IT executives are the slimmest of the fat cats

IT executives are losing out to counterparts in other sectors of industry in terms of salary and bonuses by as much as £200,000, according to research from New Bridge Street Consultants.
The average pay packet for a chief executive working at a FTSE-100 company is £586,000, including bonuses and benefits; the average for the same job at an IT company is £386,000.

Andy Christie, senior consultant at New Bridge Street Consultants, said most IT companies are start-ups which have grown and reached this point rapidly. He said although the wage may be lower, these companies can offer equity as part of the package and if the company is floated they could potentially make their executives millions. Christie added: "If start-ups are paying low salaries, when they start recruiting senior people, managing-director level, they will have to break their wage structure or lose out."

David Taylor, chairman of IT directors' group, Certus, said there is nothing for the IT industry to be concerned about because those IT companies currently in the FTSE-100 index are catching up with the traditional sectors. He explained: "IT companies are younger than most of the FTSE-100 companies but will earn more in the years to come. They also could have equity as well."

Taylor added: "It will reverse itself as more people become dependent on IT."

The research company looked at executive remuneration, employee share schemes and pensions at the UK's top 350 companies - including FTSE-100 organizations - and analysed the directors' and executives' salaries from the latest annual reports.

The highest basic salary was £481,500, while the lowest, which came from the IT sector, stood at £233,000. The highest earner being Sir Peter Bonfield of BT, who takes home £1.2m each year including bonuses and benefits.

The research also discovered that only 21 of the companies surveyed had no annual bonus scheme.