How To Become A Senior Delivery Manager: What It Is and Career Path

What is a senior delivery manager and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Senior delivery managers are experienced IT or manufacturing professionals that assist in bringing computer software applications, computer products, or other manufactured items to market by managing project team members and their schedules. A senior delivery manager's duties include, but are not limited to, managing various team projects and delivery schedules, conducting project risk assessments, reviewing customer orders, planning deliveries and managing delivery schedules, evaluating team member performance, implementing team member training as needed, managing project milestones, and promoting career development and performance.

Senior delivery managers possess strong working knowledge of the products and/or services being offered, as well as excellent communication, analytical, and problem-solving skills. They must also be adept at handling customer issues and inquiries and managing personnel.

An advanced degree is not necessarily a requirement to be a senior delivery manager, provided the individual has experience in marketing, business, sales or a comparable field. Senior delivery managers can expect to make up to $110,00 per year, and job growth in the U.S. is expected to grow 11% by 2028.

ScoreSenior Delivery ManagerUS Average

Salary

8.0

Avg. Salary $116,570

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.6

Growth rate 16%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

1.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.20%

Asian 19.95%

Black or African American 5.65%

Hispanic or Latino 8.47%

Unknown 5.08%

White 60.65%

Gender

female 25.21%

male 74.79%

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 senior delivery manager

Explore senior delivery manager education requirements

Most common senior delivery manager degrees

Bachelor's

70.3 %

Master's

20.0 %

Associate

5.7 %

Start to develop specific senior delivery manager skills

Skills	Percentages
Project Management	15.19%
Cloud	15.00%
Business Development	11.82%
Project Delivery	9.62%
Excellent Client	9.47%

Complete relevant senior delivery manager training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior delivery 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 senior delivery manager based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior delivery manager resumes.

Research senior delivery manager duties and responsibilities

Design and lead implementation of a web base system for request intake that track requests through SDLC process.
Manage and track day to day flow of all trucks and routes to ensure delivery windows are meet.
Manage and implement application development and integration solutions using iterative and traditional SDLC methodologies.
Provide direction and manage outsource infrastructure partner to ensure full visibility of key projects, initiatives and operational activities.

Get senior delivery manager experience

Generally, it takes 6-8 years to become a senior delivery manager. The most common roles before becoming a senior delivery manager include senior project manager, project manager team lead and program manager.

Prepare your senior delivery manager resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior delivery 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 senior delivery 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 senior delivery manager resume templates

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