Executive pay tracks company size far more than title, so these figures are not comparable across C-suite pages; mid-size private companies shown. Mid-size company / public-sector range. Large-cap and public-company CIOs earn on a different scale (base plus large bonus and equity, often $500K-$1M+), which these sources do not capture.
Experience to get here
Entry level10-15 years in IT before a first CIO/IT Director title
Typical title15-20+ years; 6+ years supervisory on a current posting
Bachelor's in IT/MIS/CS or related required on the current public-sector posting; BLS notes many employers require or prefer an MBA or master's. Certification is typically optional.
Typical prior roles
IT Director / VP of ITDirector of Infrastructure or Enterprise ApplicationsCISO or Head of SecurityIT consulting partner / practice lead
Must have
6+ years supervising system administration, design, and implementation
Budget and vendor/contract management (ERP, CRM, cloud, licensing)
Security, risk, and compliance oversight
Service delivery (help desk, infrastructure) at scale
Executive communication and board/council reporting
Milestones people hit first
Ran an IT organization's annual budget and vendor portfolio
Delivered an ERP/CRM or cloud migration on time as the accountable executive
Built the security program that passed an audit (SOC 2, ISO 27001, or government equivalent)
Presented technology strategy to a board, council, or executive team
Not asked for at CIO level; listed only because cloud literacy is expected and this is the cheapest structured path.
Training & learning
ITIL 4 FoundationPeopleCert · course · $690 exam bundle · 15-20 hoursThe service-management model your help desk, change, and incident processes will be measured against.
Microsoft LearnFREEMicrosoft · learning path · free (self-paced modules) · self-pacedFree fundamentals on M365, Azure, and Entra ID, the stack most corporate IT runs on.
AWS Skill BuilderFREEAmazon Web Services · learning path · free tier (900+ courses); $29/mo or $449/yr for exam prep · self-pacedCloud economics and architecture basics for build-vs-buy and vendor decisions.
BLS OOH: Computer and Information Systems ManagersFREEUS Bureau of Labor Statistics · learning path · free · 30 minutesPlain-language description of the path (education, experience, advancement) to CIO/CTO titles.
The current CIO posting named no certification; BLS says certification is typically optional at this level, so all certs are rated sometimes/rarely. Glassdoor's dedicated 'Chief Information Officer' page not available; the 'CIO' page was used. Median uses PayScale base ($186K), between BLS ($175K) and Glassdoor total pay ($233K). Governance certs (CGEIT, PMP) are omitted.
Figures are US, from the sources listed, and change often; verify before deciding.