Top tech salaries in 6 industry verticals

In today’s digital world, technology has become a part of everything we do. It touches all parts of today’s marketplace, so it’s not surprising that the tech job market continues to pick up steam. In fact, according to a recent report from staffing firm Modis, demand in the technology job market is expected to grow 18 percent by the year 2022.

Ever wondered if the grass is really greener in another industry? Technology professionals are needed in virtually every business, which opens a world of possibilities to those looking to build a career. But which industry vertical is the right one for you? We can’t answer that, but we can tell you which ones offer the best compensation.

Recently Computerworld and IDG Enterprise conducted their 29th annual salary survey. More than 4,800 IT professionals were surveyed to better understand the needs and wants of tech professionals and IT pros, ongoing trends in the workplace and, of course, salary information across a host of industry verticals. What they found was that compensation for tech jobs increased 3.6 percent over the last year. But how does that pan out across the different industries like manufacturing, education, government, healthcare and others?

All IT salaries are not created equal, and each industry has its own average salary for any given technology job and the first stop on our list is the U.S. Government. Coming in at number 5 are tech workers in the government sector. On average, workers here make considerably less than in, say, the manufacturing industry. However, the business of the people never stops, which may make some feel more secure.

Colleges have radically changed how classes are delivered and taught. Today’s technology allows students to get a degree from anywhere they can connect to the Internet, bringing education to more people than ever before. Most universities now offer online courses and along with that growth comes new opportunities for tech jobs growth.

The IT computer-related services and consulting industry comes in surprisingly at number 5 on the list of highest paid tech salaries. According to Computerworld’s Salary Survey data, on average, the vice president of IT is the highest paid tech worker in this industry making just over $151,000 annually.

Technology adds its own challenge to each industry, but healthcare IT seems to be facing a myriad of major challenges, many heavily anchored in technology like telemedicine, ICD-10 implementation and HIPPA/Privacy issues for example. Challenges like this are creating shortages of healthcare IT workers creating opportunities for those steeped in healthcare with a passion for technology.

Who of us hasn’t looked for an apartment or shopped for insurance online? The proliferation of apps and websites to support the real estate industry is just one demonstration of how much this industry has evolved into a digital marketplace. The highest average salary here comes in at number three on our list where the CIO averages nearly $192,000.

According to Computerworld’s salary survey data, 49 percent of the tech workers who responded said compensation was the most important factor to them when it comes to job satisfaction and very few industries boast salaries higher than in the manufacturing industry, which tops the list of highest-paid tech salaries.

In this regularly evolving part of the marketplace, CIOs average more than $192,000. That’s not surprising when you think of all the organizations trying to better use technology to innovate and shorten time to market.