Research into pay on promotion for IT specialists

IT specialists often receive pay rises of £12,000 or more when they move into more senior or managerial positions, according to the latest research on pay for IT, cyber security, data and business intelligence roles by Incomes Data Research (IDR). The median salary differentials observed in five key job pairs ranged from £12,599 (for IT business/systems analysts who move up to become IT project managers) to £22,959 for cyber security promotions.

Cyber security offers greatest scope for pay increases

IT business/systems analysts, who act as the conduit between users and the development team, often progress to the role of IT project manager, overseeing end-to-end development of new IT systems/applications. According to IDR’s research, the median salary for IT business/systems analysts is £46,000 while IT project managers typically earn £58,599, a difference of £12,599.

Meanwhile a median differential of £15,730 results from promotions of software developers. The median for IT software developers is £49,329 while the median for IT software development managers is £65,059. The highest differential in the development and architecture job family – at £16,500 – is that between data engineers (where the median salary is £45,500) and senior data engineers, who typically earn £62,000 according to IDR’s research.

Careers in systems maintenance also offer scope for substantial pay progression upon promotion. IDR’s data shows that IT systems and network engineers, who provide technical network and security support, earn £18,602 less at the median than IT systems and network managers (£41,866 and £60,468 respectively).

The largest differential, at £22,959, is in cyber security where postholders ensure IT systems are secure and protected. The median rate for cyber security officers is £47,339 while that for their immediate supervisors (cyber security managers) is £70,298.

Highest rates often found in manufacturing

Looking at median pay for the different job families by sector, the highest rates are generally found in the manufacturing and primary sector, with the exception of IT software development, where the highest median is in private services. By contrast, the public and not-for-profit sectors generally offer the lowest median salaries.

A fifth of IT roles attract market supplements

One fifth of organisations in the survey report paying a market supplement for some IT roles. These are predominantly within the lower-paying public sector. Of the job families covered by the survey, the one that most commonly attracts market supplements is development and architecture.

The value of market supplements varies considerably, ranging from a minimum payment of £965pa for a Head of Data Intelligence and Engineering role at a not-for-profit organisation to a maximum of £19,500pa for a Senior IT Support Technician at a public sector organisation. Across the broader sample, the research found that IT staff typically work 37 hours per week and are entitled to 25 days’ holiday per year, excluding bank holidays.

About the research

The findings in this article are based on a study conducted by IDR in the first half of 2024. The survey asked employers about pay for a range of roles across their IT, cyber, data and business intelligence divisions. The survey received detailed responses from 56 organisations, together employing over 730,000 employees in the UK. Nearly half (48%) of respondents operate in private services. Manufacturing and primary employers constitute a quarter of the sample (25%) with the remaining sample made up of public sector and not-for-profit and related organisations, 16% and 11% respectively.

The full report of findings from the study includes salary tables for 26 IT and Cyber roles within Development and Architecture, Cyber, Systems Maintenance, Management, Data Science and Business Intelligence. The roles are broken down by IDR level, sector and geographical region and includes information on hours and holidays. The report is available to purchase for £449.00 click below to find out more and order the report.