Top 3 Highest Paying Tech Skills in 2024

In the face of global economic challenges and rising inflation, patricianly in Africa’s most populous nation, Nigeria, where its young workforce are leaving the country in droves in search of greener pastors, employer becoming more open to the hybrid work model to incentivise employees.

On the other hand, some of these young Nigerians who are yet to relocate abroad are constantly seeking opportunities to earn in foreign currencies to mitigate the naira devaluation challenge.

Naturally, they are acquiring various high-paying tech skills to position for international opportunities, preferably ones that’d allow them work remotely full time.

Some of these jobs pay as much as much as $200,000 or more per year but they are not easy to come by. According to Ladders data, most of the high-paying jobs are not available as remote or hybrid, as they require full time onsite staff.

However, Business Elites Africa findings show that Nigerians living in Nigeria are landing these fully-remote high-paying jobs. Although, the odds are stack against them compared of their peers abroad.

A software engineer in Lagos, who pleaded anonymity, tells BEA that he has friends who earning up to $10,000 monthly from multiple US and European companies.

He said: “I work for 2 different companies in the US and I earn about $7000 per month combined. And I have friends here in Lagos who earn over $10,000. It all depends on your skill-level and experience.”

eFinancialCareers recently listed top fintech companies that offer remote-first positions or roles with salaries exceeding $200,000. Among the top 10 are well-known firms like Coinbase, Stripe, and Instacart.

Here are the top three skills that can earn you this much, according to these employers.

1. Software Engineering

Software engineers use engineering principles and programming languages to create software for users. They design and develop computer games, business applications, operating systems, network control systems, and middleware. These are just some of the many career paths available.

A career as a software engineer can be both fun and challenging, with opportunities to work in many industries, including businesses of all sizes, government agencies, nonprofit organizations, healthcare facilities, and more.

As technology continues to evolve, the need for software developers keeps growing. Many companies are also hiring software engineers to work from home, offering more flexibility and more chances to enter the field.

Average salary range: $150,000 to $200,000 per year

2. GTM Manager

A go-to-market (GTM) manager is a leader who handles the strategy and process of launching a product or service. They work with different teams to make sure everything runs smoothly.

A GTM manager creates the launch plan, hires the right team, and motivates them to meet launch goals.

Google was one of the first companies to hire a go-to-market manager. At that time, they were launching more than 100 product features in a single month and needed someone to manage it all.

When they first added this role to their advertising technology department, it was called “Commercialization.”

Average salary range: $157,690 to $218,657 per year