Problem-Solving Job Trends in the North West

Problem Solving
England > North West

The table below provides summary statistics and salary benchmarking for jobs advertised in the North West requiring Problem-Solving skills. It covers permanent job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 16 April 2026, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
16 Apr 2026
Same period 2025 Same period 2024
Rank 23 6 8
Rank change year-on-year -17 +2 +15
Permanent jobs citing Problem-Solving 663 716 1,208
As % of all permanent jobs in the North West 6.82% 17.96% 13.34%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 9.18% 18.96% 16.13%
Number of salaries quoted 495 545 884
10th Percentile £27,250 £29,500 £26,250
25th Percentile £30,000 £36,250 £32,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £42,500 £49,000 £46,066
Median % change year-on-year -13.27% +6.37% -3.02%
75th Percentile £56,875 £65,000 £61,250
90th Percentile £69,390 £77,500 £77,500
England median annual salary £47,500 £55,000 £50,000
% change year-on-year -13.64% +10.00% -9.09%

All Process & Methodology Skills
North West

Problem-Solving falls under the Processes and Methodologies category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all permanent job vacancies requiring process or methodology skills in the North West.

Permanent vacancies with a requirement for process or methodology skills 7,224 3,776 7,490
As % of all permanent jobs advertised in the North West 74.35% 94.73% 82.73%
Number of salaries quoted 4,209 2,146 5,978
10th Percentile £29,000 £31,250 £27,500
25th Percentile £39,000 £40,000 £37,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £52,500 £53,125 £50,000
Median % change year-on-year -1.18% +6.25% -9.09%
75th Percentile £70,000 £70,000 £66,250
90th Percentile £85,800 £83,750 £80,000
England median annual salary £57,500 £60,000 £55,000
% change year-on-year -4.17% +9.09% -12.00%

Problem-Solving
Job Vacancy Trend in the North West

Historical trend showing the proportion of permanent IT job postings citing Problem-Solving relative to all permanent IT jobs advertised in the North West.

Problem-Solving job vacancy trend in the North West

Problem-Solving
Salary Trend in the North West

Salary distribution trend for jobs in the North West citing Problem-Solving.

Salary distribution trend for jobs in the North West citing Problem-Solving

Problem-Solving
Salary Histogram in the North West

Salary distribution for jobs citing Problem-Solving in the North West over the 6 months to 16 April 2026.

Salary histogram for Problem-Solving in the North West

Problem-Solving
Job Locations in the North West

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Problem-Solving within the North West region over the 6 months to 16 April 2026. The 'Rank Change' column provides an indication of the change in demand within each location based on the same 6 month period last year.

Location Rank Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Matching
Permanent
IT Job Ads
Median Salary
Past 6 Months
Median Salary
% Change
on Same Period
Last Year
Live
Jobs
Manchester -24 304 £50,000 -1.96% 187
Merseyside -1 112 £32,750 +0.77% 39
Cheshire -18 107 £42,500 +13.33% 64
Lancashire +3 83 £36,500 -27.00% 85
Cumbria +3 56 £45,000 +12.50% 9
Problem-Solving
England

Problem-Solving
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the North West by Category

The following tables expand on the one above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. They cover the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each category:

Application Platforms
1 47 (7.09%) SharePoint
2 38 (5.73%) Microsoft Exchange
3 9 (1.36%) Confluence
4 4 (0.60%) Moodle
4 4 (0.60%) Totara
4 4 (0.60%) WordPress
5 2 (0.30%) Apache Spark
5 2 (0.30%) ArcGIS
5 2 (0.30%) CMS
6 1 (0.15%) Umbraco
Applications
1 42 (6.33%) Microsoft Excel
2 28 (4.22%) Microsoft Office
3 4 (0.60%) MS Visio
4 3 (0.45%) Simulink
4 3 (0.45%) Spreadsheet
5 2 (0.30%) AutoCAD
5 2 (0.30%) Revit
6 1 (0.15%) Chatbot
6 1 (0.15%) Trello
Business Applications
1 15 (2.26%) SAP S/4HANA
2 7 (1.06%) Magento
2 7 (1.06%) SAP ERP
3 6 (0.90%) Workday HCM
4 4 (0.60%) Shopify
5 2 (0.30%) Dynamics CRM
5 2 (0.30%) Oracle Assets
5 2 (0.30%) Oracle General Ledger
5 2 (0.30%) Oracle Payables
5 2 (0.30%) Oracle Receivables
5 2 (0.30%) SAP Business One
5 2 (0.30%) SAP PP
6 1 (0.15%) Dynamics AX
6 1 (0.15%) Dynamics NAV
6 1 (0.15%) NetSuite
6 1 (0.15%) Salesforce CRM
Cloud Services
1 151 (22.78%) Azure
2 125 (18.85%) Microsoft 365
3 64 (9.65%) AWS
4 62 (9.35%) Power Platform
5 44 (6.64%) Entra ID
6 34 (5.13%) GCP
7 27 (4.07%) SaaS
8 20 (3.02%) GitHub
9 19 (2.87%) Dynamics 365
10 16 (2.41%) Azure DevOps
10 16 (2.41%) Microsoft Purview
10 16 (2.41%) Power Automate
11 15 (2.26%) Serverless
12 14 (2.11%) PowerApps
13 11 (1.66%) Azure Monitor
14 10 (1.51%) Google Workspace
14 10 (1.51%) OneDrive
15 8 (1.21%) Azure Sentinel
15 8 (1.21%) Boomi
15 8 (1.21%) GitHub Actions
Communications & Networking
1 60 (9.05%) Firewall
2 39 (5.88%) DNS
3 37 (5.58%) DHCP
4 30 (4.52%) VLAN
5 29 (4.37%) VPN
6 25 (3.77%) Wi-Fi
7 22 (3.32%) TCP/IP
7 22 (3.32%) WAN
8 20 (3.02%) VoIP
8 20 (3.02%) Wireless
9 14 (2.11%) Structured Cabling
10 13 (1.96%) Unified Communications
11 12 (1.81%) LAN
11 12 (1.81%) SD-WAN
12 11 (1.66%) Telepresence
12 11 (1.66%) WebEx
13 10 (1.51%) Broadband
14 6 (0.90%) IP Telephony
14 6 (0.90%) Network Security
15 5 (0.75%) Ethernet
Database & Business Intelligence
1 47 (7.09%) Power BI
2 22 (3.32%) SQL Server Reporting Services
3 16 (2.41%) SQL Server
4 13 (1.96%) NoSQL
5 11 (1.66%) PostgreSQL
6 10 (1.51%) MongoDB
7 7 (1.06%) Azure SQL Database
7 7 (1.06%) MySQL
8 4 (0.60%) DynamoDB
8 4 (0.60%) Looker
9 3 (0.45%) Elasticsearch
9 3 (0.45%) Relational Database
9 3 (0.45%) SQL Server Integration Services
9 3 (0.45%) Tableau
10 2 (0.30%) Big Data
10 2 (0.30%) Crystal Reports
10 2 (0.30%) Hadoop
10 2 (0.30%) Power Query
11 1 (0.15%) BusinessObjects Business Intelligence
11 1 (0.15%) SAP HANA
Development Applications
1 28 (4.22%) Git
2 23 (3.47%) JIRA
3 7 (1.06%) GitLab
4 5 (0.75%) Bitbucket
5 3 (0.45%) Jenkins
6 1 (0.15%) gulp
6 1 (0.15%) LabVIEW
6 1 (0.15%) Rational DOORS
6 1 (0.15%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
6 1 (0.15%) TeamCity
6 1 (0.15%) webpack
General
1 313 (47.21%) Social Skills
2 172 (25.94%) Analytical Skills
3 127 (19.16%) Finance
4 61 (9.20%) Organisational Skills
5 41 (6.18%) Manufacturing
6 33 (4.98%) Public Sector
7 32 (4.83%) Retail
8 26 (3.92%) Automotive
9 25 (3.77%) Legal
10 24 (3.62%) Marketing
11 20 (3.02%) Law
12 19 (2.87%) Inclusion and Diversity
13 18 (2.71%) Telecoms
14 17 (2.56%) Presentation Skills
15 14 (2.11%) Advertising
15 14 (2.11%) Banking
16 11 (1.66%) Documentation Skills
16 11 (1.66%) Electronics
17 10 (1.51%) French Language
18 9 (1.36%) Games
Job Titles
1 88 (13.27%) Support Engineer
2 83 (12.52%) IT Support
3 81 (12.22%) Analyst
4 77 (11.61%) Senior
5 47 (7.09%) Developer
5 47 (7.09%) IT Engineer
6 45 (6.79%) IT Support Engineer
7 39 (5.88%) Lead
8 35 (5.28%) Support Technician
9 31 (4.68%) Business Analyst
10 28 (4.22%) Consultant
11 23 (3.47%) Architect
12 21 (3.17%) Technical Engineer
12 21 (3.17%) Technical Support
12 21 (3.17%) Technical Support Engineer
13 20 (3.02%) IT Support Technician
13 20 (3.02%) IT Technician
13 20 (3.02%) Senior Developer
13 20 (3.02%) Solutions Architect
14 19 (2.87%) Trainee Analyst
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 26 (3.92%) React
2 23 (3.47%) HTML
3 22 (3.32%) .NET
4 19 (2.87%) Spring
4 19 (2.87%) Spring Boot
5 16 (2.41%) CSS
5 16 (2.41%) REST
6 15 (2.26%) EDI
7 12 (1.81%) RESTful
7 12 (1.81%) Vue
7 12 (1.81%) XML
8 11 (1.66%) AngularJS
9 10 (1.51%) JSON
10 8 (1.21%) Middleware
10 8 (1.21%) SOAP
11 7 (1.06%) Node.js
11 7 (1.06%) OAuth
11 7 (1.06%) OAuth2
11 7 (1.06%) SAP Fiori
12 6 (0.90%) ARM Templates
Miscellaneous
1 94 (14.18%) Driving Licence
2 49 (7.39%) Onboarding
3 24 (3.62%) Self-Motivation
4 21 (3.17%) Analytical Mindset
5 18 (2.71%) Distributed Systems
6 17 (2.56%) CCTV
7 15 (2.26%) Data Centre
7 15 (2.26%) EPoS
8 14 (2.11%) Product Ownership
9 13 (1.96%) Enterprise Software
10 12 (1.81%) Management Information System
11 11 (1.66%) Cloud Native
11 11 (1.66%) Social Media
12 9 (1.36%) CMDB
13 8 (1.21%) Renewable Energy
14 7 (1.06%) Security Posture
14 7 (1.06%) Virtual Team
15 6 (0.90%) Hybrid Cloud
15 6 (0.90%) Mobile App
15 6 (0.90%) Solar Energy
Operating Systems
1 125 (18.85%) Windows
2 57 (8.60%) Windows Server
3 32 (4.83%) Windows 10
4 22 (3.32%) Apple iOS
5 21 (3.17%) Linux
6 14 (2.11%) Android
7 10 (1.51%) Windows 7
7 10 (1.51%) Windows 8
8 8 (1.21%) Mac OS
8 8 (1.21%) Windows Server 2016
9 5 (0.75%) Windows Server 2019
10 4 (0.60%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
10 4 (0.60%) Unix
11 3 (0.45%) Solaris
12 1 (0.15%) CentOS
12 1 (0.15%) CoreOS
12 1 (0.15%) Ubuntu
12 1 (0.15%) VME
Processes & Methodologies
1 134 (20.21%) Customer Service
2 111 (16.74%) Continuous Improvement
3 93 (14.03%) Mentoring
4 90 (13.57%) Decision-Making
5 80 (12.07%) Stakeholder Management
6 75 (11.31%) Agile
7 68 (10.26%) AI
8 57 (8.60%) Project Management
9 52 (7.84%) CI/CD
10 50 (7.54%) Cybersecurity
10 50 (7.54%) DevOps
11 48 (7.24%) Coaching
12 46 (6.94%) Collaborative Working
13 45 (6.79%) ITIL
14 44 (6.64%) Roadmaps
15 43 (6.49%) Business Intelligence
16 42 (6.33%) CRM
17 41 (6.18%) Analytics
18 40 (6.03%) Software Engineering
18 40 (6.03%) User Experience
Programming Languages
1 77 (11.61%) SQL
2 48 (7.24%) Python
3 29 (4.37%) JavaScript
4 27 (4.07%) Java
5 23 (3.47%) C#
6 14 (2.11%) PowerShell
7 9 (1.36%) Kotlin
7 9 (1.36%) TypeScript
8 7 (1.06%) Bash
8 7 (1.06%) PHP
9 5 (0.75%) Bicep
9 5 (0.75%) C++
10 4 (0.60%) C
10 4 (0.60%) Data Analysis Expressions
11 3 (0.45%) Go
11 3 (0.45%) Ladder Logic
11 3 (0.45%) MATLAB
11 3 (0.45%) Swift
12 2 (0.30%) T-SQL
12 2 (0.30%) VBA
Qualifications
1 95 (14.33%) Degree
2 26 (3.92%) DBS Check
3 23 (3.47%) BPSS Clearance
4 13 (1.96%) Security Cleared
5 12 (1.81%) Microsoft Certification
6 11 (1.66%) Computer Science Degree
7 8 (1.21%) Azure Certification
7 8 (1.21%) HNC
7 8 (1.21%) Network+ Certification
8 7 (1.06%) Master's Degree
9 6 (0.90%) CCNA
9 6 (0.90%) Cisco Certification
9 6 (0.90%) CompTIA Security+
9 6 (0.90%) SC Cleared
10 4 (0.60%) HND
10 4 (0.60%) ITIL Certification
10 4 (0.60%) MCSA
10 4 (0.60%) NVQ Level 4
11 3 (0.45%) PMI Certification
11 3 (0.45%) PMP
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 31 (4.68%) QA
2 25 (3.77%) SLA
3 23 (3.47%) Data Quality
4 20 (3.02%) GDPR
5 13 (1.96%) ISO/IEC 27001
6 9 (1.36%) Cyber Essentials
7 8 (1.21%) ISO 9001
7 8 (1.21%) TickIT
8 5 (0.75%) Accessibility
9 2 (0.30%) Actionable Recommendations
9 2 (0.30%) PCI DSS
10 1 (0.15%) DICOM
10 1 (0.15%) GMP
10 1 (0.15%) NEBOSH
10 1 (0.15%) PMO
System Software
1 88 (13.27%) Active Directory
2 25 (3.77%) Docker
2 25 (3.77%) Hyper-V
3 22 (3.32%) VMware Infrastructure
4 10 (1.51%) VMware Workstation
5 4 (0.60%) Virtual Machines
6 2 (0.30%) Firmware
7 1 (0.15%) Virtual Desktop
7 1 (0.15%) VMware ESXi
Systems Management
1 33 (4.98%) Microsoft Intune
2 31 (4.68%) Terraform
3 24 (3.62%) Kubernetes
4 22 (3.32%) SCCM
5 20 (3.02%) BMC PATROL
6 12 (1.81%) Ansible
7 11 (1.66%) Autotask
7 11 (1.66%) Cisco CUCM
8 10 (1.51%) Single Sign-On
9 5 (0.75%) FortiGate
10 4 (0.60%) Grafana
10 4 (0.60%) Jamf Pro
10 4 (0.60%) Prometheus
11 3 (0.45%) cPanel
11 3 (0.45%) Plesk
11 3 (0.45%) Podman
11 3 (0.45%) Rancher
12 1 (0.15%) McAfee ePO
12 1 (0.15%) Nagios
12 1 (0.15%) SCVMM
Vendors
1 200 (30.17%) Microsoft
2 24 (3.62%) VMware
3 20 (3.02%) Oracle
3 20 (3.02%) SAP
4 19 (2.87%) Google
5 15 (2.26%) Cisco
6 12 (1.81%) Workday
7 11 (1.66%) Apple
8 10 (1.51%) ESET
9 9 (1.36%) ServiceNow
10 8 (1.21%) New Relic
10 8 (1.21%) Splunk
11 7 (1.06%) Siemens
12 6 (0.90%) Adobe
12 6 (0.90%) Meraki
13 5 (0.75%) Aruba
13 5 (0.75%) BiZZdesign
13 5 (0.75%) iManage
14 4 (0.60%) NetScout
14 4 (0.60%) SonicWALL