IT Salary 2016

IT salary levels for 2016 reflect the scarcity of top tech talent, causing IT salary levels to move higher.

IT salary trends for 2016 are expected to heavily favor employees. IT salary levels are seeing healthy gains. Tech employers face a daunting challenge in finding quality IT professionals – they’re forced to offer higher paychecks. If you’re a tech pro who’s job hunting or currently negotiating salary, you’re in a position of power.
There is such a bounty of tech jobs springing up that many go unfilled for months. In some cases tech pros aren’t even pursuing certain less desirable positions – there are so many IT job opportunities with generous salary packages. For experienced individuals with major tech skills, it’s a matter of choosing between several offers – sometimes without even needing to job hunt. (That LinkedIn profile can do some good.)

Reflecting this IT salary trend, Robert Half– whose survey these IT salary numbers come from – titled its research “IT Hiring Trends: So Many Jobs, So Few Applicants.”
This difficulty in filling IT jobs has now persisted for several years, creating an imbalance that is reflected in IT salary levels. Employers are often offering a cornucopia of incentives, from a rosy salary to flexible hours and stock options. Employers are less able to put a potential employee through a long interview process. If a firm wants talent, they must make an offer quickly – or be bested by a competing company.
The vertical industries that are particularly hungry for IT talent include financial services, telecommunications, healthcare, and managed services. The hot specialties – continuing a multi-year trend – are mobile, Big Data and security. More specifically, highly sought-after tech professionals include developers (Web, software and mobile app), database administrators, business intelligence/Big Data analysts, and systems engineers and administrators. Also in demand – this never seems to end –are help desk and help support pros. (Timeless truth: the entire world stops without the help desk folks.)
Perhaps the best news for IT salary levels: the importance of technology will only increase in the years ahead. As tech continues to reshape virtually every aspect of our world, the professionals with the skills to make this happen will be in great demand – a central fact that will likely push up IT salary levels going forward.