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The differences between technology strategists and chief information officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-8 years to become a technology strategist, becoming a chief information officer takes usually requires More than 10 years. Additionally, a chief information officer has an average salary of $146,907, which is higher than the $138,362 average annual salary of a technology strategist.
The top three skills for a technology strategist include digital transformation, azure and architecture. The most important skills for a chief information officer are CIO, project management, and network infrastructure.
| Technology Strategist | Chief Information Officer | |
| Yearly salary | $138,362 | $146,907 |
| Hourly rate | $66.52 | $70.63 |
| Growth rate | 16% | 6% |
| Number of jobs | 67,147 | 124,678 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 47 | 52 |
| Years of experience | 8 | - |
A technology strategist spearheads the development of a company's technological structures, ensuring efficiency and smooth workflow. Their responsibilities typically revolve around conducting research and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of a company's information technology systems, designing and implementing strategies to optimize operations, coordinating with different departments to identify their needs, and assessing existing structures to recommend enhancement for optimal quality. Furthermore, a technology strategist may provide technical support and mentor staff, all while implementing the company's policies and regulations when it comes to information technology.
A chief information officer, also known as CIO, is responsible for the technological development within the company or organization. Primarily overseeing all information technology-related operations, a chief information officer takes the lead in setting the department's budget, developing strategies that will improve computer systems, and implementing policies to attain significant growth in profit and client base. Furthermore, a chief information officer is in charge of managing the workforce behind computer systems, ensuring their efficiency in accomplishing tasks and projects.
Technology strategists and chief information officers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Technology Strategist | Chief Information Officer | |
| Average salary | $138,362 | $146,907 |
| Salary range | Between $95,000 And $200,000 | Between $98,000 And $219,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | California | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Mayer Brown |
| Best paying industry | Insurance | Agriculture |
There are a few differences between a technology strategist and a chief information officer in terms of educational background:
| Technology Strategist | Chief Information Officer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 65% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Carnegie Mellon University | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between technology strategists' and chief information officers' demographics:
| Technology Strategist | Chief Information Officer | |
| Average age | 47 | 52 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 82.9% Female, 17.1% | Male, 81.4% Female, 18.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.6% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 9.9% Asian, 14.0% White, 64.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% | Black or African American, 3.7% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 7.5% Asian, 7.4% White, 76.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 12% |