111,729 | $106,981 |
| Salary range | Between $81,000 And $152,000 | Between $76,000 And $149,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Menlo Park, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Reed Smith |
| Best paying industry | Retail | Technology |
There are a few differences between a product manager and an information technology project manager in terms of educational background:
| Product Manager | Information Technology Project Manager | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 68% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | University of Georgia | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between product managers' and information technology project managers' demographics:
| Product Manager | Information Technology Project Manager | |
| Average age | 39 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 65.3% Female, 34.7% | Male, 66.4% Female, 33.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 8.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 74.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 10% | 11% |