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 These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.‍

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‍A great many of the available cloud computing certifications have a hand-in-glove fit with the proprietary cloud technology of one of the IT industry goliaths competing to serve the cloud computing needs of the business and technology sectors: Amazon Web Services, Microsoft, Google, and so forth. Those hoping for a broad-based overview of cloud technology without a proprietary slant are largely out of luck.

Largely, we should say, but not entirely: Thanks to a handful of credentials like the Cloud+ certification (No. 49 on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list) curated by tech industry association CompTIA, aspiring cloud professionals can keep their options open. The combination of the respected CompTIA brand and broad knowledge of cloud principles and processes is likely to be appealing to a variety of employers.

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

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $102,030
Median Annual Salary: $102,500
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 11.3 percent
Very Satisfied: 28.3 percent
Satisfied: 39.6 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 15.1 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 5.7 percent

All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $78,440
Median Annual Salary: $82,500
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 18.8 percent
Very Satisfied: 25 percent
Satisfied: 50 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 6.2 percent
Not At All Satisfied: [No responses]

Roughly 75 percent of the Cloud+ credential holders we heard from live and work in the United States, but we did hear from Cloud+ holders in six other countries: Angola, Canada, India, Japan, Latvia, and the United Kingdom.

Most of the Cloud+ holders who responded to the survey are men, but we did hear from 17.4 percent who are women, and 1.4 percent whose are transgender men. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the overall newness of cloud computing and its tricks, a substantial chunk of the credential holders we heard from are relatively young pups. Slightly more than 75 percent of those surveyed are 44 or younger, either between the ages of 25 and 34 (20.3 percent) or between the ages of 35 and 44 (55.1 percent). The rest are either between the ages of 45 and 54 (15.9 percent) or between the ages of 55 and 64 (5.8 percent).

More than 85 percent of the Cloud+ holders who participated in the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of education completed by most Cloud+ holders is either a bachelor's degree (39.7 percent of respondents), master's degree (37.7 percent), associate's degree (4.4 percent), doctorate (5.8 percent), or professional degree (1.4 percent). That accounts for everyone except for the 4.3 percent of respondents who exited the realm after completing some level of post-high school technical training, the 4.2 percent who highest educational attainment is a high school diploma, the 1.5 percent who are currently furthering their educational pursuits, and the 1 percent who entered the workforce without any sort of formal education.

A solid 86.3 percent of Cloud+-certified survey respondents have full-time jobs, with 5 percent in part-time positions, 1.2 percent who are currently students, 2.5 percent on sabbatical, and 5 percent who are out of work. For most of those with full-time jobs, their work schedule is either 40 hours per week (31.9 percent of those surveyed), between 41 and 50 hours per week (29 percent), or between 31 and 39 hours per week (24.6 percent). A truly fortunate 1.5 percent of respondents have a full-time schedule that consists of fewer than 20 hours per week, while a hard-charging 13 percent put in more than 50 hours per week.

In the trailing wake of the global COVID-19 pandemic, 35 percent of respondents are spending most (or all) of those hours wearing sweatpants or bathrobes (or both), working from home either 40 hours per week (18.9 percent) or more than 40 hours per week (16 percent). In the middle are the 22 percent of respondents who work from home either between 31 and 39 hours per week (13 percent) or between 21 and 30 hours per week (8.7 percent). About 35 percent are still mostly tied to a traditional office setting, working from home either between 10 and 20 hours per week (14.4 percent) or fewer than 10 hours per week (29 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of Cloud+ holders we heard from (25 percent of respondents) are employed at the senior specialist level. The rest, in descending order, are either senior managers (20 percent of respondents), managers (16.3 percent), specialists (11.2 percent), executives (11.2 percent), rank-and-file employees (10 percent), or directors (6.3 percent).

Nearly half (42.5 percent) of the Cloud+ holders who participated in 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 their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (8.7 percent of respondents), between 3 and 5 years (23.8 percent), between 6 and 8 years (12.5 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (also 12.5 percent).

Finally, here's the view of  Cloud+ 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: 32.5 percent
Several times a week: 46.3 percent
Several times a month: 17.5 percent
Occasionally: 3.7 percent
Rarely: [No responses]

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 43.8 percent
Agree: 41.2 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 10 percent
Disagree: 2.5 percent
Strongly Disagree: 2.5 percent

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 31.2 percent
Agree: 47.5 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 13.8 percent
Disagree: 3.8 percent
Strongly Disagree: 3.7 percent

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 45.3 percent
Agree: 28.6 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 19 percent
Disagree: 7.1 percent
Strongly Disagree: [No responses]

PAST CLOUD+ DEEP FOCUS FEATURES

2020

2019

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