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 These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.
![Appian Certified Senior Developer is the middle tier of the Appian developer certification pyramid.](https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6179d8bbede2fba4904fd055/63e6ce1cbe8e5c4b46b46320_Woman%20using%20desktop%20computer%20setup%20with%20two%20monitors%203x2%20SIZED.jpg)
In the Disney/Pixar animated film Ratatouille, the rodentine protagonist is inspired by world-famous chef Auguste Gusteau, who has written a cookbook titled Anyone Can Cook. Recent technological advances have brought us to the brink of an era where, to tweak Gusteau's liberating mantra, anyone can code. As in write computer code.
OK, well, not exactly write it. Low-code development platforms simplify the process of coding apps by essentially substituting a graphical user interface (GUI) for a blank screen and a blinking cursor. The basic idea is that, with far less time and training than would be required to learn computer programming skills, anyone can create an app.
U.S. software firm Appian uses low-code technology to help businesses speed up automation and design enterprise software solutions. Appian offers three developer certifications, and the mid-level credential, Appian Certified Senior Developer, made a first-ever appearance on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list, coming in at No. 60.
Here what the salary picture looks like for Appian Certified Senior Developer holders who responded to the Salary Survey:
All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $86,480
Median Annual Salary: $87,500
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 12.1 percent
Very Satisfied: 29.7 percent
Satisfied: 17.6 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 29.1 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 11.5
All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $64,460
Median Annual Salary: $30,000
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 4.2 percent
Very Satisfied: 22.9 percent
Satisfied: 39.6 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 31.3 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 2 percent
The largest single body of Appian Certified Senior Developer holders to participate in the survey is made up of residents of India (35.9 percent of those surveyed), a Salary Survey rarity. U.S. credential holders, who typically predominate, are second, accounting for 26.2 percent of all surveyed Appian Certified Senior Developer holders. The rest of the Appian Certified Senior Developer holders we heard from are spread across 14 other countries: Afghanistan, Albania, Argentina, Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Portugal, Spain, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom.
Contrary to general industry biases, women abound in this neck of the IT woods: 36.3 percent of Appian Certified Senior Developer holders who responded to the survey are female. The rest are either male (61.5 percent of respondents) — per the industry norm — or chose not to identify their gender (2.2 percent). Generally speaking, the pool of credential holders is surprisingly youthful, with exactly 97 percent of those surveyed younger than 45, either between the ages of 19 and 24 (3.2 percent), between the ages of 25 and 34 (73.8 percent), or between the ages of 35 and 44 (20 percent). The remaining 3 percent of respondents are between the ages of 45 and 54.
Nearly 100 percent of Appian Certified Senior Developer holders 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 Appian Certified Senior Developer holders is either a bachelor’s degree (69.2 percent of those surveyed), master’s degree (18.5 percent), associate's degree (4.6 percent), or professional degree (6.2 percent). The outliers are the 1.5 percent of respondents who completed some level of technical training after high school.
There’s a generally positive employment outlook for Appian Certified Senior Developer holders: 74.7 percent of survey respondents are employed full-time, 6.9 percent have part-time jobs, 5.7 percent are currently enjoying some form of sabbatical, 5.8 percent are students, and 6.9 percent are currently unemployed. Among those with full-time jobs, most are at work either between 41 and 50 hours per week (37.5 percent of those surveyed) or for the standard 40 hours per week (40.6 percent). The rest are either working hard, punching the clock for more than 50 hours per week (7.8 percent of respondents), or hardly working, clocking either between 31 and 39 hours per week (9.4 percent), between 20 and 30 hours per week (1.6 percent), or fewer than 20 hours per week (3.1 percent).
There's not a lot of freedom to work from home among Appian Certified Senior Developer holders. Even in the post-COVID-19 world, roughly 69 percent of those surveyed are spending most of those hours in a traditional workplace, working at home either 10 or fewer hours per week (25 percent) or between 10 and 20 hours per week (47.5 percent). After that, there’s a little bit of everything: 15 percent work between 21 and 30 hours per week from home, 5 percent work 40 hours per week from home, and 7.5 percent work more than 40 hours per week from home.
In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of Appian Certified Senior Developer holders we heard from are employed at the senior specialist level (40.7 percent of those surveyed). The rest, in descending order, are either rank-and-file employees (20.9 percent), managers (17.6 percent), specialists (8.8 percent), directors (6.5 percent), or senior managers (5.5 percent).
A core 31.9 percent of the Appian Certified Senior Developer holders who responded to the survey are IT up-and-comers, having worked in a role the directly utilizes their certified skills for between 3 and 5 years. The rest have been plying their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (28.5 percent of respondents), between 6 and 8 years (26.4 percent), between 9 and 10 years (5.5 percent), or for more than a decade (7.7 percent).
Finally, here’s the view of Appian Certified Senior Developer 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: 50.6 percent
Several times a week: 23.1 percent
Several times a month: 7.7 percent
Occasionally: 11.1 percent
Rarely: 7.6 percent
Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 37.4 percent
Agree: 37.4 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 13.2 percent
Disagree: 3.3 percent
Strongly Disagree: 8.7 percent
Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 31.9 percent
Agree: 36.3 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 18.7 percent
Disagree: 7.7 percent
Strongly Disagree: 5.4 percent
Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 25.3 percent
Agree: 39.6 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 20.9 percent
Disagree: 7.7 percent
Strongly Disagree: 6.5 percent
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