Research from two different firms suggests which IT skills are in greatest demand. What skills are you after? A few weeks ago I reported on IT salary trends for 2012, based on findings from Bluewolf, a NYC-based provider of IT staffing, consulting and managed IT services. In addition to providing salary ranges for 70 IT job titles in six major metro markets, Bluewolf’s IT Salary Guide outlines the IT skills in greatest demand. Bluewolf’s findings are grounded in the thousands of IT staffing placements the company manages each year. The company also analyzes growth patterns for various tech skills and IT hiring trends. According to Bluewolf’s research, the 14 IT skills in greatest demand are: Mobile Application Development HTML5 iPhone/iPad Android JavaScript UI Design Cloud Computing Eloqua Marketo Salesforce Google Apps Amazon Web Services – Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) Big Data MySQL HBase Cognos Informatica I compared Bluewolf’s findings with Foote Partners‘ research into the value of various IT skills and the premiums companies pay to obtain them. Foote Partners’ research supports the notion that iPhone/iPad and Android development skills are among those in greatest demand, as companies are paying some of the highest premiums to obtain those skills. Employers are also paying high premiums for Cognos and Informatica expertise, according to Foote’s data, and that corroborates Bluewolf’s findings. (I’m sure David Foote, CEO of the eponymous firm, will excoriate me for comparing his research with another firm’s and will find fault with my interpretation of his research.) There were some discrepancies between Bluewolf’s and Foote’s data. For instance, Foote saw the value of HTML5 and JavaScript skills drop 11.1 percent and 14.8 percent respectively in the last six months of 2011. The value of MySQL skills decreased 14.3 percent last year. Another discrepancy: Bluewolf says demand for DB2 and Business Objects experts is dropping off, yet Foote’s research suggests the opposite: It shows companies paying some of the highest premiums to acquire those skills. Foote doesn’t track HBase, Eloqua, Marketo, Salesforce, Google Apps or AWS skills per se. For more information on Foote’s research, see my story from last week, IT Pay: Premiums for IT Skills Drop as IT Departments Reorganize. Related content opinion Career Advice: Parting Words By Meridith Levinson Apr 11, 2012 2 mins Careers opinion IT Salaries: 10 Cities Where IT Professionals Earn the Most IT staffing firm CyberCoders recently released its ranking of the 10 cities where IT salaries are highest. CIO.com compares this latest salary data with IT salary surveys from other sources. By Meridith Levinson Apr 03, 2012 3 mins Salaries IT Jobs Careers opinion How Project Managers Can Negotiate Higher Salaries The Project Management Institute's latest salary survey is chockfull of specific, reliable data that project managers can use to negotiate higher salaries. Here's an example of how they might use the data in their own salary negotiations. By Meridith Levinson Mar 21, 2012 3 mins Salaries Project Management Tools Careers opinion Why IT Managers Need to Address Skills Shortages in Their Organizations IT managers know that skills shortages in their organizations negatively impact business operations, yet—due to budget and time constraints—they do little to address IT skills gaps. Is there any way to fix this problem? By Meridith Levinson Mar 16, 2012 3 mins IT Skills Careers IT Leadership Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe