Employment in Wisconsin’s technology industry expanded by an estimated 2,250 jobs in 2017 and the industry contributed $16.5 billion to the state’s economy, according to Cyberstates™ 2018, the definitive annual analysis of the nation’s tech industry published today by CompTIA, the world’s leading technology industry association.
With 211,900 workers, Wisconsin ranks 19th among the 50 states and the District of Columbia in net tech employment.1 This accounts for 6.8 percent of the state’s total workforce. The average tech industry wage in Wisconsin is $81,700, compared to the state’s average private sector annual wage of $46,750.
“The growth of the tech industry in Wisconsin reflects not only the rise of tech-based businesses, but the evolution of traditional sectors – manufacturing, agriculture and financial services, for example – as they embrace technology to become more efficient, productive and competitive,” said Tom Still, president, Wisconsin Technology Council. “As the state’s economy expands, the challenge will become finding the talent to fulfill the jobs of today as well as tomorrow.”
Wisconsin’s tech sector is responsible for an estimated 6.3 percent ($18 billion) of the overall state economy. The state is home to some 6,556 tech business establishments.
Wisconsin posted a significant jump in its Cyberstates Innovation Score ranking, climbing to 28th this year compared to 40th in 2017. This ranking is based on a state-by-state per capita analysis of new tech patents awarded, tech startups and new tech business establishments.
The state also saw a 47.1 percent jump in the number of job postings related to emerging technologies – such as the Internet of Things, smart cities, drones, artificial intelligence, machine learning, virtual reality and augmented reality, and blockchain. While these positions accounted for only about 10 percent of total tech job postings, they are an indicator of where organizations are headed with the technology investments.
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