Salaries of information technology managers; A trend analysis

During the economic boom of the last decade, companies and organizations have to offer lucrative salaries and a wide variety of incentive programs to attract and to retain highly skilled IT workers. While it is true that the economic downturn has affected the dramatic rise in salary trends, determining the worth of an employee as measured by wages will always remain a critical management issue. History has shown that irrespec­ tive of economic conditions, salaries will continue to rise. As the economy recovers and given the projected mass exodus of governmental information technology workers in the coming years, managers will need to be ready to deal with the difficult issue of high salary again. This study examines national and regional salary trends of IT managers. Specifi­ cally, the salaries examined are for the years 1991 through 2000, the period where sala­ ries were often adjusted because of the imbalance between the supply of and the demand for IT professionals. From the employee who is looking for a reasonable salary package to the employer who must determine a sufficient pay raise to retain an IT manager, the findings and trends reported in this study should be useful and interesting.