Press Releases

New Report Details Employment, Economic Impact of Alaska’s Tech Industry

Mar 26, 2019

State is home to 19,000-plus tech workers, according to CompTIA Cyberstates 2019report

Juneau, Alaska – Tech-related employment in Alaska held steady in 2018, according to Cyberstates 2019™,  the definitive guide to national, state and metropolitan area tech sector and tech workforce analytics published annually by CompTIA, the leading technology industry association.

Net tech employment in the state stood at 19,247 workers, or approximately 5.5 percent of Alaska’s total workforce.[1]

The tech sector has an estimated direct economic impact of $2.1 billion, or about 4.5 percent of the total Alaska economy.

“Clearly the broad-based impact of the tech industry touches virtually every community, company, industry and market across Alaska, especially when you consider the tens of thousands of knowledge workers who rely on technology to do their jobs,” said Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO, CompTIA.

The outlook for future employment growth remains positive. Alaska saw a 204 percent increase in the number of job postings related to emerging technologies, such as the Internet of Things, smart cities, drones, artificial intelligence, virtual and augmented reality and blockchain.

“The findings attest to a tech labor market that will remain tight as employers balance short-term needs with an eye towards the future,” said Tim Herbert, senior vice president for research and market intelligence at CompTIA. “As digital-human models begin to unfold, employers and employees alike will face new challenges – and opportunities, in shaping the workforce of tomorrow.“

 Tech occupations that experienced year over year growth in Alaska included software and web developers (+ 0.6 percent); network architects, administrators and support specialists (+ 0.5 percent); and computer system and cybersecurity analysts (+ 0.4 percent).

The median tech occupation wage in Alaska is $82,158; 61 percent higher than the median wage for all occupations in the state.

Cyberstates 2019 (#cyberstates) is based on CompTIA’s analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, EMSI, Burning Glass Technologies Labor Insights, and other sources. Estimates for 2018 are subject to change as government data is revised and updated. The full report, with complete national, state and metropolitan level data, is available at https://www.cyberstates.org/.

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About CompTIA
The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a leading voice and advocate for the $5 trillion global information technology ecosystem; and the more than 50 million industry and tech professionals who design, implement, manage, and safeguard the technology that powers the world’s economy. Through education, training, certifications, advocacy, philanthropy, and market research, CompTIA is the hub for advancing the tech industry and its workforce. To learn more visit https://www.comptia.org/.

Contact:
Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
+1 (630) 678-8468
sostrowski@comptia.org­

 

 



[1] Net tech employment includes tech company workers in technical and non-technical positions, technical workers in other industries and self-employed technology workers.