{"schema_version": 1, "id": "akron-oh-msa/information-technology/2026-10", "product": "Labor Market Pulse", "metro": {"geography_id": 79, "label": "Akron, OH MSA", "slug": "akron-oh-msa"}, "focus_area": {"key": "information_technology", "slug": "information-technology", "label": "Information Technology"}, "period": "2026-10", "public_after": "2026-10-01", "frozen_at": "2026-11-03T02:56:37.730887+00:00", "headline": "Akron's network talent gap with the nation keeps widening.", "headline_summary": "Network Engineer pay in the Akron metro dropped to $65,889 against a national median of $115,757, even as local Software Engineer pay climbed to $143,872 \u2014 within 7% of the national rate.", "key_indicators": [{"label": "Summit County unemployment", "value": "3.7%", "context": "Above Ohio's 3.4% statewide rate (Sept. 2026)"}, {"label": "Akron avg. hourly wage", "value": "$30.49", "context": "vs. $33.54 national average (BLS, May 2025)"}, {"label": "Network Engineer pay gap", "value": "-43%", "context": "Metro $65,889 vs. national $115,757"}, {"label": "Ohio technician shortage", "value": "5:1", "context": "Open jobs per qualified candidate statewide"}], "takeaways": [{"headline": "Network Engineer pay has detached from the national market.", "body": "Metro median pay fell significantly to $65,889 against a national figure of $115,757 \u2014 a gap of nearly 43%. This divergence makes local hiring for networking roles increasingly uncompetitive and strengthens the case for outsourced or managed network operations over in-house headcount."}, {"headline": "Software Engineer compensation is closing the gap with national rates.", "body": "Metro median pay climbed significantly to $143,872, within 7% of the $154,403 national figure. Employers appear to be prioritizing software talent even as other infrastructure roles lag, signaling a reallocation of compensation budget toward product-facing functions."}, {"headline": "Ohio's technician shortage creates a build-vs-buy inflection point.", "body": "Five open technician jobs exist for every qualified candidate statewide, and JobsOhio's Technician Path program now offers up to $10,000 per worker for training \u2014 with 1:1 employer matching required. This favors organizations with the budget to invest in internal development over those relying on external recruiting."}, {"headline": "Systems Administrator pay strength suggests hybrid infrastructure roles hold value.", "body": "Metro median pay rose to $83,133, a moderate increase tracking the national trend toward $102,503. Sustained demand for this role, even amid manufacturing contraction, is consistent with continued investment in hybrid on-prem/cloud environments alongside measured, incremental cloud migration."}], "local_conditions": "Summit County's 3.7% unemployment rate and Akron MSA's -0.1% year-to-date employment change point to a metro still working through manufacturing contraction even as Ohio's broader labor market holds near-full employment at 3.4%. Local tech wage dynamics diverge sharply from the national AI-driven boom: Akron's average hourly wage of $30.49 trails the national $33.54, and state-level IT hourly pay of $21.55 signals a metro still priced for legacy infrastructure roles, with specialized talent commanding premiums elsewhere.", "implications": "Advertised pay for Network Engineer roles fell to a metro median of $65,889 \u2014 down significantly and now nearly $50,000 below the national figure of $115,757 \u2014 a gap that widens the case for outsourcing network operations instead of competing for scarce talent against coastal and data-center-market employers. Meanwhile Software Engineer pay rose to $143,872 locally, approaching national levels, suggesting employers are willing to pay up selectively for roles tied to product and platform work even as infrastructure compensation lags. Organizations should evaluate which infrastructure functions can shift toward managed services or regional staffing partners given the widening local-to-national pay gap in networking roles.", "looking_ahead": [{"category": "Emerging pressure point", "body": "Ohio's TechCred reimbursement program has exhausted its fiscal-year budget halfway through, removing a key upskilling subsidy. Watch whether employers scale back credentialing investment or redirect funds toward the newer JobsOhio Technician Path program instead."}, {"category": "Worth watching", "body": "Manufacturing WARN filings continue to lead Ohio layoff activity, with Summit County's core economy exposed to further contraction. A meaningful release of displaced manufacturing-adjacent technical talent into the local candidate pool could ease pressure on infrastructure and support hiring."}, {"category": "Potential inflection point", "body": "Network Engineer pay's significant local decline against national gains may accelerate if data-center buildout elsewhere continues drawing talent out of secondary markets like Akron. Monitor whether this widens further or stabilizes as a structural metro discount."}, {"category": "Early indicator", "body": "National information-sector hire rates have fallen to 1.6% of employment, favoring internal mobility over external recruiting. Local organizations may see this reflected in slower candidate response rates for infrastructure and security openings over the next two months."}], "roles": [{"role": "Data Scientist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 80827.75, "metro_p50": 123360.0, "metro_p75": 123360.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 145881.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Systems Administrator", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 67500.0, "metro_p50": 83133.4, "metro_p75": 90000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 102503.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Network Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 59590.0, "metro_p50": 65888.8, "metro_p75": 83750.0, "metro_trend_direction": "down", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 115757.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Software Engineer", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 102790.0, "metro_p50": 143872.0, "metro_p75": 154742.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "significant", "national_p50": 154403.0, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}, {"role": "Help Desk/IT Support Specialist", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 38518.0, "metro_p50": 48880.0, "metro_p75": 55000.0, "metro_trend_direction": "stable", "metro_trend_magnitude": "stable", "national_p50": 53129.0, "national_trend_direction": "down", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "Cybersecurity Analyst", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 80338.5, "metro_p50": 98576.0, "metro_p75": 102594.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 107327.0, "national_trend_direction": "up", "national_trend_magnitude": "moderate"}, {"role": "IT Project Manager", "data_scope": "metro", "metro_p25": 86001.0, "metro_p50": 111923.8, "metro_p75": 120500.0, "metro_trend_direction": "up", "metro_trend_magnitude": "moderate", "national_p50": 118149.8, "national_trend_direction": "stable", "national_trend_magnitude": "stable"}], "industry_snapshot": [], "citations": [], "methodology": "Advertised pay from active employer job postings, not survey data. WageScape's median is calibrated to correct for spurious low-value postings: distribution analysis shows roughly the lowest 10% of raw values are erroneous entries, so the reported median is the 60th percentile of raw advertised pay.", "edition_label": "November 2026", "files": {"html": "akron-oh-msa/information-technology/2026-10.html", "pdf": "akron-oh-msa/information-technology/2026-10.pdf"}, "published_at": "2026-11-03T08:17:25.474802+00:00", "report_html_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/akron-oh-msa/information-technology/2026-10.html", "report_pdf_url": "https://reports.wagescape.com/archive/v1/editions/akron-oh-msa/information-technology/2026-10.pdf"}