IT refers to anything related to computing technology, internet, hardware, operating systems, and networks that process and distribute data. Since the early days in 1978 when the term “information technology” was initially used, the sector has grown to the stage where other key industries like manufacturing, health, education, communication, and others have become dependent on it. 

The enormous changes in the IT industry are not just restricted to increased innovation and technological advancement. The changes also affect how much spending goes into the sector every year. Worldwide expenditure on the IT industry is projected to reach $3.8 trillion in 2019, which is a slight increase of $100 billion or 3.2% from last year’s figure of $3.7 trillion.

Key IT Sectors

Key components that make up the IT industry include communications services, IT devices, enterprise software, and data center systems.

The communications services segment gets the largest share of global IT expenditure, continuing its trend from previous years. In 2018, worldwide spending in this segment was put at $1.45 trillion, but it is expected to drop slightly to $1.44 trillion in 2019. The combined expenditure on IT services and tech devices (PCs, smartphones, tablets) for 2019 is expected to hit $1.73 trillion, compared to its amount of $1.68 trillion in 2018.

According to data obtained from Spiceworks, IT companies are making proactive changes to keep up with emerging trends. Nearly 89% of companies expect their IT budget to either increase or stay the same in 2019, while 56% of companies with employees exceeding 5,000 people expect their IT budget to increase significantly in 2019.

Top IT giants like Apple and Microsoft are not left out in this spending spree as both companies were reported to have spent a total of $17.3 billion and $15.9 billion respectively on their IT sector.

How Much Do IT Professionals Earn?

The IT Industry is a lucrative one for professionals and job seekers, and the remuneration is higher compared to other industries. As of May 2017, the median annual wage for IT jobs was $84,580, compared to the median yearly salary of $37,690 for all jobs.

It was also discovered that IT professionals of the baby boomer generation (1946-1964) earn the highest median annual wage of $70,000 compared with Generation X (1965-1976) - $65,000, and millennials (1981-1996) - $60,000.

Based on their median annual wages in 2017, the top three highest paid IT professionals are computer and information research scientists ($114,520), computer network architects ($104,650), and software developers ($103,650). Other popular job roles include computer programmers ($82,240) and database administrators ($87,020).

By 2020, the demand for database administrators is projected to increase by 31%, with an addition of 33,900 jobs in the US. The growth of employment opportunities for more computer and other IT occupations is expected to exceed 13% by 2026.

Future Trends

Some of the critical trends of information technology that will play a massive role in reshaping different sectors and industries in the future include cloud services, blockchain, 5G, artificial intelligence, and IoT. There will be many emerging job roles associated with these applications. Notable among them include industrial IoT engineer, cybersecurity architect, AI developer, robotics engineer, and user experience (UX) designer.

To find out more information about the subject, check out the infographic below.