The current status of the western job market is what one would call “ironic.” Students are dropping out of school and graduates find it hard to secure employment, even unpaid internships, putting themselves among the “lost generation” whose future is unclear. However, despite talk about the dearth of jobs, the IT industry is experiencing a shortage in manpower, even though the salary of IT practitioners has increased.

Ironic as this is, it shouldn’t be very surprising. Companies are trying to operate more efficiently by implementing business intelligence (BI) solutions, and these tools require a data geek, professionally known as data scientists. Business analytics software can substantially enrich decision making processes with the right tools operated by the right people.

Here are 3 prime things you have to know about data scientists and the 5 common mistakes that rookies in the field perpetrates. Moreover, according to Jorge Garcia, a research analyst at Technology Evaluation Centers Inc., these geeks should possess the following skills:

• A strong background in computer science. Your data geek must have the skills to collect the data, which include knowing about databases, networking, and Web programming technologies (XML, HTML, etc.)
• Knowledge of statistics and mathematics. To analyze the data, your data geek has to know statistics and the software to manipulate them to develop an analysis
• Data visualization skills. Your data geek should understand graphs, maps, and charts, as well a dashboards, scorecards, data mashups, and even Excel workbooks to get the right information to the right people
• The ability to use all his skills to increase the ROI of your BI solutions
• A person who can adapt to the continual changes in the BI space.

Rising salaries

Back to the matter of salary, Janco’s 2012 IT salary survey reveals that while the increase may not be by much, it’s a start that could launch working professionals and those trying to get into the industry to a promising career. There’s also a possibility for job creation and skills training alongside the salary increase. However, the good news is not true to every IT calling since there are those whose salaries dropped. Here are some of the noteworthy points from the survey (courtesy of ZDnet):

Large corporations and salary increases:

• IT professionals: 0.45%. Average salary $81,644 from $81,273.
• Network services supervisors: 6.7%. Average salary $57,358 from $53,754.
• Programmers/analysts: 6.14%. Average salary $80,051 from $75,420.
• VPs of technical services: 5.4%. Average salary $149,118 from $141,531.
• LAN application support analysts: 5.13%. Average salary $63,159 from $60,075.
• Librarians: 5.12%. Average salary $46,010 from $43,770.

Large corporations and salary decreases:

• Senior network specialists: -7.49%. Average salary $79,069 from $85,468.
• Operation analysts: -4.45%. Average salary $59,160 from $61,915.
• OS production managers: -4.14%. Average salary $93,346 from $97,413.
• Technical services specialists: -4.14%. Average salary $63,160 from $65,888.
• Production services managers: -6.74%. Average salary $85,900 from $92,107.

Middleweight companies and salary increases:

• IT professionals:1.19%. Average salary $74,43 from $73,934.
• Computer operations shift managers: 10.75%. Average salary $68,187 from $61,569.
• Computer operations managers: 6.46%. Average earning $86,287 from $81,051.
• Information center managers: 6.31%. Average salary $63,986 from $60,188.

Middleweight companies and salary decreases:

• VPs of security (or CSOs): -8.24%. Average salary $118,212 from $128,828.
• Production services managers: -6.74%. Average salary $85,900 from $92,107.
• Training and documentation managers: -4.4%. Average salary $61,224 from $64,043.
• Production services supervisors: -3.23%. Average salary $71,975 from $69,092.

SMBs and large corporations have a different predilection for an employee. The former needs programmers and midlevel professionals, while the latter needs professionals on internet systems, networking and web analysis. The demand and ever-increasing growth pace of the technology sector is an omen of a swarm of tech practitioners in the future.