What does a software project leader do?
Software project leader responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real software project leader resumes:
- Lead daily scrum meetings, organize and chair scrums with cross-functional teams to deliver the product goals and deliverables.
- Maintain mature java-base web application design to automate highly detail engineering requests for the DoD.
- Provide guidance and support to scrum team members, remove impediments and assist teams to maximize productivity.
- Develop excellent debugging, analytical and programming skills.
- Create the architecture framework for dynamically setting properties and property types for oracle using reflection.
- Design enterprise software, including requirements analysis, software architecture, user interface, and database schema.
- Develop python scripts to provide seamless automation between multiple operating systems and test them to minimize scripts relate failures during testing.
- Design and implement J2EE framework.
- Integrate third-party SeeBeyond J2EE enterprise applications into the processing infrastructure to increase processing capabilities and provide a foundation for new projects.
Software project leader skills and personality traits
We calculated that 15% of Software Project Leaders are proficient in Software Development, Project Management, and Scrum. They’re also known for soft skills such as Analytical skills, Communication skills, and Creativity.
We break down the percentage of Software Project Leaders that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Software Development, 15%
Performed and led a variety of software development activities including requirement analysis, design development, and testing.
- Project Management, 9%
Perform project management, technical research, alternative analysis, utility evaluation, and Return on Investment (ROI) analysis.
- Scrum, 8%
Followed Agile methodology and participated in daily SCRUM meetings.
- C, 6%
Developed Windows GUI code utilizing JAVA (Swing threads, J2EE, JDBC) communicating with C embedded code with CMMI/SEI.
- C++, 6%
Cross Cultural Management - Successfully managed C++ software development projects on Windows based platform in distributed system.
- Java, 6%
Developed Java Script utility objects for common client side validations, history handling, window management and menus management.
Most software project leaders use their skills in "software development," "project management," and "scrum" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential software project leader responsibilities here:
Analytical skills. To carry out their duties, the most important skill for a software project leader to have is analytical skills. Their role and responsibilities require that "developers must analyze users’ needs and then design software to meet those needs." Software project leaders often use analytical skills in their day-to-day job, as shown by this real resume: "performed requirements analysis, and marketing & communications for enterprise sharepoint 2010 solution. "
Communication skills. Many software project leader duties rely on communication skills. "developers must be able to give clear instructions to others working on a project," so a software project leader will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways software project leader responsibilities rely on communication skills: "project leader for ncsa telnet, a communications package for ibm pc and macintosh computers using tcp/ip. "
Creativity. software project leaders are also known for creativity, which are critical to their duties. You can see how this skill relates to software project leader responsibilities, because "developers are the creative minds behind new computer software." A software project leader resume example shows how creativity is used in the workplace: "team member during lottery start-up, involved in qa testing of gaming applications, including inventory and financial report functionality. "
Detail oriented. A big part of what software project leaders do relies on "detail oriented." You can see how essential it is to software project leader responsibilities because "developers often work on many parts of an application or system at the same time and must therefore be able to concentrate and pay attention to detail." Here's an example of how this skill is used from a resume that represents typical software project leader tasks: "project software is object oriented c++ with design patterns using visual studio and qt gui development with subversion svn version control. "
Problem-solving skills. A commonly-found skill in software project leader job descriptions, "problem-solving skills" is essential to what software project leaders do. Software project leader responsibilities rely on this skill because "because developers are in charge of software from beginning to end, they must be able to solve problems that arise throughout the design process." You can also see how software project leader duties rely on problem-solving skills in this resume example: "key departmental contact for software applications, problem analysis and resolution, documentation and training and help desk. "
The three companies that hire the most software project leaders are:
- Kion Group6 software project leaders jobs
- Bosch USA5 software project leaders jobs
- Booz Allen Hamilton2 software project leaders jobs
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Software project leader vs. Leader
Leaders pave the way for a company to achieve certain goals. They are in charge of bringing the organization to greater heights. They set the direction of the organization, much like how a captain sets the sails of the ship. They are responsible for coming up with main strategies and alternatives should there be challenges along the way. Leaders ensure that the company is guided by its vision and mission and that the employees emulate company values. They do so through leading by example. Leaders should have strategic skills, decision-making skills, and interpersonal skills.
These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a software project leader are more likely to require skills like "software development," "scrum," "c," and "c++." On the other hand, a job as a leader requires skills like "customer service," "strong time management," "excellent interpersonal," and "pet." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.
On average, leaders reach lower levels of education than software project leaders. Leaders are 9.2% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.Software project leader vs. Senior systems software engineer
A senior systems software engineer is an individual responsible for managing a firm's computer network systems. The professional's roles include resolving complex application and network issues through the development of new solutions, overseeing systems developers and other information technology (IT) personnel, and integrating new technology. The job requires proficiency in the MySQL, Python, and Linux programming languages and excellent skills in organizational and time management and communication. The education requirements for the job include a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, computer science, or a related field.
In addition to the difference in salary, there are some other key differences worth noting. For example, software project leader responsibilities are more likely to require skills like "project management," "software project," "rtos," and "javascript." Meanwhile, a senior systems software engineer has duties that require skills in areas such as "python," "architecture," "database," and "json." These differences highlight just how different the day-to-day in each role looks.
On average, senior systems software engineers earn a higher salary than software project leaders. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, senior systems software engineers earn the most pay in the technology industry with an average salary of $125,048. Whereas software project leaders have higher pay in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $108,115.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Senior systems software engineers tend to reach similar levels of education than software project leaders. In fact, they're 0.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.7% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for software project leaders in the next 3-5 years?
Software project leader vs. Project associate
A project associate (PA) is an individual who ensures that the activities of a project are running smoothly and properly implemented. Project associates are required to provide administrative coordination support to assigned projects and maintain project pending lists and meeting agendas. They must review and process invoices from consultants, subcontractors, and vendors to ensure that they are according to the project's requirements. In collaboration with the senior project officer, project associates should also assist in tracking and documenting project deliverables.
Some important key differences between the two careers include a few of the skills necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of each. Some examples from software project leader resumes include skills like "software development," "scrum," "c," and "software project," whereas a project associate is more likely to list skills in "data collection," "powerpoint," "data entry," and "meeting minutes. "
Project associates earn the highest salary when working in the pharmaceutical industry, where they receive an average salary of $69,142. Comparatively, software project leaders have the highest earning potential in the manufacturing industry, with an average salary of $108,115.project associates typically earn similar educational levels compared to software project leaders. Specifically, they're 0.8% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 2.4% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Software project leader vs. Principal software engineer
A Principal Software Engineer is responsible for the technical aspects of an organization's projects. They diagnose, document, and troubleshoot systems to resolve problems identified through testing, as well as implement strategies to improve integration and efficiency.
Types of software project leader
Updated January 8, 2025











