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Job outlook for information systems directors in the United States
Information systems director job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected information systems director job growth rate is 16% from 2018-2028.
About 82,400 new jobs for information systems directors are projected over the next decade.
Information systems director salaries have increased 11% for information systems directors in the last 5 years.
There are over 157,885 information systems directors currently employed in the United States.
There are 128,575 active information systems director job openings in the US.
The average information systems director salary is $130,822.
Are information systems director jobs in demand?
Information systems director job and salary trends over time
Information systems director jobs over time
Information systems director job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 157,885 | 0.05% |
| 2020 | 148,933 | 0.04% |
| 2019 | 141,466 | 0.04% |
| 2018 | 127,695 | 0.04% |
| 2017 | 119,558 | 0.04% |
Average information systems director salary over time
Information systems director salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $130,822 | $62.89 | +3.3% |
| 2025 | $126,676 | $60.90 | +2.7% |
| 2024 | $123,361 | $59.31 | +2.4% |
| 2023 | $120,496 | $57.93 | +2.5% |
| 2022 | $117,536 | $56.51 | +3.2% |
Information systems director jobs by state
Most common states for information systems directors
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 352 | 51% |
| 2 | North Dakota | 755,393 | 219 | 29% |
| 3 | Vermont | 623,657 | 175 | 28% |
| 4 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 354 | 26% |
| 5 | Rhode Island | 1,059,639 | 280 | 26% |
| 6 | Alaska | 739,795 | 194 | 26% |
| 7 | Wyoming | 579,315 | 143 | 25% |
| 8 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,764 | 24% |
| 9 | Delaware | 961,939 | 232 | 24% |
| 10 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 202 | 23% |
| 11 | Minnesota | 5,576,606 | 1,215 | 22% |
| 12 | Oregon | 4,142,776 | 928 | 22% |
| 13 | Oklahoma | 3,930,864 | 841 | 21% |
| 14 | Mississippi | 2,984,100 | 613 | 21% |
| 15 | Nebraska | 1,920,076 | 406 | 21% |
| 16 | Montana | 1,050,493 | 223 | 21% |
| 17 | Massachusetts | 6,859,819 | 1,351 | 20% |
| 18 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 413 | 20% |
| 19 | Connecticut | 3,588,184 | 686 | 19% |
| 20 | Idaho | 1,716,943 | 322 | 19% |
Most common cities for information systems directors
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carlsbad | 1 | 1% | $145,448 |
| 2 | Denver | 1 | 0% | $88,444 |
| 3 | Irvine | 1 | 0% | $148,082 |
Information Systems Director job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of information systems director experts
Mount St Mary's University
Harding University
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
University of South Florida
Quinnipiac University
DePaul University
University of Florida
University of Florida
Indiana University
University of Missouri
University of Illinois at Chicago
NCWIT
Loyola University Chicago
University of Michigan-Flint
What will help Information Systems Directors increase their earning potential?
Sagar Raina D.Sc.: Apart from the traditional knowledge expected in the field such coding, computer networking, database design and development, systems analyses, web technologies and development, data analytics; the use of generative Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the knowledge about cybersecurity will be considered as the important and prevalent skills sought among the new graduates in the field.
What Information Systems Director skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Kevin Jetton: The need for IT skilled employees has never faded despite the right-sizing of many organizations IT staffing components post-pandemic when there was a hiring surge to enhance systems and processes to accommodate more online-only services and offerings. The key is to have a diverse skill-set or base so as to see the bigger picture and able to not only communicate to business users and executives, but to solve problems for the enterprise and deliver them.
What will help Information Systems Directors increase their earning potential?
Kevin Jetton: The phrase itself has been retired basically and broadened to include ALL information systems - focusing on the mission-critical applications and processes to deliver results to all the parties both inside and outside the organization. Originally, Management Information Systems (MIS) focused ONLY on the Financial/Accounting/Payroll/Manufacturing aspects and was the label for them and the department of IT staffers 1970's-1990's eras. By the year 1995-2000 with the looming Y2K issue, the mission-critical nature of these applications enterprise-wide rose to the forefront of everyone's mind when the realization that the systems may not function properly 1/1/2000 and beyond basically introduced the phrase Enterprise Systems to the world that serve the enterprise internally and externally. Like: The excitement of being involved in such key applications/systems serving the entire organization. Working side-by-side by all units/levels of fellow staff members and partner organizations to identify and solve pain-points within the organization and more that could be solved/automated/enhanced through technology. Helping deliver applications and tools that serve your organization's customers, fellow-employees and partners. Dislike: Long projects that could span months-to-years. Underestimated project schedules that rush through the phases but deliver short-changed results. Pressure to meet deadlines and expectations. Constantly changing/evolving technology and services. Outsourcing to non-employees outside the organization perhaps globally. Being on-call 24x7 to handle and resolve system outages and downtime/failures.
What general advice would you give to an Information Systems Director?
Dr. Joe Faith: Skills involving how to properly use AI and AI-enabled tools will be big. We've already seen huge changes since November of 2022. I only think the life cycle for these products will continue to get shorter. It's not AI that you need to worry about displacing you from your job. It's a smart human that knows how to use AI. I think that, for IS professionals specifically, you need to focus not only on hard skills, but soft skills as well. Many individuals can either communicate well or program well but not many can do both. There is a niche there that needs to be filled.
What will help Information Systems Directors increase their earning potential?
Jason Nichols PhD: Build your experience base through internships and industry projects, and brag about these experiences when you interview. Collect professional certificates to compliment your degree. Security and cloud computing are excellent areas to pursue these in right now. AI and machine learning as well, of course. Build a structured skillset in problem solving and critical thinking, and demonstrate this skillset in your discussions with future employers. Map all of these efforts into a coherent story about yourself in your applications, and how they have shaped you to be a tech-savvy business problem solver, with a strong understanding of both the business and the technology. This foundation prepares you for so very many roles in our field, and businesses recognize and actively seek out this profile in their job candidates. Use the resources available to you. If you need additional time for more formal training, join a masters program. Join us for a masters program, actually. Our AI in Business masters program is launching this Fall, and is open for enrollment currently. Visit us here to learn more: https://wpcarey.asu.edu/masters-programs/ai-business
Travis Stouffer
Assistant Professor of Information Systems, ChairUniversity of Pittsburgh at Johnstown
Department of Information Systems
What soft skills should all Information Systems Directors possess?
Travis Stouffer: -Conflict Resolution
-Attention to Detail
-Active Listening
What skills will help Information Systems Directors earn the most?
Travis Stouffer: -Agile Project Management
-Human-Centered Design
-Data Analytics
Ehsan Sheybani Ph.D.
ProfessorUniversity of South Florida
School of Information Systems and Management
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Ehsan Sheybani Ph.D.: Analytical and problem-solving skills, Strong technical skills, The ability to work well under pressure, attention to detail, teamwork skills, organization and time management, interpersonal and communication skills, management and leadership skills.
What soft skills should all Information Systems Directors possess?
Ehsan Sheybani Ph.D.: Leadership, motivation, communication, conflict management, trust-building, decision-making, organization, and time management.
What hard/technical skills are most important for Information Systems Directors?
Ehsan Sheybani Ph.D.: Negotiation, relevant technical skills, prioritization and goal setting, project planning, delegating, and budget management.
What skills will help Information Systems Directors earn the most?
Ehsan Sheybani Ph.D.: Software development, technical sales leadership, mobile app development, business analysis, digital marketing, affiliate marketing, analytical reasoning, artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and blockchain.
Guido Lang Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Computer Information SystemsQuinnipiac University
School of Business
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Guido Lang Ph.D.: - Systems analysis and design
- Business/process/data modeling
- IT project management
- Change management
What soft skills should all Information Systems Directors possess?
Guido Lang Ph.D.: - Analytical skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Creativity
What hard/technical skills are most important for Information Systems Directors?
Guido Lang Ph.D.: - Python
- SQL
- Excel
What type of skills will young Information Systems Directors need?
Delvin Grant: The ability to problem solve, which requires an understanding of the problem and a structured approach towards the solution. The ability to apply concepts learned in one discipline to another. Quite often, students are unable to see how a concept translates from one domain to another, and this stifles innovation.
Peter Dobbins Ph.D.
LecturerUniversity of Florida
Computer & Information Science & Engineering Department
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Information Systems Director job market given the pandemic?
Peter Dobbins Ph.D.: I have heard points toward the "working remotely" model. As Computer Scientists, this is something we have known and in certain cases actually have been doing for a number of years. Industry shifts adapting to COVID have brought the fields surrounding CS into the remote work model... and are finding it works! As one of the first fields to embrace the model (a simple transition given how natural the fit), CS majors will only continue to find remote work opportunities.
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Peter Dobbins Ph.D.: Skills would be the things allowing a student/employee to display their ability to work remotely: initiative, teamwork, independence, self-starter, some of the same things we have always seen were positive attributes.
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Sanethia Thomas Ph.D.: As we are in a competitve market and moreso now due to the pandemic, it is valuable for students to show work experience and how it relates to the job they are applying for. It is a plus if they can show work experience in a remote environment. Students should be able to show that they are capable in working in a team environment and the roles they filled on the team; team lead, technical lead, front end, back end, project manager ect. Students should also have a portoflio of thier work, projects ect.
I often hear employers seek out students who have expereince working in the community or doing some type of social good. Highlighting community/social good works speaks to human side of the applicant, which most employers value.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Information Systems Directors to find work opportunities?
Sanethia Thomas Ph.D.: San Fransico Bay remains on top with Seattle, New York, Los Angeles and Pittsburgh closley following.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Information Systems Director job market given the pandemic?
Sanethia Thomas Ph.D.: When the pandemic first hit, I had students very concerned about their summer plans of having an internship, but as things worked itself out, and a lot of students maintained their internship by working remotely. In response to the declining job market, I have seen students redirect their efforts in the direction of graduate school. Many have expereinced difficulties finding job opportunities and "landing" the interview. Therefore more students are considering graduate school as we ride the wave of the pandemic.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Information Systems Director job market given the pandemic?
Bipin Prabhakar: Technology will become a strategic enabler for most businesses. There will be increasing demand for graduates who can help create this technology (Computer Science/Data Science) and for graduates who can leverage technology (information Systems) to create business value.
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Bipin Prabhakar: Skills by themselves on resumes do not provide enough information for the reviewer to assess a candidate. The resume has to showcase the actual capabilities rather than just listing skills. What can you actually do with the listed skill? With that said, deep skills in software development, data science and AI or the broad set of skills required to enable digital transformation will be in demand. Digital transformation requires skills in business analysis, business process and process design, technologies such as next generation ERP systems, AI and ML, cloud architectures and platforms and business analytics.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Information Systems Directors to find work opportunities?
Bipin Prabhakar: There are three major sectors that hire technology graduates - the tech companies that tend to be in tech hubs and major cities, major corporations that are all over the country and consulting organizations that tend to have offices in the bigger cities with access to local clients or well-connected airports. Major employers tend to recruit nationally from the top programs across the country. The best time to find work is before graduation and the best place to find work is the campus recruitment process.
What skills stand out on Information Systems Director resumes?
Dale Musser Ph.D.: -Working on teams and collaboration - people skills matter a lot.
-Past accomplishments in delivering results while working with others
-Technical skills in target areas for job. The hottest areas right now: machine learning, large scale apps, and autonomous systems.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Information Systems Director job market given the pandemic?
Dale Musser Ph.D.: -Work at home for now. "You will have an office at the company after the pandemic."
-Transition of companies to new locations. I see some companies leaving the Bay Area for other locations. Reducing space in San Francisco by a number of companies shows that after the pandemic many employees won't be returning to the physical locations they used to work.
-Increased focus on automation and autonomous systems given the proximity issues.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Information Systems Directors to find work opportunities?
Dale Musser Ph.D.: -Yes, everywhere. IT, CS, and CE are in demand in every corner of the U.S. The hot spots are the tech centers, such as the Bay Area, Seattle, Austin, and Atlanta.
-I tell my students to mostly ignore the job sites and to look at the employment and careers pages on company websites. The best jobs never make it to job sites.
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Information Systems Director job market given the pandemic?
Matthew Liotine Ph.D.: Currently, much of the hiring is skewed toward online fulfillment roles, which is of no surprise given the pandemic. This includes roles in procurement, which is undergoing a transformation due to COVID. This also means working within the physical environments and operations required to support this activity. Several of our students received offers from Amazon as a result of their hiring push.
What Information Systems Director skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Matthew Liotine Ph.D.: If a student decides to take time off before moving on to a job or graduate school, they should use that time to develop skills in which you may not receive formal training while in college. For example, skills like leadership, problem-solving, teamwork, and communication are going to be more vital than ever in the new norm.
What general advice would you give to an Information Systems Director?
Matthew Liotine Ph.D.: Most employers tell me that soft skills are equally, if not more important, than technical skills or domain knowledge. This translates into external/internal customer-facing skills, such as communication, team collaboration, writing, presentation, problem-solving, and being resourceful. (Many graduates overlook writing as a vital skill, but they fail to realize that in the course of their jobs, they will likely be required to write lots of memos and tons of emails.) The need to perfect these skills within the confines of a virtual world has become even more challenging and amplified with COVID. I teach in the information systems discipline, and when you view student resumes, many people look the same on paper. The soft skills will make a candidate stand out head and shoulders above the rest. That's why the candidate should pay attention to the screening interviews that they will undergo during the hiring process since employers will use these interviews to vet these skills.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Information Systems Directors to find work opportunities?
Adriane Bradberry: Technology increasingly permeates every aspect of society and provides the foundation for most modern innovation. Young graduates with computing skills will be able to apply to some of the most fastest-growing and highest-paying jobs over the next decade-jobs that are available in nearly every industry, including art, finance, healthcare, and entertainment. Students can establish and develop necessary skills by exploring computing programming apps, taking Computer Science or IT courses (online or at a local community college, if these classes are not offered at school), taking math classes, and joining after-school computing clubs. Graduates who develop these skills will contribute to meaningful work-developing innovative solutions that save lives, solve health problems, improve the environment, and keep us connected.
How do you envision technology impacting Information Systems Directors in the next 5 years?
Peter Dordal Ph.D.: I think the biggest driver for change will be the continued explosive increase in the amount of data available. Ten years ago, it was enough to know customers' names, addresses, and past orders. Now there is a huge stream of information about what customers are looking at, what they are clicking on, what they're doing with your product, and what your customers' customers are doing. Analysis of this kind of information is becoming mainstream.
What type of skills will young Information Systems Directors need?
Peter Dordal Ph.D.: I'm leaving off software developers, and answering about our Information Technology graduates.
IT students entering the business world will need to know how to get the maximum leverage out of business systems. In many cases, this will mean writing their own specialized queries to extract the precise business intelligence needed; general-purpose "canned" queries just won't cut it. They will need a broad understanding of what software can accomplish for the enterprise and how to deploy new software effectively; this applies to software used in the office as well as to software used in manufacturing and shipping. And they will need to understand how to lease storage and computing resources from the cloud to meet not only predictable, long-term demands but also sudden short-term business projects.
Students working in database administration and management will need to be able to manage much larger volumes of data than a few years ago. They will need to be familiar with the great variety of new databases in order to pick the best tool for the job.
Students working in network management will need to be able to ensure that everyone has the bandwidth and server access they need, as those demands expand to include extensive video, low-latency real-time connectivity, and the regular transfer of huge amounts of data.
Students in cybersecurity will need to be fully acquainted with all the recommended best practices. However, they will also have to be able to anticipate and guard against potential new vulnerabilities. "By the book" protection is no longer sufficient.
Are there any particularly good places in the United States for Information Systems Directors to find work opportunities?
Peter Dordal Ph.D.: For software developers, yes, there are advantages in working in places where there is a high concentration of other developers. But for students interested in applying IT to business, there are opportunities everywhere.
What Information Systems Director skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Amal Alhosban Ph.D.: This is a very good question. These are some advice: - Obtain Relevant Certifications - Specialize in High-Demand Areas - Build a Strong Portfolio - Continue Education and Training - Building a robust professional network - Choose the Right Industry
What will help Information Systems Directors increase their earning potential?
Amal Alhosban Ph.D.: In the next 3-5 years, the field of information systems is likely to be influenced by several emerging technologies and trends, making certain skills particularly important. Here are a few skills that are expected to become more prevalent and critical: - Analytical Skills: Learn to interpret large sets of data to help businesses make informed decisions. - Technical Proficiency: Develop expertise in cloud computing and managing applications over the internet. - Problem Solving: Design AI and machine learning systems that solve complex problems automatically. - Ethical Judgment: Understand and apply ethical principles in the use of technology, especially concerning privacy and data security.