We’ve just launched The Harvey Nash Tech Salary & Hot Skills Report 2021, based on global research of almost 6,000 technologists. The findings from the report have already featured in Tech-Monitor, TechRepublic, UK Tech News, IT Pro Portal, Information Age, and Cyber Magazine.

The report found that despite cyber remaining a top priority and being rated the scarcest technology skill in the world, many of the world’s largest western tech hubs such as the US and UK are not backing this up with pay rises for cyber security staff and could therefore be running the risk of making the shortages worse. Two thirds (67%) of cyber professionals did not get a pay increase, which compares poorly to many other tech roles.

While cyber security has always been an area where there is strong stability in salaries – with security professionals the least likely technology roles to receive a salary decrease – during the last year the Harvey Nash data shows that organisations have chosen to focus on rewarding those roles that are related to releasing value and creating agility for the business. Therefore, the top three roles to experience pay rises were Development Management/Team Leadership (59%), Design/UX/UI (50%), and Quality Assurance (50%).

Bev White, Chief Executive, Harvey Nash Group, said:

“Technology roles are hugely important and deserve to be well paid. In today’s environment where cyber threats are an ever-present, security roles in particular are critical to the success of organisations and should be properly remunerated. But despite the key role that security specialists have played in keeping businesses protected during the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic and the move to mass homeworking, this doesn’t seem to have translated into pay rises for the majority of cyber professionals.

Instead, organisations have chosen to reward those individuals that have led or supported their focus on developing innovative ways in which they can pivot their business and build new systems with a customer/outward focus. This has meant that roles such as Development Management/Team Leadership and Design/UX/UI have been rewarded the most.”

For a copy of the Harvey Nash Tech Salary & Hot Skills Report, please click here.