2007 Salary Survey

• What are the differences in pay between GIS and/or IT managers, analysts, coordinators?
• What additional forms of compensation/benefits do organizations offer?
• How does your pay and benefits package stack up against your peers?
• Where are the highest paying jobs?
• What are the most popular programming languages, operating systems and software packages used in GIS offices?
• How much do you need in your budget in order to attract and hire IT and GIS professionals at all levels?

Here are some highlights:

On average, survey respondents earned $60,050 in 2006, which represented an increase of 13.8% over the 2003 average of $52,750. Salaries varied according to job title, location, type of employer and other factors:

• Consultants experienced the greatest average increase (from an average of $71,280 in 2003 to a current average annual salary of $96,786).
• Respondents employed by county government enjoyed the most significant average salary increase (a 33.3% increase over the 2003 average).
• Certified GIS Professionals (GISPs) earn, on average, nearly $9,000 more per year compared to those who are not certified $66,308 vs. $57,669).

Most respondents (63.7%) were employed within some level of government and held GIS-related job titles (84.6%), such as GIS Manager, GIS Analyst, GIS Coordinator, etc.

Nearly two-thirds (63.8%) of respondents indicated that their organizations have increased the number of GIS staff in the past five years.

On average, respondents work an average of 42.5 hours in a typical week. They have an average of 13.8 years of professional experience and 9.6 years of GIS professional experience. The average age of those responding was 39.0 years.

85% have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher. Three-fourths (75.3%) indicated that, at a minimum, a bachelor’s degree is required for their position.

28% of respondents are Certified GIS Professionals (GISP), and more than half (58.2%) of those who are not certified are planning to apply for GISCI certification within the next three years.

According to the results of this survey, respondents’ jobs require them to be at least somewhat proficient with a variety of GIS software. Similar to the results of the 2003 survey, ESRI products were most popular. The leaders included ArcGIS (91.2%), SDE/GeoDatabase (47.9%), ESRI Extensions – Network Analyst, 3D Analyst, Spatial Analyst (46.2%), ArcIMS (37.9%), ArcView (34.3%), and ArcPad (26.7%).

The publication (available on CD-ROM) is available for purchase now. The 500+ page document includes comprehensive results and cross-tabulations according to job title, location, certification status and more. Raw data from the survey is included on the CD-ROM.