50 IT Director Interview Questions 2019

IT Director Interview Questions – Information technology (IT) directors are in demand all across many industries. These tech-minded persons are responsible for managing computer resources so that a firm’s IT systems are well-maintained and carefully safeguarded, so you see, it’s an important role.

IT directors are at the top of the IT department, overseeing managers and staff members. They both coordinate and execute  the systems and services that keep important information and technology solutions available to the rest of the organization

IT Director Responsibilities

IT directors are in charge of resolving the issues that naturally come from any type of business technology. Some of the common responsibilities that you may find in an IT director job description include:

• Organizing programs to increase efficiency
• Overseeing technical projects that are designed to improve upon or achieve business goals
• Directing networks to improve efficiency
• Collaborating with information engineers to solve management problems
• Supervising managers and employees in the IT department
• Creating financial budgets for senior executives
• Researching new products and keeping up with the latest technology innovations
• Recommending new systems and software to senior executives
• Organizing and implementing disaster recovery systems
• Collaborating with information engineers to solve business challenges
• Identifying market opportunities in IT

IT Directors Job Qualification 

IT directors need to have a solid background in the technical area. They normally need to have a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in a related area. Some applicable degrees are 

• Information Technology
• Technology Management
• Business Management

There are many courses that you should include in your education to have the knowledge required to become an IT director. You’ll need a solid foundation in information technology to serve as the core of your education. Important IT courses will typically include:

• Computer interface
• Database management technology
• Business applications
• Information systems
• Operating systems
• Web design
• Systems analysis
• Project management
• Computer architecture
• Technical wiring
• Software development
• Global information management

Furthermore,  to an extensive knowledge of information technology, you may also need an MBA and strong business background to secure a position as an IT director. With an MBA, you’ll gain extra insight into organizational management, leadership, and business practices.

Depending on the job you’re applying for, you may need more education specific to a particular operating system or programs, such as Office365, Amazon Web Services, or cloud computing.

IT Directors Job Salary Scale

According to the Bureau of labor statistics, the median yearly salary for computer and information system managers was between  $131,600 in May 2015. People who worked in information industries had the highest salary, at $148,070. Those in computer systems design and related services had a salary of $139,600 while IT managers in finance and insurance get  $136,240. In total,  computer and information system managers made less than $80,160 in the bottom ten percent and more than $187,200 in the top ten percent.

Experience

IT directors normally have a wide background in both information technology and leadership positions. The well-known career path is for one to start at a lower level IT employee. With some years of experience, you may advance to a management position.

Lots of companies will hire lower level IT managers with only a few years of experience. To get promotion to the IT director, you normally will need five to ten years of management experience in an IT field.

IT director interview questions

• 1. What is your technical background, if any?

• 2. Are you hands-on with technical problems?

• 3. Do you prefer outsourcing tasks to external companies or developing internal talent?

• 4. Describe your current role for us

• 5. What value would you bring to the IT department?

• 6. What is your view on employee upskilling and studying?

• 7. Is upskilling IT staff your responsibility or the employees?.

• 8. How do you track technical performance in your department?

• 9. What have you learned from your IT management experiences at your current employer?

• 10. Do you have any project management experience?

Managerial Questions

• 11. What would you say is the most important function of being an IT manager?

• 12. How do you handle mistakes in the workplace?

• 13. What would you say is the most valuable contribution that you would provide to the company if you were to be our IT manager?

• 14. How long have you been an IT manager for and how many people have you managed?

• 15. What are some of the technical projects that you have overseen?

• 16. How would you describe your management style?

• 17. Where do you see yourself in ten years’ time?

• 18. What is the best way to handle an employee that is not performing at their best, despite being told that they are not quite up to standard?

• 19. How do you keep your team motivated, especially when things are going wrong?

• 20. Have you ever had to provide negative feedback to your team members? Have you ever had to dismiss an employee?

Communication and Operational Questions

• 21. How do you relay important information to upper management in times of crisis?

• 22. How do you manage disaster recovery?

• 23. What are your strongest skills while managing projects?

• 24. What is the biggest IT-related challenge that you faced as an IT manager?

• 25. How do you cope with multiple deadlines at the same time?

• 26. How important is documentation to you?

• 27. Based on what we have told you so far, what changes do you think you could make to improve the IT department?

• 28. How do you negotiate when acquiring new hardware or software?

• 29. How do you ensure that company data is secure and that operations are not affected by security breaches or incidents?

• 30. How important is communication to your management strategy?

Situational questions

• 31. Which do you consider the most crucial duties for an IT Manager?

• 32. How do you gather system and user requirements?

• 33. What are your priorities when making budget decisions?

• 34. How do you negotiate for new hardware or software?

• 35. Have you implemented significant improvements to an IT infrastructure?

• 36. How do you ensure confidential data is stored in a secure place?

• 37. What are your training methods to ensure effective use of corporate computer systems?

• 38. If you have a new team member, what guidance would you give them?

• 39. We want to install a new software system. What’s your research method and what steps would you follow before deployment?

• 40. How do you prepare a cost analysis report for company computer systems?

Role-specific Questions

• 41. Which are the most effective methods to improve network security?

• 42. What’s a disaster recovery plan?

• 43. Describe the troubleshooting process you’d follow for a crashing program.

• 44. Can you mention the pros and cons of cloud applications?

• 45. Are you familiar with IT tracking software? How are they used to monitor remote systems?

• 46. What Information Analysis systems have you worked with most?

Behavioral questions

• 47. Describe a situation where you had to explain technical details to a non-technical audience. How did you adjust your presentation?

• 48. Have you faced conflicts between your team members? What did you do?

• 49. What’s the most challenging project you’ve managed so far? What was your role and how did you manage to deliver on time?

• 50. Describe a time when a member of your team was underperforming. How did you motivate them?