Puppet 2016 DevOps Salary Report Reveals Majority of IT Practitioners in the U.S. Make $100,000 or More

Report Shows the Wage Gap Between Practitioners and Managers Is More Pronounced in the U.S. Than Elsewhere


PORTLAND, OR--(Marketwired - Aug 24, 2016) - Puppet, the standard for automating the delivery and operation of the software that powers everything around us, today released the 2016 DevOps Salary Report. This year's survey revealed that most IT practitioners in the United States earn $100,000 or more in annual salary. The report also found that 43 percent of IT managers earn $150,000 or more, up from 26 percent last year. The salary report is based on data gathered from more than 4,600 respondents to the survey.

"Today, software is everywhere and is the driver of every business," said Nigel Kersten, CIO of Puppet. "For organizations to compete in this new world, they need the people and technology that enable a frictionless delivery of high quality software. This year's DevOps Salary Report shows that organizations are realizing the pressures of these dynamics and are pushing to hire, retain and manage the best IT teams to gain a strong competitive advantage."

In this year's survey, for the first time, respondents were also asked to report on the number of servers and employees in their organization. Data revealed that organizations with more than 10,000 servers pay the highest percentage of salaries that are $150,000 annually or more. These findings show that companies investing the most in servers and infrastructure are also investing the most in the employees who are managing them. 

The 2016 DevOps Salary Report also revealed:

  • IT managers and practitioners in the U.S. earn more than peers around the world. The most common manager salary is $150,000+ in the U.S., $75,000-$99,999 in Western Europe, and $35,000-$49,999 in Asia. The most common practitioner salary is $100,000-$125,000 in the U.S., $50,000-$75,000 in Western Europe, and less than $25,000 in Asia.
  • The most lucrative practitioner salaries by industry in the U.S. IT practitioners based in the U.S. are more likely to earn $100,000+ if they work in the technology (65 percent), media/entertainment (65 percent), retail/consumer/e-commerce (65 percent) or finance (61 percent) industries.
  • Organizations with mature DevOps practices typically pay more. U.S. organizations with the most mature DevOps practices are more likely to compensate IT operations employees $100,000 or more per year.

To view the full 2016 DevOps Salary Report and see how your own salary compares to others in your region and field, you can download the report at: https://puppet.com/resources/white-paper/2016-devops-salary-report.

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About Puppet
Puppet is driving the movement to a world of unconstrained software change. Its revolutionary platform is the industry standard for automating the delivery and operation of the software that powers everything around us. More than 32,000 companies -- including more than two thirds of the Fortune 100 -- use Puppet's open source and commercial solutions to adopt DevOps practices, achieve situational awareness and drive software change with confidence. Based in Portland, Oregon, Puppet is a privately held company with more than 400 employees around the world. Learn more at puppet.com.