Salary Survey Extra is a series of periodic dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our most recent Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

Cloud computing, somewhat literally, is where IT is at in 2019. Everything from day-to-day business operations to massive amounts of data storage happens in "the cloud." A lot of this has come to pass quite quickly and somewhat recently, which probably at least partly explains why there are still so few cloud security certifications: It's still an emerging field.

One of the most time-tested credentials in cloud security is the Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge (CCSK) managed by Cloud Security Alliance. According to CSA, CCSK, No. 12 on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list, was the first and only cloud security credential at the time of its debut in 2010.

Here's what the salary picture looks like for CCSK holders who responded to the Salary Survey:

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $138,070
Median Annual Salary: $127,500
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 17.6 percent
Very Satisfied: 29.4 percent
Satisfied: 35.4 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 11.7 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 5.9 percent

All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $87,000
Median Annual Salary: $90,630
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 13.4 percent
Very Satisfied: 13.3 percent
Satisfied: 40 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 33.3 percent
Not At All Satisfied: [No responses]

The largest single body of CCSK holders to participate in the survey is made up of U.S. residents (54.5 percent), but we also heard from credential holders in 12 other countries: Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, India, Italy, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.

Most of the CCSK holders who responded to the survey are men, but we did hear from a handful (6.1 percent of those surveyed) who are women. Generally speaking, most of those we heard from are either nearing middle age or already there: 40.6 percent of those surveyed are between the ages of 35 and 44, while 28.1 percent are between the ages of 45 and 54. That leaves 12.5 percent of respondents who are between the ages of 25 and 34, and 18.8 percent who are between the ages of 55 and 64.

More than 85 percent of the CCSK holders who participated in the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of formal education completed by nearly all CCSK holders is either a bachelor's degree (40.6 percent of respondents), a master's degree (also 40.6 percent), a professional degree (2.8 percent), or an associate's degree (3.4 percent). The outliers are the 9.4 percent of those surveyed who exited the realm of formal education after completing some level of post-high school technical training, and the 3.1 percent whose highest educational attainment is a high school diploma.

An impressive 97 percent of CCSK holders who participated in the survey are employed full-time, with the remaining 3 percent presently out of work. Among those who have full-time jobs, most either put in the standard 40 hours per week (37.5 percent of respondents) or are at the office between 41 and 50 hours per week (34.4 percent). The rest have a schedule of either between 31 and 39 hours per week (15.6 percent of those surveyed) or more than 50 hours per week (12.5 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of CCSK holders who responded to the survey are at the manager level (33.3 percent of respondents). The rest, in descending order, are either directors (25 percent of those surveyed), senior specialists (also 25 percent), specialists (5.6 percent), executives (5.5 percent), or senior managers and rank-and-file employees (both 2.8 percent).

A strong 58.4 percent of the CCSK holders we heard from are IT veterans, having worked in a role that directly utilizes one or more of their certified skills for more than a decade. The rest have plying their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (5.5 percent of respondents), between 3 and 5 years (11.1 percent), between 6 and 8 years (8.3 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (16.7 percent).

Finally, here's the view of CCSK holders on key questions from the survey about how certification impacts job performance:

At my current job I use skills learned or enhanced through certification:
Several times a day: 58.3 percent
Several times a week: 27.8 percent
Several times a month: 11.1 percent
Occasionally: 2.8 percent
Rarely: [No responses]

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 44.4 percent
Agree: 36.2 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 19.4 percent
Disagree: [No responses]
Strongly Disagree: [No responses]

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 30.6 percent
Agree: 44.4 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 19.4 percent
Disagree: 5.6 percent
Strongly Disagree: [No responses]

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 25 percent
Agree: 41.7 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 19.4 percent
Disagree: 13.9 percent
Strongly Disagree: [No responses]

PAST CCSK DEEP FOCUS FEATURES

2017