Google employees command highest UK cloud salaries, Experis research shows

UK-based Google Cloud employees make more money than their contemporaries working for Amazon, IBM and Microsoft, research suggests.

According to the Experis Tech Cities Job Watch Report, individuals applying for cloud jobs with Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google, IBM and Microsoft in the UK could earn around £68,672 a year.

A further breakdown of this data suggests that permanent employees of Google Cloud tend to make more than those working for AWS, IBM and Microsoft, commanding an average salary of £71,701.

This is despite the fact that Google expertise is specified in just 4% of the roles Experis tracks, while the largest proportion of hiring demand the firm sees is from the likes of AWS and Microsoft, the report states.

“As expected, the largest proportion of hiring demand in the UK comes from Amazon Web Services, accounting for 54% of the roles advertised by the top four cloud platform providers,” it says. “The main challenger, Microsoft Azure, is fairly close behind, with 41% of the roles advertised.”

Permanent AWS employees earn an average of £70,090 a year, IBM cloud workers make around £68,251, while Microsoft workers tend to make the least, with an average salary of £64,647.

As far as non-permanent employees are concerned, the picture is a little different, with Google Cloud contractors making £445 a day, which is below the industry average and the lowest daily pay rate of the big cloud four.

“With an average day rate of £478, Amazon Web Services is offering the highest amount of £502,” the report continues, while Microsoft and IBM offer daily pay rates of £471 and £492, respectively.  

Martin Ewings, director of specialist markets at Experis, said it will be interesting to see how these data points fare in years to come, given that the cloud market is still in its relative infancy, and there is every chance that those who rule the roost today may not in future.

“Cloud skills remain an integral part of businesses taking advantage of new tech disciplines,” he said. “The higher demands that these emerging technologies put on cloud-based storage and processing, as well as the need to consolidate existing cloud environments, can only be good news for the major players.

“But AWS Cloud and Microsoft Azure will have to be aware of the oncoming threat in the market from the likes of Google and IBM.

“Whether it is industry-specific benefits, as with Google Cloud, or technology developments, such as IBM’s IoT focus, disruption of the cloud establishment is on the horizon.”

Ewings added: “One technology to watch is blockchain. It remains an area on which the major players have yet to stamp their authority. AWS has made some advances here, but it could be an opportunity for Microsoft, Google or IBM to steal market share.”

The report also highlights how the growing pervasiveness of cloud across the IT industry is affecting recruitment and salary trends more generally, with demand for skilled workers in this area outstripping supply.

“Moving towards the cloud doesn’t just require specialists, though,” the report says. “These days, many technologists’ roles involve the cloud – but they use it, rather than build and maintain it.

“These individuals may not require specialist knowledge about the inner workings of the cloud, but they do need continual reskilling and upskilling to ensure they harness and integrate these technologies in the most efficient, safe manner.”