Quality
Progress
2012 Salary Survey
About Max Christian Hansen
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President, Bright Hat Communications, Inc.
Specialties:
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Oral and Written Communications
Ghost-writing: technology and business strategy
Data Quality
Entrepreneurship, tech startups
Educated:
– Northwestern University
– MIT Sloan School of Management
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Clients include:
– Hewlett Packard, Cambridge Incubator, Harbor Research, Media
General, Domtar Fine Papers, Weyerhaeuser Forest Products, Sun
Microsystems
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Publication venues:
– Harvard Business Review
– Conference on Information Quality, MIT
Summary:
1: Overview of the survey
2: Determinants of salary
3: Value of education
Overview of the Survey Reports
• Report 1
– Overview article - focus on education
• Report 2
– Introductory essay
– Part 1: Employees of organizations - 20 sections
– Part 2: Independent consultants - four sections
• Within each section:
– One or more probable determinants of salary
– Separate treatments of U.S., Canada
– Other countries in a few sections
NOTE: Only four sections are in QP; the rest are in online document.
Salaries are Stalled
Yearly changes in salary for full-time workers in the U.S.
2009
2010
2011
2012
$83,442
$85,383
$87,086
$86,743
Percent increase in mean
2.41%
2.33%
1.99%
-0.28%
Median salary
80,000
81,816
83,986
83,000
Percent increase in median
3.14%
2.27%
2.65%
-1.17%
Mean salary
Note: Change in mean salary not statistically
significant (p > 0.6).
Continued Economic Recovery
• What we asked:
– What steps has your
organization taken?
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Pay cuts
Salary freeze
No bonuses
Furloughs
Layoffs
Hiring freezes
Reduced or cut 401K (or
similar) employer
contributions
Reports of Cost-cutting Measures
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
2009
2010
2011
2012
Percentage of respondents reporting any
cost-cutting measures by their companies
Employees Not Expecting a Raise
(U.S. and Canada)
Determinants of Salary
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Supervisory responsibility
Experience in quality
Education level
Education combined with
experience in quality
Salary by Number of Employees Overseen
(U.S.)
Experience in Quality (U.S.)
Level of Education and Experience (U.S.)
Salary # of ASQ Certifications (U.S.)
Control Levers
Variable
Controllability
Effectiveness
Highly controllable
High, especially in combination with
experience in quality. See sections 1617.
Certifications / Six
Sigma training
Highly controllable
Variable, but very high when
certification matched to position. See
section 4. Also see “Land the Big One”
on page 20 of the December, 2011
Quality Progress.
Supervisory
responsibility
Dependent on "soft skills"
High effect. Supervising others brings
clear rewards. See section 10.
Eligibility for overtime
Somewhat controllable
Usually a byproduct of other factors:
overall responsibility, supervisory
duties, etc. See section 7.
Years in quality
Stick with it!
High, especially in combination with
education. See sections 3, 9, & 17.
Education level
Control Levers (continued)
Variable
Company
Controllability
Dependent on circumstances.
Geography may constrain
choice of company.
Industry
Dependent on circumstances
Geographic location
Dependent on circumstances
Age
Stick with it!
Effectiveness
Bigger companies often pay better. See
section 11.
"Hot" industries tend to come and go, but
long-range disparities do exist.
Usually a matter of finding a fit with a
company.
Salaries tend to increase with age until the
highest age brackets. See section 19.
None
Decreasing with time—gender disparities
are smaller in recent years and among
recent hires. See section 19.
Years in current position
Stick with it!
Low. Seniority in a position is not nearly as
well-rewarded as experience in the quality
profession.
Independent consulting
(as it affects salary in
regular employment)
Dependent on circumstances
Usually low. See text for explanation.
Gender
To learn more…
About Max Hansen:
• Bright Hat Communication, Inc
• Toll-free: (866) 496-4135
• http://bright-hat.com
• Email: mchristianhansen@bright-hat.com
About ASQ and the Salary Survey:
• Go to www.QualityProgress.com
• Search ASQ’s Knowledge Center @
• www.asq.org/knowledge-center/search/
• Contact pbaez@asq.org
To learn more about our Sponsor, go to:
• www.meirxrs.com