IT Salaries to Rise Twice as Fast as Inflation
October 30, 2007
By Deborah Perelman, eWEEK

CIOs looking to hire skilled IT professionals will pay, on average, 5.3 percent more in 2008 than they did this year, according to a just-released report from Robert Half Technology, an IT staffing firm.
As a comparison, the Consumer Price Index rose 2.8 percent this past year.
The biggest increases will go to lead application developers,who manage softeare development teams and projects, with base compensation expected to rise 7.6 percent to between $80,250 and $108,000 annually. Application architects, also in demand, will average a 7.5 percent increase, with starting salaries ranging from $87,250 to $120,000.
Other skills seeing salary increases of 7 percent or higher include Web development, network management or database administration.
"This was not really a surprise," says Katherine Spencer Lee, executive director of Robert Half Technology. "The strong increases are still in the application development space, especially for individuals that have those Web 2.0 skill sets. Those who can architect and develop Web spaces had the highest increases that we saw, even 7.5 percent in some titles."
Robert Half Technology's 2008 IT Salary Guide is based on analysis of the job placements managed by the company's U.S. offices. The analysis found that nearly 15 percent of firms said that they intended to increase their IT staff in 2008.
The company pegged wireless communication as one of the top areas driving IT hiring in U.S. companies, as developers create more and more tools for mobile devices that IT departments are increasingly responsible for supporting. Lee calls this the "gadget factor."
"With everyone's devices communicating with everyone else's devices, there is a need for people who are like the air traffic controllers of the IT department," Lee says.
Industries foreseeing strong demand for IT pros next year include financial services, healthcare and commercial construction, the report says.
Go to the next screens to see pay increases and salaries for various classes of IT professionals.
Next page: Application Development
Application Development

• Manager, 6.1%, $86,250 to $117,750
• Project Manager, 5.0%, $76,500 to $111,500
• Systems Analyst, 3.5%, $66,000 to $90,250
• Applications Architect, 7.5%, $87,250 to $120,000
• Business Systems Analyst, 5.6%, $64,250 to $91,750
• Developer/Programmer Analsyt, 6.0%, $57,500 to $96,750
• Lead Applications Developer, 7.6%, $80,250 to $108,000
• Technical Writer, 5.3%, $48,250 to $72,000

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Bonus Pay for Application Development
Bonus Pay for Application Development
For the following development skills, add

• 5% for C++
• 10% for Java
• 5% for Visual Basic
• 12% for C#, 5% for LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL and PHP/Perl)
• 5% for AJAX (Asynchronous Java and XML)
• 5% for Microsoft SharePoint
• 10% for Visual Basic .Net.

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Consulting and Systems Ingegration
Consulting and Systems Ingegration

• Director, 6.1%, $93,250 to $137,500
• Practice Manager, 5.2%, $92,500 to $125,000
• Project Manager/Senior Consultant, 5.5%, $78,250 to $108,750
• Staff Consultant, 6.4%, $59,250 to $82,250
• Senior IT Auditor, 6.9%, $86,750 to $114,750
• IT Auditor, 6.3%, $74,000 to $102,750

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Data/Base Administrator
DataBase Administrator

• Database Manager, 5.4%, $88,750 to $122,750
• Database Developer, 4.1%, $76,250 to $107,500
• Database Administrator, 5.1%, $74,250 to $106,750
• Data Analyst/Report Writer, 6.0%, $57,750 to $78,500
• Data Architect, 6.2%, $87,750 to $119,000
• Data Modler, 7.0%, $74,250 to $102,000
• Data Warehouse Manager, 6.3%, $90.750 to $120,750
• Data Warehouse Analyst, 6.1%, $78,250 to $104,250
• Business Intelligence Analyst, 6.6%, $78,250 to $108,250

Note: Add 10 percent for Oracle database, 12 percent for Microsoft SQL Server and 7 percent for IBM DB2 database skills.
Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Quality Assurance and Test
Quality Assurance and Test

• QA/Testing Manager, 5.4%, $74,250 to $96,000
• QA Associate/Analyst, 5.5%, $54,500 to $79,250

Note: Add 5 percent for performance testing skills, such as Mercury Interactive tools.
Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Internet and E-Commerce
Internet and E-Commerce

• Senior Web Developer, 6.6%, $76,250 to $108,250
• Web Developer, 5.3%, $57,250 to $86,250
• Web Administrator, 6.0%, $52,250 to $79,750
• Web Designer, 6.1%, $50,000 to $75,750
• EDI Specialist, 5.7%, $59,750 to $85,000
• E-Commerce Analyst, 5.5%, $65,000 to $92,500
• Messaging Administrator, 7.1%, $55,000 to $77,750

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Bonus Pay for Internet and E-Commerce
Bonus Pay for Internet and E-Commerce
For the following development skills, add

• 10% for Java
• 10% for Java Enterprise Edition
• 5% for LAMP (Linus, Apache, MYSQL and PHP/Perl)
• 5% for AJAX (Asynchronous Java and XML)
• 5% for Microsoft SharePoint
• 5% for ColdFusion
• 7% for Web services
• 5% for Active Server Page
• 10% for DCOM/COM/ActiveX
• 12% for C#
• 10% for Visual Basic .Net
• 5% for WebLogic clustering administrative

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Networking/Telecommunications
Networking/Telecommunications

• Network Architect, 5.8%, $843,000 to $118,250
• Network Manager, 7.0%, $74,500 to $98,500
• Network Engineer, 3.0%, $67,250 to $93,500
• LAN/WAN Administrator, 4.9%, $53,500 to $75,000
• Telecommunications Manager, 2.9%, $70,500 to $91,250
• Telecommunications Specialist, 4.1%, $49,250 to $72,500

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Note: Add 12% for Cisco network, 10% for Linux/Unix, 10%for Windows 2000/2003/XP and 10% for Voice over Internet Protocol administration skills.
Next page: Operations
Operations

• Manager, 4.4%, $55,000 to $74,250
• Computer Operator, 3.9%, $30,500 to $42,750
• Mainframe Systems Programmer, 4.9%, $55,250 to $72,750

Next page: Security
Security

• Data Security Analyst, 4.9%, $76,250 to $104,000
• Systems Security Administrator, 4.0%, $73,500 to $103,500
• Network Security Administrator, 4.5%, $72,750 to $103,000

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Note: Add 12% for Disco network, 10% for Linux/Unix and 10% for CheckPoint firewall administration skills.
Next page: Software Development
Software Development

• Product Manager, 4.0%, $83,000 to $112,250
• Software Engineer, 4.5%, $69,250 to $104,500
• Software Developer, 5.3%, $63,500 to $99,750

Next page: Bonus Pay for Software Development
Bonus Pay for Software Development
For the following development skills, add

• 5% for C++
• 10% for Java
• 7% for Web services
• 5% for Active Server Page
• 5% for Visual Basic
• 10% for DCOM/COM/ActiveX
• 12% for C#
• 10% forVisual Basic .Net

Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide
Next page: Technical Services, Help Desk and Technical Support
Technical Services, Help Desk and Technical Support

• Manager, 4.3%, $65,250 to $92,000
• Desktop Support Analyst, 4.5%, $48,500 to $68,250
• Systems Adminstrator, 3.8%, $51,750 to $78,8750
• Help Desk Tier 3, 5.2%, $44,750 to $57,250
• Help Desk Tier 2, 6.5%, $35,750 to $46,250
• Help Desk Tier 3, 5.8%, $29,250 to $39,000
• Instructor/Trainer, 4.4%, $47,750 to $70,500
• PC Technician, 3.9%, $29,250 to $44,000
• Business Continuity Analyst, 5.3%, $68,250 to $100,250

Note: Add 12% for Cisco network, 10% for Linux/Unix and 10% for Windows 2000/2003/XP administration skills.
Source: Robert Half Technology 2008 Salary Guide