Watson Wyatt Data Services Releases 2007/2008 Survey Report on Information Technology & e-Commerce Personnel Compensation

West Coast Region experiences highest salary increase among five geographic regions in matched sample. Retail and Wholesale Trade personnel receive largest bonus payments among industry sectors.

ROCHELLE PARK, N.J., (September 27, 2007) – Watson Wyatt Data Services, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Watson Wyatt Worldwide, today announced the publication of its 2007/2008 Survey Report on Information Technology & e-Commerce Personnel Compensation, now in its eighth edition. On average, salaries and total cash compensation for information technology and e-Commerce personnel rose 3.1 percent and 3.3 percent respectively, within organizations responding both to this and last year’s (2006) survey. A total of 22 individual positions (within the overall sample) received salary and/or total compensation increases that exceeded the overall salary/total compensation increase by 25 percent or more.  A total of five positions received salary increases of 4.5 percent or more, as listed below:

• Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Manager

• Network Control Manager• Network Planning Supervisor

• Operating Systems Programming Manager

• Web Site Manager

Only small differences existed among the five geographic regions regarding salary increases. The West Coast Region (at 3.5 percent) showed the highest salary increase. The Southeast and South Central Regions experienced the lowest average salary increases at 3.0 percent. The Utilities and Energy Sector, the Banking and Finance Sector and the Retail and Wholesale Trade Sector were the only three sectors to average salary increases below the overall 3.1 percent.  Furthermore, no other sector received an average increase greater than 3.2 percent. This is in sharp contrast to last year where the highest increase was in the Insurance Sector (3.8 percent).Overall, bonuses decreased slightly (as a percentage of salary) for positions covered in this matched sample comparison (8.9 percent vs. 8.7 percent of salary). However, the prevalence of employees receiving bonuses increased almost a full percentage point from last year (36.9 percent vs. 36.0 percent). This report is based on responses from 1,382 organizations encompassing 4,298 locations reporting data on 178,478 incumbents. A total of 175 geographic areas, including 114 metropolitan areas and 114 industry classifications, are reported on in this year’s edition.Compensation data is organized by position and separated into three categories: All Organizations, For-Profit and Not-For-Profit. Within the For-Profit and Not-For-Profit categories, data is presented in a variety of geographic groupings, and in a variety of industry classifications ranging from All Organizations to individual industries. The report covers a full range of information technology and e-Commerce personnel, including executive and general information technology management, internet/e-Commerce development, systems/applications development, systems administration, information technology auditing, telecommunications, data warehousing, business systems administration, security and disaster recovery, personal computing, computer operations and computer operations support. The 2007/2008 Survey Report on Information Technology & e-Commerce Personnel Compensation is available online, on CD or in a printed book format.
 
About Watson Wyatt Data ServicesWatson Wyatt Data Services (WWDS),
a wholly owned subsidiary of Watson Wyatt Worldwide, is a leading provider of compensation, benefits, and employment practices information to the global employer community.  From offices around the world, we solicit, analyze, and publish an extensive library of printed, interactive and online survey reports. Our compensation databases are recognized worldwide as the most reliable source of current data for compensation planning.Global scope, local knowledge …Covering more than 80 countries across six continents, our data centers in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia, and Latin America annually compile reports on the remuneration, benefits, and employment practices of local and multinational companies.  Our “in-country” experts apply their local knowledge of the varied employment markets, practices, and customs to deliver a complete compensation picture that can be used to create sound, market-based pay programs for entire organizations. Our international databases contain compensation information covering millions of employees based on the annual survey participation of organizations ranging from emerging growth companies to many of the world’s largest conglomerates.  In addition to compensation surveys, WWDS also publishes references that help HR practitioners attract, retain, and reward exceptional employees. These guides cover a wide variety of subject areas, including variable pay, performance management, and personnel policies on a local, regional, and global basis. For more information, visit our Web site at WWDS.com.

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