The Global Knowledge IT Skills and Salary Report 2019 provides revealing insights into the inner workings of worldwide IT departments. The report examines data from over 12,200 survey responses of IT professionals in North America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and the Asia-Pacific region, and highlights that annual salaries for  IT professionals are averaging $89,732 globally. The number is the highest it has ever been in this report.

Further, while the highest salary increase of 6.5 percent was experienced by Latin American IT professionals, in APAC it was 5.2 percent and in EMEA it was 5.6 percent. The survey reveals what triggered this increase in salary and highlight some other new trends. 

Here are a few insights from the report:

Skilling & Certification: An important ingredient to drive pay hike

Nine percent of IT professionals attribute their raise to adding new skills—those same individuals earned nearly $12,000 more than last year, a strong indication that training pays off.

“The increases are slightly smaller in other regions, but the results follow a similar trend—the more certifications earned, the higher the salary,” the report states.

As per the report, certified professionals are better at closing skills gaps, meeting client requirements, being more productive, taking less time to troubleshoot issues and completing projects more quickly. 

Some of the other cases where a good pay hike was witnessed included Professionals who left their current company and sought a promotion elsewhere saw their salaries jump over 26 percent.  Further, 

those who were promoted internally increased their salaries by 14 percent. A lateral move to another company resulted in a 20 percent salary increase.

APAC: The most bonus-friendly region for IT staff

Globally, half of IT staff and 56 percent of decision-makers earned a bonus. The most bonus-friendly region was Asia Pacific, with over 60 percent of employees receiving one. Interestingly, 41 percent of global IT professionals were not bonus-eligible this year. 

Cloud computing professionals: Paid highest 

With an earning average of $115,889 per year globally (29 percent more than the global IT average), cloud computing professionals had the highest paid positions.

Further, cloud architect and cloud engineer were among the most popular cloud computing roles, according to the survey.

The other top-paid IT roles were IT architecture and design, with an average salary of $98,580, followed by project and program management at $98,344 and cybersecurity at $97,322.

The report states, “Cloud computing jobs generally pay well because cloud skills are in high demand, and decision-makers can’t fill cloud positions quickly enough. Specifically, cloud architect is where the big money is—the top two highest-paying certifications in the world revolve around this job role.”

The findings of the report highlights the rising demand of IT professionals and the rapid pace at which technology is moving. The sector is becoming more and more demanding, especially in terms of skill set required to drive more innovation in the space. The discoveries, research and development is so high in technology space that investing in skills has become imperative for the IT workforce. And the report further confirms the need for skilling. Certifications will not only ensure the IT staff higher pays but also help them grow in their career path.