Everyone wants to be happier at work. However, achieving job satisfaction isn’t as easy as it sounds… but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.
Over the last few years, Spiceworks and Aberdeen Strategy & Research have partnered on an ongoing study on job satisfaction to unlock insights into happiness for IT workers. In that time, we’ve uncovered five key factors that influence happiness at work: supportive management, opportunities for career growth, company culture, rewarding work, and salary.
In this article, we’ll focus on insights we’ve uncovered on the relationship between money and happiness.
In conversations among IT professionals in the Spiceworks Community, one key complaint about their profession is the relatively low pay they receive for the valuable work they do. Data from our recent 2024 job satisfaction study shows that many workers are currently searching for a new job in hopes of securing higher wages.
Among study participants, more than half searched for a new job or changed jobs within the last two years. The top two reasons respondents looked for or switched jobs both relate to getting ahead in their careers:
Importantly, most IT professionals surveyed (64%) believe switching jobs is the best way to secure a higher salary. The likelihood of one holding this belief increases depending on several factors, including age, organization size, and whether or not respondents recently switched jobs.
Agreement with the statement, “Changing jobs is the easiest way to increase your salary,” among IT professionals:
Among recent IT job switchers, 63% reported receiving higher pay in their new role, compared to 20% who saw a salary decrease and 16% whose salary remained the same. Among those who secured a higher salary due to a job change, most saw earnings grow by more than 10%.
But did the salary bump result in greater happiness? The answer might surprise you.
In our study, the old saying that “money can’t buy happiness” rings especially true. In fact, study participants who changed jobs within the last two years were less likely to report being happy at work (37%) than average (52%). Additionally, many said that they were already pondering their next move: 42% of recent job switchers were already considering leaving.
As previously mentioned, Spiceworks and Aberdeen Strategy & Research have determined that the following factors most influence workplace happiness: rewarding work, opportunities for career growth, supportive management, company culture, and salary.
While each factor contributes to happiness, being satisfied in just one area — such as salary — in the absence of others does not make for happy workers. For example, some happy workers are unsatisfied with their salary, but other factors make up for lower pay.
When we compared responses from happy survey respondents despite being unsatisfied with their salary vs. unhappy respondents that were satisfied with their salary, key trends emerged.
The happy group with unsatisfactory pay was significantly more likely to report the following compared to the unhappy group with satisfactory pay:
To reiterate, money does not necessarily buy happiness. When searching for a new job, salary should not be the only criterion. The interview process is not only a chance for the employer to evaluate the candidate. Anyone applying for a job should also interview those at the potential future employer.
If you want to be happy in your next role, consider asking the following questions:
