Computerworld - Contractor and Consultant Snapshots Many of these snapshots are available for download as PowerPoint slides as part of our Data Points series.
Areas of Specialization
- Software design/development: 22% - Project management: 14% - Network administration: 12% - Information systems design: 9% - Quality assurance: 5% - Database development: 4% - ERP implementation: 4% - CRM implementation: 3% - E-commerce: 3% - Data warehouse/data mining: 2% - Hardware development: 1% - Other: 22% (Percentages might not add to 100% due to rounding.)
IT Salaries Over the Years: A Rollercoaster Ride Back when Computerworld began tracking IT compensation in 1989, average pay raises were a comfortable 5.9%. The slip began in the early 1990s. And while the dot-com boom of the late 1990s pushed IT compensation higher than ever, the bust caused salaries to plummet. Now, the flat line of the mid-1990s has returned. So what does the future hold? IT expert Linda Pittenger, an analyst at Gartner Inc., doesn't expect any big changes. "I don't think there's a norm anymore," says Pittenger. "But I don't think we're going to see the same peaks and valleys that we've seen."
1989
5.9%
1990
5.7%
1991
5.0%
1992
4.6%
1993
4.4%
1994
4.4%
1995
4.5%
1996
4.6%
1997
5.2%
1998
6.7%
1999
6.0%
2000
6.2%
2001
5.8%
2002
2.6%
2003
2.8%
2004
3.0%
* In the years indicated, Computerworld surveyed respondents about their total compensation changes only. All other years show salary changes.
By the Numbers: Contractors/Consultants Contractors and consultants who responded to our survey indicated the following changes in their 2003 base salary or hourly rate from one year ago:
BASE: 529 responses
Hourly Rate in 2003 On average, contractors who responded to our survey reported making $58 per hour last year.
Less than $10 per hour
.5%
$10 to less than $20 per hour
7%
$20 to less than $30 per hour
10%
$30 to less than $40 per hour
15%
$40 to less than $50 per hour
14%
$50 to less than $60 per hour
15%
$60 to less than $70 per hour
8%
$70 to less than $80 per hour
11%
$80 to less than $90 per hour
6%
$90 to less than $100 per hour
3%
$100 to less than $125 per hour
7%
$125 to less than $150 per hour
2%
$150 to less than $200 per hour
2%
Base: 7,607 (Percentages might not add to 100% due to rounding)
By the Numbers
- Across the board, salaries increased slightly in 2004: 3%. - Senior management saw an increase of 2.5%. (Base: 1,529) - Middle management experienced an average increase of 2.4%. (Base: 2,665) - IT staff had an average salary increase of 2.3%. (Base: 5,670) - Across the board, bonuses increased slightly in 2004: 1%. - Senior management saw an increase of 2.0%. - Middle management experienced an average decrease of 4.2%. - IT staff had an average bonus decrease of 4.5%.
Salary - 65% of respondents said their 2004 base salary had increased from one year ago. The average increase was 6.5%. - 27% reported no change in base salary. - 7% reported a base salary decrease. The average decrease was 11%.
Bonus - 70% of respondents said there had been no change in their expected 2004 bonus compensation from one year ago. - 12% said their bonuses had decreased from one year ago. The average decrease was 25%. - 18% indicated an increase in bonuses. The average increase was 10%. Note: Percentages are based on IT workers employed full time or part time in an IT department.
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