Our survey sample is heavily biased toward the white male IT population, with only 21% of the respondents being non-white, and only 19% being female - statistics which exactly match last year`s survey demographics. IT remains a young industry, with over 50% of our sample under the age of 30, and a further 20% between 30 and 35. Most respondents (68%) have spent between two and six years in IT. However, the industry`s veterans are also well represented, with 28% having worked between 10 and 20 years in IT.
Salaries
[TABLE]
[CHART]When it comes to position and level within the company, we divided the sample into five groups: senior executive, management, general staff, consultants and sales.
[CHART] At the top executive level (MD or CEO), the upper quartile of the sample earns around R48 000 a month (R576 000 per year).
[CHART]Of the general IT staff, the best paid were systems architects, while enterprise resource planning specialists top the consultant`s list. Within particular skills areas, salaries depend heavily on experience. Project managers are in high demand, and with the right track record and business knowledge, can earn more than our sample indicates.
[CHART]Nearly 24% of the respondents have a technikon diploma and reported the highest median salary (R34 000). The lowest-paid were the respondents with matric, who account for a quarter of the sample.
[CHART]There is consistency in the findings when it comes to age and experience as factors of IT salaries - the more experience, the higher the salary. At the general staff level, the median reported by professionals with one year of experience was over R11 000, hitting R20 000 after six years.
[CHART]While IT employment specialists believes that the number of people who changed jobs last year was far lower than any other year, our survey shows that job-hoppers earn higher salaries.
[CHART]Consulting is the sector with the highest median salary reported in our survey, followed by manufacturing, telecoms, parastatals and banking. The IT industry, represented by just under 50% of the sample, is in eighth place.
The IT sales arena is the biggest potential income generator in the IT industry, as underscored by ITWeb`s 2002 IT Salary Survey and recent research by The People Business.
In its survey of nine top local IT companies, The People Business found that their GMs/MDs earn total packages of between R900 000 to R2.8 million rand a year. In many cases, around half of this total is made up of bonuses based on sales. Top sales managers can potentially earn total packages of between R900 000 and R2.185 million, account managers can earn up to R1.3 million and pre-sales support staff can earn up to R425 000 a year.
A question of qualification
[TABLE] Microsoft qualifications accounted for the largest slice of the certification pie, but these certificate-holders commanded relatively low average incomes. While not the lowest paid, those with Microsoft qualifications earned on average between R15 400 and R17 300 a month. At the high end of the scale, Sun Certified Java Architect qualifications commanded the bigger portion of the income pie with holders of these certifications earning more than R39 000 on average. At the bottom end of the remuneration market were the Linux+ and A+ qualifications, earning an average of R11 650 and R12 400 respectively.
Incentive trends
[CHART]The survey shows that regardless of their rank within the organisation, respondents have access to the same kind of benefits, and the distribution of various benefits is similar at all levels.
[TABLE]Almost 70% of executives and 45% of general staff received an incentive in the last year. Incentive value was substantial, ranging between 17% and 20% of the total package.
[TABLE]Although executives are eligible for higher incentives, the actual incentives achieved are lower than those received by management and general staff (as a percentage of the total package).
Brain drain tide turns
[CHART]One of the more heartening results emerging from the 2002 survey is that fewer IT workers are considering leaving SA. Results for this year show that 16% of respondents are "very likely" to leave, while an alarming 26% of last year`s respondents indicated they were heading for foreign shores.
[CHART]The majority of those indicating they are considering or definitely leaving the country are chasing higher salaries. Almost one-quarter (23%) of respondents cited money as their main reason for emigration, while 12% are concerned about SA`s economy, the rand`s depreciation or the country`s tax policy. A further 15% said they are looking to foreign countries to further their experience and grow their career. A desire to escape crime was cited by 12% of respondents as their main reason for leaving SA. Last year, 20% said concerns for their and their families` safety was the main motivation for leaving the country. Next on the list (10%) is dissatisfaction with the country`s political climate.
Satisfaction guarantees
[CHART]IT professionals do not consider financial reward as the most important aspect in job satisfaction. The factors rated as being most important this year are: career prospects and the challenge and responsibility of a job.
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