Top Midwest Professional Salaries for 2017

With a rapidly expanding tech sector, low cost of living and diverse overall economy, the Midwest will be one of the fastest growing job markets in the new year. The Midwest’s automotive and manufacturing markets are also on an uptick, and like the rest of the country, the region is seeing an explosion of new jobs in healthcare and insurance. If you’re looking for employment in the Heartland, consider the following in-demand, high-salary jobs.

1. Information Technology Manager

IT managers have some of the highest professional salaries of all non-healthcare professionals in the region, and their demand will only continue to rise as the Midwest’s tech sector grows. Responsible for software and hardware upgrades, network security and coordination with executive teams, the average IT manager earns about $130,000 per year.

2. Marketing Manager

While marketing professionals tend to gravitate to agencies in California and other coastal states, the Midwest’s economic growth has created greater demand for in-house talent. Tasked with coordinating their firms’ marketing, branding and design efforts, they earn $137,400 per year on average.

3. Financial Manager

Finance and accounting professionals have been in high demand and short supply in the last few years, and the Midwest is no exception. Financial managers coordinate their companies’ accounting, investing, insurance and an array of financial endeavors. Their complex job earns them an average of $134,330 per year.

4. Lawyers

Lawyers are still some of the highest paid professionals, but given different career paths, levels of seniority and school prestige, their salaries vary wildly. The lowest paid lawyers earn between $50,000 and $60,000, while top-tier lawyers make upward of $200,000. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, their average salary is roughly $115,000 per year.

5. Software Engineers

Along with IT personnel, software engineers are some of the most sought-after professionals among both tech- and non-tech-related businesses. They write and troubleshoot the code that powers every piece of software we use, from simple cell phone apps to complex operating systems and security systems. Their median salary is just over $100,000, and their projected 10-year growth rate is 17 percent — far faster than average.

6. Integrated Circuit Designer

Holding at least a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and several years of experience, these professionals design circuits for a wide range of devices, including smartphones, personal computers and manufacturing equipment. Their median salary is around $100,000, and given the ubiquity of the integrated circuit in all of our lives, their job security couldn’t be better.

7. Sales Manager

Can you sell and manage? If so, you have the potential to do very well for yourself in the Midwest. Companies with large, spread-out sales teams need managers to set goals, analyze data, direct their teams and develop training programs for new representatives. Sales managers have an average annual salary of roughly $130,000, but those in the financial industry tend to make closer to $150,000.

8. Risk Manager

Risk managers are employed by a wide variety of companies, including banks, insurers, engineering companies and utilities. Their specific roles vary depending on industry, but their general function is to advise their organizations on potential risks to profitability and legal compliance. Risk managers make an average of $115,000 per year.

9. Analytics Manager

Analytics managers are responsible for designing, configuring and implementing the data analysis tools businesses use to maximize profitability. Product design, marketing, financial management and more—it all depends on collecting and synthesizing huge amounts of data. These sought-after professionals make $106,000 per year, and the BLS puts their 10-year growth rate at 14 percent.

10. Project Engineer

With a unique combination of engineering and management skills, project engineers plan the resources, people power and other logistical matters that keep projects on time and on budget. They also monitor in-progress engineering and construction projects to adjust course as needed. One of the top engineering positions in Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City and Des Moines, project engineers make just under $70,000 per year.

The Midwest has much to offer employers and employees. Find out midwest professional salaries in one city that is making a huge comeback, Cleveland, Ohio, in our Cleveland Salary Guide.