Problem-Solving Job Trends in the West Midlands

Problem Solving
England > West Midlands

The table below provides summary statistics and salary benchmarking for jobs advertised in the West Midlands requiring Problem-Solving skills. It covers vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 16 September 2025, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.

6 months to
16 Sep 2025
Same period 2024 Same period 2023
Rank 3 4 9
Rank change year-on-year +1 +5 0
Permanent jobs citing Problem-Solving 646 934 565
As % of all permanent jobs advertised in the West Midlands 19.81% 15.51% 14.29%
As % of the Processes & Methodologies category 23.11% 19.52% 15.15%
Number of salaries quoted 413 327 432
10th Percentile £25,000 £25,750 £27,025
25th Percentile £29,250 £33,750 £35,000
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £45,000 £50,000 £50,000
Median % change year-on-year -10.00% - +7.60%
75th Percentile £58,750 £61,625 £65,000
90th Percentile £67,500 £78,500 £71,250
England median annual salary £45,000 £52,500 £55,000
% change year-on-year -14.29% -4.55% -

All Process and Methodology Skills
West Midlands

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 West Midlands.

Permanent vacancies with a requirement for process or methodology skills 2,795 4,785 3,729
As % of all permanent jobs advertised in the West Midlands 85.71% 79.45% 94.29%
Number of salaries quoted 1,772 2,506 2,780
10th Percentile £29,000 £28,822 £27,725
25th Percentile £35,375 £37,500 £37,500
Median annual salary (50th Percentile) £50,000 £52,500 £52,500
Median % change year-on-year -4.76% - +5.00%
75th Percentile £67,500 £66,250 £66,339
90th Percentile £80,000 £80,000 £80,000
England median annual salary £55,000 £57,500 £62,000
% change year-on-year -4.35% -7.26% +3.33%

Problem-Solving
Job Vacancy Trend in the West Midlands

Job postings citing Problem-Solving as a proportion of all IT jobs advertised in the West Midlands.

Job vacancy trend for Problem-Solving in the West Midlands

Problem-Solving
Salary Trend in the West Midlands

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

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

Problem-Solving
Salary Histogram in the West Midlands

Salary distribution for jobs citing Problem-Solving in the West Midlands over the 6 months to 16 September 2025.

Salary histogram for Problem-Solving in the West Midlands

Problem-Solving
Job Locations in the West Midlands

The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median salaries quoted in IT jobs citing Problem-Solving within the West Midlands region over the 6 months to 16 September 2025. 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
Birmingham +3 181 £45,000 -10.00% 120
Staffordshire +3 165 £45,000 -2.70% 69
Warwickshire +10 74 £55,000 +50.68% 89
Worcestershire +2 70 £30,500 -32.22% 34
Coventry +3 31 £32,250 -35.50% 38
Herefordshire +4 23 £32,500 +18.18% 11
Solihull -6 21 £34,000 -47.69% 12
Shropshire -8 18 £47,500 +11.76% 59
Walsall +2 14 £45,000 +30.78% 2
Halesowen +1 8 £32,500 - 2
West Bromwich -1 5 £26,000 - 3
Wednesbury +1 3 £45,000 +20.00% 2
Willenhall -1 3 £45,000 - 1
Wolverhampton -6 1 £65,000 +83.34% 19
Problem-Solving
England

Problem-Solving
Co-occurring Skills and Capabilities in the West Midlands by Category

The follow tables expand on the table above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. The same employment type, locality and period is covered with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each of the following categories:

Application Platforms
1 23 (3.56%) SharePoint
2 15 (2.32%) Microsoft Exchange
3 11 (1.70%) IIS
4 6 (0.93%) OpenEdge
5 5 (0.77%) CMS
6 2 (0.31%) Apache
6 2 (0.31%) Confluence
6 2 (0.31%) HCL Notes
6 2 (0.31%) Oracle Workflow
6 2 (0.31%) Skype for Business
7 1 (0.15%) Apache Airflow
7 1 (0.15%) Apache Solr
7 1 (0.15%) Apache Spark
7 1 (0.15%) Appian
7 1 (0.15%) Exchange Server 2010
7 1 (0.15%) Exchange Server 2013
7 1 (0.15%) nginx
Applications
1 66 (10.22%) Microsoft Excel
2 32 (4.95%) Microsoft Office
3 13 (2.01%) Microsoft PowerPoint
4 3 (0.46%) Spreadsheet
5 2 (0.31%) Adobe Creative Suite
5 2 (0.31%) Microsoft Project
5 2 (0.31%) MS Visio
6 1 (0.15%) AutoCAD
6 1 (0.15%) Revit
6 1 (0.15%) SOLIDWORKS
6 1 (0.15%) Trello
Business Applications
1 25 (3.87%) NetSuite
2 13 (2.01%) Dynamics CRM
3 5 (0.77%) Dynamics NAV
3 5 (0.77%) SAP FI
4 4 (0.62%) Infor CloudSuite
4 4 (0.62%) Infor CloudSuite Industrial (formerly SyteLine)
5 3 (0.46%) iTrent
5 3 (0.46%) SAP HR
6 1 (0.15%) Elite 3E
6 1 (0.15%) Oracle EBS
6 1 (0.15%) Oracle EBS R12
6 1 (0.15%) Oracle SCM
6 1 (0.15%) Salesforce CRM
6 1 (0.15%) SAP CO
6 1 (0.15%) SAP ERP
6 1 (0.15%) SAP HCM
6 1 (0.15%) SAP Payroll
6 1 (0.15%) SAP PS
6 1 (0.15%) SAP S/4HANA
Cloud Services
1 97 (15.02%) Azure
2 67 (10.37%) Microsoft 365
3 58 (8.98%) Power Platform
4 21 (3.25%) SaaS
5 20 (3.10%) Cloud Computing
6 18 (2.79%) AWS
7 17 (2.63%) Dynamics 365
8 15 (2.32%) Power Automate
8 15 (2.32%) PowerApps
9 12 (1.86%) GCP
10 11 (1.70%) Azure Data Factory
11 8 (1.24%) Entra ID
11 8 (1.24%) IaaS
11 8 (1.24%) PaaS
12 7 (1.08%) Azure DevOps
13 6 (0.93%) Snowflake
14 5 (0.77%) GitHub
14 5 (0.77%) Google Docs
14 5 (0.77%) Google Workspace
15 4 (0.62%) SuccessFactors
Communications & Networking
1 49 (7.59%) Firewall
2 44 (6.81%) WAN
3 43 (6.66%) LAN
4 22 (3.41%) TCP/IP
5 20 (3.10%) Wi-Fi
6 18 (2.79%) DNS
6 18 (2.79%) VPN
7 15 (2.32%) DHCP
8 11 (1.70%) Remote Desktop
9 7 (1.08%) Network Security
10 6 (0.93%) Wireless
11 5 (0.77%) Broadband
11 5 (0.77%) SAN
12 4 (0.62%) Bluetooth
12 4 (0.62%) Internet
13 3 (0.46%) ADSL
13 3 (0.46%) Ethernet
13 3 (0.46%) PBX
13 3 (0.46%) UWB
13 3 (0.46%) VoIP
Database & Business Intelligence
1 54 (8.36%) Power BI
2 40 (6.19%) SQL Server
3 15 (2.32%) SQL Server Reporting Services
4 14 (2.17%) GIS
5 11 (1.70%) Relational Database
6 10 (1.55%) MySQL
6 10 (1.55%) SQL Server Integration Services
7 9 (1.39%) Data Warehouse
8 8 (1.24%) Star Schema
8 8 (1.24%) Tableau
9 6 (0.93%) Metadata
10 5 (0.77%) BusinessObjects
10 5 (0.77%) Crystal Reports
11 4 (0.62%) NoSQL
11 4 (0.62%) PostgreSQL
12 3 (0.46%) Amazon RDS
12 3 (0.46%) Data Hub
12 3 (0.46%) Data Lake
12 3 (0.46%) MongoDB
12 3 (0.46%) SQL CLR
Development Applications
1 12 (1.86%) JIRA
2 8 (1.24%) Git
2 8 (1.24%) SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
3 3 (0.46%) Jenkins
4 2 (0.31%) Cucumber
4 2 (0.31%) ERwin
4 2 (0.31%) Oracle Forms
4 2 (0.31%) Robot Framework
4 2 (0.31%) Selenium
4 2 (0.31%) Subversion
4 2 (0.31%) Vagrant
4 2 (0.31%) Visual Studio
5 1 (0.15%) ER Studio
5 1 (0.15%) Maven
5 1 (0.15%) Postman
5 1 (0.15%) PowerDesigner
5 1 (0.15%) Rational DOORS
5 1 (0.15%) SoapUI
5 1 (0.15%) Sonatype Nexus
5 1 (0.15%) TestComplete
General
1 293 (45.36%) Social Skills
2 162 (25.08%) Retail
3 159 (24.61%) Finance
4 148 (22.91%) Manufacturing
5 130 (20.12%) Analytical Skills
6 39 (6.04%) Inclusion and Diversity
7 30 (4.64%) Organisational Skills
8 28 (4.33%) Dutch Language
8 28 (4.33%) Finnish Language
8 28 (4.33%) Norwegian Language
9 27 (4.18%) Digital Health
10 25 (3.87%) Marketing
11 24 (3.72%) Legal
12 21 (3.25%) Public Sector
13 20 (3.10%) Law
14 14 (2.17%) Fire and Rescue
15 11 (1.70%) Presentation Skills
15 11 (1.70%) Telecoms
16 9 (1.39%) Games
17 7 (1.08%) Banking
Job Titles
1 106 (16.41%) Trainer
2 91 (14.09%) IT Support
3 71 (10.99%) Developer
4 64 (9.91%) Analyst
5 59 (9.13%) Support Engineer
6 39 (6.04%) Technical Engineer
7 38 (5.88%) Technical Support
8 37 (5.73%) Technical Support Engineer
9 36 (5.57%) 2nd Line Support
10 35 (5.42%) Senior
11 22 (3.41%) Consultant
12 17 (2.63%) Architect
12 17 (2.63%) SQL Developer
13 16 (2.48%) Network Engineer
14 15 (2.32%) Applications Support
14 15 (2.32%) Lead
15 13 (2.01%) Support Technician
16 12 (1.86%) Coordinator
16 12 (1.86%) Support Analyst
16 12 (1.86%) Systems Analyst
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 29 (4.49%) .NET
2 17 (2.63%) HTML
2 17 (2.63%) React
3 15 (2.32%) CSS
4 13 (2.01%) REST
5 10 (1.55%) AngularJS
5 10 (1.55%) JSON
5 10 (1.55%) Razor View Engine
6 8 (1.24%) .NET Framework
7 7 (1.08%) Web Services
8 6 (0.93%) EDI
8 6 (0.93%) Entity Framework
8 6 (0.93%) jQuery
9 4 (0.62%) ASP.NET
9 4 (0.62%) Elastic Stack
9 4 (0.62%) SOAP
10 3 (0.46%) .NET Core
10 3 (0.46%) Blazor
10 3 (0.46%) Dapper ORM
10 3 (0.46%) Node.js
Miscellaneous
1 105 (16.25%) Robotics
2 34 (5.26%) Driving Licence
3 31 (4.80%) Onboarding
4 29 (4.49%) FMCG
5 25 (3.87%) Self-Motivation
6 16 (2.48%) EPoS
6 16 (2.48%) Management Information System
6 16 (2.48%) SCADA
7 15 (2.32%) Analytical Mindset
8 14 (2.17%) Data Centre
9 12 (1.86%) Operational Technology
10 10 (1.55%) Legacy Systems
10 10 (1.55%) Product Ownership
11 8 (1.24%) Cyber Threat
11 8 (1.24%) Security Posture
12 7 (1.08%) Foreign Exchange (FX)
13 6 (0.93%) iPad
14 5 (0.77%) Data Structures
14 5 (0.77%) Embedded Systems
14 5 (0.77%) Virtual Team
Operating Systems
1 100 (15.48%) Windows
2 39 (6.04%) Windows 10
3 16 (2.48%) Linux
4 14 (2.17%) Windows Server
5 6 (0.93%) Android
5 6 (0.93%) Apple iOS
6 4 (0.62%) Windows Server 2016
7 2 (0.31%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
7 2 (0.31%) Unix
7 2 (0.31%) VMS
7 2 (0.31%) Windows Server 2003
7 2 (0.31%) Windows Server 2019
8 1 (0.15%) Mac OS
8 1 (0.15%) Mac OS X
8 1 (0.15%) Ubuntu
8 1 (0.15%) Windows Mobile
Processes & Methodologies
1 128 (19.81%) Artificial Intelligence
2 117 (18.11%) Continuous Improvement
3 114 (17.65%) Machine Learning
4 105 (16.25%) Generative AI
4 105 (16.25%) LLM
4 105 (16.25%) Red Team
5 98 (15.17%) Customer Service
6 89 (13.78%) Data Privacy
7 63 (9.75%) Agile
8 62 (9.60%) Project Management
9 56 (8.67%) Business Intelligence
10 52 (8.05%) Decision-Making
11 50 (7.74%) Logistics
12 48 (7.43%) Cybersecurity
13 47 (7.28%) CRM
14 40 (6.19%) Analytics
15 37 (5.73%) ERP
16 35 (5.42%) ITIL
17 34 (5.26%) Mentoring
18 33 (5.11%) Data Analysis
Programming Languages
1 92 (14.24%) SQL
2 41 (6.35%) C#
3 40 (6.19%) Python
4 32 (4.95%) JavaScript
5 20 (3.10%) Java
5 20 (3.10%) PowerShell
6 12 (1.86%) PHP
6 12 (1.86%) T-SQL
7 7 (1.08%) C++
8 6 (0.93%) Bash
8 6 (0.93%) R
9 4 (0.62%) Data Analysis Expressions
9 4 (0.62%) Perl
10 3 (0.46%) TypeScript
11 2 (0.31%) Apex Code
11 2 (0.31%) Go
11 2 (0.31%) Groovy
11 2 (0.31%) Kusto Query Language
11 2 (0.31%) Ruby
11 2 (0.31%) XAML
Qualifications
1 185 (28.64%) Degree
2 43 (6.66%) Security Cleared
3 23 (3.56%) Computer Science Degree
4 21 (3.25%) SC Cleared
5 13 (2.01%) ACCA
5 13 (2.01%) CIMA
5 13 (2.01%) DV Cleared
6 11 (1.70%) Master's Degree
7 10 (1.55%) BPSS Clearance
7 10 (1.55%) CISSP
8 9 (1.39%) DBS Check
9 8 (1.24%) Microsoft Certification
10 7 (1.08%) A+ Certification
10 7 (1.08%) AAT
10 7 (1.08%) Cisco Certification
11 5 (0.77%) (ISC)2 CCSP
11 5 (0.77%) CCSP
11 5 (0.77%) CISM
11 5 (0.77%) ITIL Certification
11 5 (0.77%) TOGAF Certification
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 21 (3.25%) SLA
2 19 (2.94%) Data Quality
3 15 (2.32%) QA
4 12 (1.86%) ISO/IEC 27001
5 8 (1.24%) GDPR
6 6 (0.93%) Actionable Recommendations
7 5 (0.77%) NIST
7 5 (0.77%) PMO
8 3 (0.46%) COBIT
8 3 (0.46%) Cyber Essentials
9 2 (0.31%) Accessibility
9 2 (0.31%) Cyber Essentials PLUS
10 1 (0.15%) Government Security Classifications
10 1 (0.15%) ISO 19650
10 1 (0.15%) ISO 9001
10 1 (0.15%) NEBOSH
10 1 (0.15%) PMBOK
10 1 (0.15%) SOC 2
System Software
1 41 (6.35%) Active Directory
2 18 (2.79%) VMware Infrastructure
3 4 (0.62%) Docker
4 2 (0.31%) Firmware
4 2 (0.31%) Hyper-V
5 1 (0.15%) VMware ESXi
5 1 (0.15%) vSphere
Systems Management
1 6 (0.93%) Microsoft Intune
1 6 (0.93%) Terraform
2 5 (0.77%) Kubernetes
3 4 (0.62%) Ansible
3 4 (0.62%) SCOM
4 3 (0.46%) Nagios
4 3 (0.46%) SCCM
5 2 (0.31%) FortiGate
5 2 (0.31%) Progress Chef
5 2 (0.31%) Puppet
5 2 (0.31%) SCOrch
5 2 (0.31%) SCSM
6 1 (0.15%) AirWatch
6 1 (0.15%) EMC NetWorker
6 1 (0.15%) HP Quality Center
6 1 (0.15%) Norton AntiVirus
6 1 (0.15%) Single Sign-On
Vendors
1 156 (24.15%) Microsoft
2 118 (18.27%) Google
3 116 (17.96%) Databricks
4 107 (16.56%) Adobe
5 22 (3.41%) SAP
6 19 (2.94%) Cisco
6 19 (2.94%) VMware
7 16 (2.48%) Oracle
8 15 (2.32%) Salesforce
9 14 (2.17%) Dell
10 12 (1.86%) Apple
10 12 (1.86%) Juniper
11 11 (1.70%) McAfee
12 6 (0.93%) Progress
12 6 (0.93%) ServiceNow
13 5 (0.77%) Guidewire
14 4 (0.62%) BT
14 4 (0.62%) Infor
14 4 (0.62%) Meraki
14 4 (0.62%) Splunk