Staff value training over pay

IT staff are obviously a well-heeled, motivated bunch. Bigger pay packets don't fire them up - training opportunities and clear career paths do.

At least that's according to an IDC skills survey released this week of 440 staff at resellers in five European countries, saying training and promotion opportunities contributed more to job satisfaction than high salaries.

And there was space in-between the two. Training ranked number one on the job wish list higher salaries came in at number five.

That's good news for HP, the company behind the report. It already has a European training and accreditation department. What it doesn't have is the spare cash to bank roll unmotivated staff. But that's okay because they probably don't want more money.

Which raises the question, exactly how much do the 440 technical and sales staff surveyed earn? Obviously enough not to be motivated by an imminent pay rise.

IT has long been considered a lucrative sector. The sky-high salaries commanded by many in the dot-com gold rush cemented that perception.

But are IT surveys like this a genuine assessment of the what staff want?

The company decision makers and high flyers - those most likely to agree that knowledge is more important than cold, hard cash - are probably making enough of it.

No doubt the sales guy straight out of college would have given a thumbs up to another few grand - if he had been asked.

As one IT professional pointed out, behind every CEO or MD, cultivating the image of a forward looking and professional company, hides the rank and file, the lowly paid folk who keep things ticking over.

If the cash isn't right odds are they won't hang around for the training.