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 These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

Mostly we use the Deep Focus series to examine individual certifications. Twice each year, however, we step away from the normal routine to examine the collective profile of the IT certified women and men who participate each year. The women get their turn on the Friday closest to International Women's Day (March 8), and we feature the men sometime after that.

Here's what the salary picture looks like for male certified IT professionals who responded to the Salary Survey:

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $106,760
Median Annual Salary: $105,540
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 9 percent
Very Satisfied: 21.4 percent
Satisfied: 42.8 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 20.6 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 6.2 percent

All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $52,950
Median Annual Salary: $37,020
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 3.7 percent
Very Satisfied: 14 percent
Satisfied: 39.6 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 33 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 9.7 percent

A substantial majority of Salary Survey participants each year are men, including 85.4 percent of all 2020 Salary Survey respondents. The largest single body of men in the survey is made up U.S. residents (51.7 percent of those surveyed), but we did hear from male certified IT professionals in 92 other countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Bahrain, Belarus, Belgium, Bermuda, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Guyana, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Lithuania, Macedonia, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Mexico, Morocco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Venezuela, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The global IT workforce is generally believed to be aging, with employers collectively struggling to recruit young talent, but that's not the trend among male Salary Survey respondents. A noteworthy 60 percent of those surveyed are younger than 45, either between the ages of 19 and 24 (3.1 percent), between the ages of 24 and 35 (24.8 percent), or between the ages 35 and 44 (32.4 percent). The rest are mostly either between the ages of 45 and 54 (25.6 percent of respondents) or between the ages of 55 and 64 (12.8), with just a bare handful (1.3 percent) pushing the retirement envelope.

A solid 82 percent of men who responded to the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of education completed by most male certified IT professionals is either a bachelor's degree (42 percent of those surveyed), master's degree (26.4 percent), associate's degree (8.9 percent), doctorate (1.7 percent), or professional degree (2.9 percent). Most of the remaining male survey respondents exited the realm of formal education after either completing some level of post-high school technical training (9.3 percent of those surveyed) or graduating from high school (6.2 percent), along with a handful who are currently in school (2.4 percent) or had no formal education before entering the workforce (0.2 percent).

An impressive 94.5 percent of men who participated in the survey are employed full-time, with 2.8 percent holding part-time jobs, 1 percent in school, 0.4 percent currently taking a sabbatical, and 1.3 percent out of work altogether. Among those who have full-time jobs, most are at work either for the standard 40 hours per week (38.3 percent of respondents), put in between 41 and 50 hours per week (45.3 percent), or are on the clock for more than 50 hours per week (9.1 percent). The outliers are the 6.3 percent of male certified IT professionals whose full-time schedule falls between 31 and 39 hours per week and the smattering who clock in either between 20 and 20 hours per week (0.6 percent) or for fewer than 20 hours per week (0.4 percent).

Exactly 78 percent of male certified IT professionals are (or were, at the time of the survey — pre-COVID 19 pandemic) spending most of those hours in a traditional workplace, putting in either 10 or fewer hours per week from home (60.3 percent) or between 10 and 20 hours per week from home (17.7 percent). The rest are working from home for either between 21 and 30 hours per week (5.8 percent of respondents), between 31 and 39 hours per week (3.4 percent), 40 hours per week (5.3 percent), or more than 40 hours per week (7.5 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of men who participated in the survey employed at the senior specialist level (43 percent of respondents). The rest, in descending orders, are either specialists (17.3 percent), rank-and-file employees (14.3 percent), managers (10.9 percent), senior managers (6.4 percent), directors (5.6 percent), or executives (2.2 percent).

A substantial 44.2 percent of male certified IT professionals who responded to the survey 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 been plying the certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (16.2 percent), between 3 and 5 years (19.1 percent), between 6 and 8 years (12.8 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (7.6 percent).

Finally, here's the view of male certified IT professionals 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: 46.1 percent
Several times a week: 24.8 percent
Several times a month: 12.3 percent
Occasionally: 12.2 percent
Rarely: 4.6 percent

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 26.8 percent
Agree: 41.9 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 23.1 percent
Disagree: 5.7 percent
Strongly Disagree: 2.5 percent

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 24.1 percent
Agree: 42.4 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 21.2 percent
Disagree: 8.3 percent
Strongly Disagree: 4 percent

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 22.5 percent
Agree: 39.9 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 25.2 percent
Disagree: 8.2 percent
Strongly Disagree: 4.2 percent

PAST DEEP FOCUS FEATURES ON MEN

2019