Elena Prokopets
Claire Briggs Webber, CPRW
A company’s IT department may very well be its most important business area. Why? Because anything that happens in IT has the potential to impact every other part of the business. A poorly run IT department could mean a lagging corporate website, glitchy internal applications, overlooked security vulnerabilities, lower customer experience, and more problematic issues.
An IT manager is the person who sits at the helm of the tech department and ensures that tech service delivery happens smoothly. They often develop the company’s strategy for new technology investments; hire, train, and supervise new IT staff; establish, coordinate, and manage computer networks, and perform a wide range of other duties.
If you’re pursuing this position, you must have solid leadership skills and a strong vision for not just implementing new technologies, but also evangelizing their value to other company stakeholders.
At the application stage, the best way to demonstrate your “eloquence” is your cover letter. But writing a compelling cover letter can be harder than designing a new WLAN network. To help you out, we’ve prepared a detailed IT manager cover letter example with some extra tips!
IT Manager Cover Letter Example (Word)
IT Manager Cover Letter (Plain Text)
Hello Whitley Smith,
My name is Amanda Rich, and I am writing this letter to express my interest in the position of IT manager with the Richland School District. As requested, I have included a copy of my resume and authorization for a state and federal background check. Thank you in advance for reviewing my application package.
I am currently in the process of completing a two-year contract as an IT consultant for Bay Area Community College. In this role, I’ve been in charge of modernizing the college’s legacy billing system and implementing a new suite of remote-work-friendly employee solutions (Office 365, Microsoft Teams, SharePoint Online). I have also worked extensively with an IT security firm to conduct an ongoing audit of the school’s networks and security infrastructure. The new systems that were implemented during my contract have solved several documented security issues and have earned a 96% satisfaction rate among students and staff.
Prior to going into consulting, I worked in IT Security management roles for nearly ten years. The vast majority of my experience has involved managing IT teams and systems for public school districts, community colleges, and local government agencies. This has allowed me to develop strong IT vendor management competencies (RFP process management, onboarding, SLA negotiation, budgeting, retention, etc), paired with a strong suite of technical project management skills (I’m certified in Agile and Scrum methodologies).
Additionally, I have completed training in ISO compliance and cybersecurity with Microsoft in 2020-21 to expand my cybersecurity competencies.
I know the Richland School District has undergone significant changes and challenges over the past 36 months. The inauguration of the new Technology Education Center is truly an amazing accomplishment and a benefit to the entire community. It would be an honor for me to take on the role of IT Manager to help Richland remain among the industry front-runners when it comes to classroom digitization.
I will be available to take on any new role after August 1st. Are you open to an interview within the next week? I would love to meet with you and your team to discuss how I can be of service.
Regards,
Amanda Rich
How to Write an IT Manager Cover Letter
Any role with a “manager” title assumes that a candidate has strong soft skills. As a tech person, you might be inclined to focus more on your technical skills (which are also important!). But remember: you won’t be necessarily talking to fellow techy. Hence your references to implementing “99.999% uptime for ERPs” or “creating a geo-redundant DR secondary site” may not always be met with proper appreciation.
A good cover letter for an IT manager offers a balanced snapshot of your hard and soft skills. Contextualize your innovative tech ideas through the lens of end-user outcomes, rather than going deep into the architecture complexities.
To help you create a compelling letter, we’ve prepared some extra tips.
Have a Vision
When an organization hires an IT manager, they are seeking someone who will take charge of their technology vision and translate it into reality. To get to the interviewing stage, you need to show that you have that game plan. Use your cover letter to briefly which ambitious IT plans you’ve helped to realize and what results they’ve brought in for your former employer.
Demonstrate Leadership Skills
This tip is especially important if you are new to IT management or other executive-level positions. Your previous resume and cover letters may have focused on a variety of technical and soft skills. That has to change a bit now. Your cover letter should reflect bigger-picture capabilities such as your ability to strategize, innovate, persuade, and inspire people around you to act.
Talk About Your Successes
Your cover letter is the ideal format to introduce yourself, and go over your previous successes in IT. Don’t get bogged down in your daily tasks. Instead, focus on some major accomplishments that truly showcase your ability to lead an IT team, and overcome big challenges.
Final Tip: Focus on People
IT managers need to provide leadership on both a technical and human front. Your cover letter has to demonstrate that you are capable of providing both. If you don’t provide a balanced view of your skills, the hiring manager might bypass your application for someone who clearly does.
