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Job outlook for network support managers in the United States
Network support manager job growth summary. After extensive research, interviews, and analysis, Zippia's data science team found that:
The projected network support manager job growth rate is 5% from 2018-2028.
About 18,200 new jobs for network support managers are projected over the next decade.
Network support manager salaries have increased 9% for network support managers in the last 5 years.
There are over 42,379 network support managers currently employed in the United States.
There are 95,683 active network support manager job openings in the US.
The average network support manager salary is $90,375.
Are network support manager jobs in demand?
Network support manager job and salary trends over time
Network support manager jobs over time
Network support manager job growth rate over time
| Year | # of jobs | % of population |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 42,379 | 0.01% |
| 2020 | 96,385 | 0.03% |
| 2019 | 39,965 | 0.01% |
| 2018 | 33,781 | 0.01% |
| 2017 | 34,591 | 0.01% |
Average network support manager salary over time
Network support manager salary by year
| Year | Avg. salary | Hourly rate | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $90,375 | $43.45 | +3.4% |
| 2024 | $87,397 | $42.02 | +2.3% |
| 2023 | $85,419 | $41.07 | +1.2% |
| 2022 | $84,430 | $40.59 | +1.8% |
| 2021 | $82,972 | $39.89 | +2.4% |
Network support manager jobs by state
Most common states for network support managers
| Rank | State | Population | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | District of Columbia | 693,972 | 382 | 55% |
| 2 | New Hampshire | 1,342,795 | 320 | 24% |
| 3 | South Dakota | 869,666 | 174 | 20% |
| 4 | Washington | 7,405,743 | 1,351 | 18% |
| 5 | Virginia | 8,470,020 | 1,454 | 17% |
| 6 | Maryland | 6,052,177 | 1,003 | 17% |
| 7 | Hawaii | 1,427,538 | 246 | 17% |
| 8 | Alaska | 739,795 | 122 | 16% |
| 9 | California | 39,536,653 | 5,391 | 14% |
| 10 | Missouri | 6,113,532 | 855 | 14% |
| 11 | Arkansas | 3,004,279 | 421 | 14% |
| 12 | New Mexico | 2,088,070 | 301 | 14% |
| 13 | Michigan | 9,962,311 | 1,194 | 12% |
| 14 | Colorado | 5,607,154 | 665 | 12% |
| 15 | South Carolina | 5,024,369 | 613 | 12% |
| 16 | Alabama | 4,874,747 | 586 | 12% |
| 17 | Delaware | 961,939 | 112 | 12% |
| 18 | Nevada | 2,998,039 | 344 | 11% |
| 19 | Vermont | 623,657 | 71 | 11% |
| 20 | Utah | 3,101,833 | 314 | 10% |
Most common cities for network support managers
| Rank | City | # of jobs | Employment/ 1000ppl | Avg. salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Springfield | 1 | 1% | $80,011 |
| 2 | Springfield | 1 | 1% | $78,249 |
| 3 | Anaheim | 1 | 0% | $107,326 |
| 4 | Des Moines | 1 | 0% | $84,389 |
| 5 | Saint Louis | 1 | 0% | $81,732 |
Network Support Manager job outlook: Expert opinions
Our panel of network support manager experts
California State University - Long Beach
University of Washington
Portland State University
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
University of New Hampshire
Dominican University
Northeastern University
Loyola University Chicago
Kennesaw State University
Laura Kier
Network Design and Administration InstructorWhat general advice would you give to a Network Support Manager?
Laura Kier: Students graduating from the Computer Network Design and Administration program will enter the job market with a solid foundation in networking technologies. Above that they should also be able to develop and demonstrate excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Networking has a strong emphasis on teamwork and being able to communicate well with customers, co-workers and teammates is vital. Attaining certifications in Cisco, Linux, Windows, and security will also help the student stand out within the industry (classes in the program help to learn the knowledge needed to attain certifications). Students should participate in any local or online communities and groups to enhance skills and knowledge and find networking opportunities.
What Network Support Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Laura Kier: Computer Networking is a dynamic field with a wide variety of opportunities in many different industries. Some skills that will be more important in general are skills in software defined networking and automation. Skills in the DevOps field will be necessary, as well as skills leveraging AI tools. Cybersecurity is always important and using AI tools to enhance security and monitoring is necessary.
What will help Network Support Managers increase their earning potential?
Laura Kier: Learn to present your skills well from the interview and into your career. Those communication skills count! Industry certifications like CCNA matter. They help you demonstrate a willingness to grow and learn beyond what was required for your degree. Be willing to take on new challenges with your new job and keep learning new skills. It is really important for graduates to understand that talented IT professionals can move up quickly in a company, but they often must start at the bottom to showcase their technical and soft skills. Because of that, they should not shy away from entry level jobs if there is potential for growth.
What general advice would you give to a Network Support Manager?
Dr. Lesley Farmer: Get to know the site before interviewing, and remember that even interviews are an opportunity to practice communication skills-and to see if there's a good match between you and the site. Once hired, learn about the organizational culture and develop trustful relationships. Make one memorable contribution the first month, but focus on becoming an expert before changing others. In addition, join a local and national professional association to keep current and network.
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Network Support Managers?
Les Atlas: Most certainly an impact, a very strong impact. The best lesson for us is from the 1919 Spanish Flu pandemic. That strain of flu still circulates as a seasonal virus. Over 100 years laters, it is now considered a Phase 6 pandemic by the World Health Organization. While it is reduced due to current social distancing and mask wearing, the 1919 Spanish Flu virus still causes community-level outbreaks in multiple parts of the globe. Societal changes from this event of over 100 years ago are still with us.
In fact, they changed society. As is well-documented, after a high level of immunity was reached in the 1920's, the resulting labor shortage enabled workers to demand better living and working conditions, as well as better wages and public health care. As just one example of the societal changes due to the 1919 pandemic, the drop in the male labor force empowered male workers, and also changed the gender composition.
The aftermath of the 1919 pandemic was the start of women joining the labour force. In the United States, the proportion of women in the labour force rose from 18 per cent in 1900 to almost 21 per cent in 1920. In that same year, with the ratification of the 19th Amendment of the Constitution, the Congress of the United States guaranteed all American women the right to vote.
The current COVID-19 pandemic will certainly change the way we live, be it our mobility or the kinds of career options people have. After our current year-long experience in remote learning and work, will we go back to the inefficiencies of going to our office every work day? Or will remote work be acceptable, where one's residence will not be dependent upon the locations of employment. Will we avoid future hotspots of infection, choosing to instead reside and travel in areas where infection is decreasing? Will we prefer to travel on aircraft which are certified to be virus-free and frequent restaurants which are documented to be safer? Future marketing will likely make a sharp turn in this direction.
Dr. Wayne Wakeland Ph.D.
Professor and Systems Science Program ChairPortland State University
Systems science program
What are the biggest trends we'll see in the Network Support Manager job market given the pandemic?
Dr. Wayne Wakeland Ph.D.: Obviously, there is and will continue to be increased receptivity to (and necessity of) working remotely. This is likely to benefit some job seekers. On the other hand, the weakened economy, which may take years to recover, means that less jobs are/will be available, and, therefore, the competition for attractive jobs will be intense.
Dr. T.S. Kalkur
Department ChairUniversity of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Electrical and Computer Engineering Department
Will there be an enduring impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Network Support Managers?
Dr. T.S. Kalkur: Yes, students complained that, while they are earning an online degree, they aren't learning as much.
What experience really stands out on Network Support Manager resumes?
Dr. T.S. Kalkur: Internship experience and tools used in design.
Marc Lessard
ProfessorUniversity of New Hampshire
Physics and Astronomy Department and Space Science Center
What type of skills will young Network Support Managers need?
Marc Lessard: This is a very good and important question. Graduates who can address complex problems in creative ways will be the most successful. This might sound obvious, but there seems to be a trend developing where younger engineers tend to want to follow written procedures or instructions for solving problems.
What is more valuable, of course, is being able to use a broad-based background to provide new and creative solutions, or at least to suggest new ideas and engage in discussions to further develop those ideas. The cliche of "thinking outside the box" will always be important.
What experience really stands out on Network Support Manager resumes?
Marc Lessard: Students who have been significantly involved in research projects have a distinct advantage over those who haven't. Those who began such work (which is typically paid) as sophomores or juniors often will have played a significant role in these real-world research efforts, which can be very different than what might be tackled as part of a capstone project.
Written and oral presentation skills are also essential!
What Network Support Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Kate Marek Ph.D.: If possible, find a paid internship in your area of interest, which will help expand your professional network and build your skillset. Use this time to keep scanning job ads to identify skill sets in demand; look for online mini-courses to make those skill sets.
What general advice would you give to a Network Support Manager?
Kate Marek Ph.D.: Choose an organization in tune with one's values. Look for a job in growth areas, such as data asset management, data analysis, etc.
What Network Support Manager skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?
Laura A. Meyer M. Ed.: Students should really be working on honing the skills in their areas of focus and interest. With that said, they should also work toward becoming more well-rounded in all areas. A few of my students have realized through job postings, they have found that although they may want to work in data, knowing the basics of programming will be useful as well.
What type of skills will young Network Support Managers 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.
What experience really stands out on Network Support Manager resumes?
Adeel Khalid Ph.D.: It is the age of diversity. A graduate can stand out when their resume shows a broad portfolio of experiences. In addition to a solid academic record, students who demonstrate that they can take on challenging tasks and work beyond a degree's basic requirements are more likely to be successful. I advise students to get involved in various activities, including undergraduate research projects, student design competitions, student organizations, internships, co-ops, etc. All of these should be highlighted on the resume. When a recruiter sees an overview of a student that shows relevant work experience in the form of work-study, internships, or co-op or research, their resume automatically comes to the top of the pile.