Not to age myself too much, but I recall that in 2008, while I was at IBM, Cognos was acquired to expand the data management portfolio, promising to drive new insights from data as never before.  At that time, even with its advanced reporting and analytics capabilities, there was always the underlying data specter of ‘garbage in, garbage out’ (GIGO), which risked its effectiveness.  Today, AI, analytic insights, and business decisions are only as good as the quality of the underlying data – GIGO remains!

It has always been the purview of the Database Administrator (DBA) to deal with the GIGO challenge in one way or another.  The DBA is often the first line of defense to ensure the data lifeblood of the organization is in a good state.   Their roles have evolved from traditional administrators to strategic stewards of organizational data.  It is a role not going away.

Rising Cost, Expanding Talent Gap, Silver Tsunami and the In-House Hiring Conundrum

The data indicates that there is a DBA IT talent gap, one that is growing and challenging organizations to think differently. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual wage for DBAs reached $104,620 in 2024, and the need for new DBAs will grow by 9% through 2033. This demand is creating labor market pressures, making it harder to retain and find DBA resources.

Pressure is also coming in the form of an aging workforce. According to Zippia, the current demographics for DBAs show a clear indication that the profession is facing a “silver tsunami” of retiring talent. Their data indicates the majority of DBAs in the United States are over 40 years old, with 66% aged 40 or older, and the average DBA age being 45! Only 6% are under 30, while 28% are between 30 and 40.

Filling a qualified Database Administrator (DBA) position typically takes between 31 and 44 days from job posting to offer acceptance[1]. Then, to get to full productivity, most HR and technical management experts agree that 3 months is a realistic minimum for onboarding a technical hire to viability, with many citing 3 to 6 months as common for complete ramp-up in complex database environments[2].

[1] https://recruiterflow.com/blog/time-to-hire/

[2] https://teamsunday.com/blog/how-long-to-onboard-employee/

Salary Commitments: With a median DBA wage of $104,620 per year, costs quickly rise when factoring in benefits and overhead.

Hidden Expenses: Benefits, retirement contributions, training, and turnover can add 20–40% to the base salary.

Availability Issues: One FTE covers only 40 hours per week, limiting 24/7 coverage and leaving gaps during vacations or unexpected absences.

Recruitment & Retention: High demand and frequent turnover force companies to invest in ongoing recruiting cycles.

The Reality….When A Key DBA Retires

For one of our Clients, a major Pediatric hospital with a high global reputation, losing a critical database expert seemingly overnight to an unplanned retirement could have been a disaster. The situation created an urgent need for both legacy and modern DBA skill. They faced a DBA candidate market in a major metropolitan area that was cutthroat, and hiring replacements wasn’t just expensive — it was nearly impossible.

Introduced to us by one of our Service Partners, instead of scrambling for a hire, they embraced our Remote DBA Managed Services model — gaining a team of experts for far less than the cost of one full-time DBA. Within days, our resources came on board, performance improved, risks disappeared, and stability returned. Two years later, the results speak for themselves:

  • $120,000 saved in staffing costs (50%+ reduction)
  • Zero unplanned downtime and zero incidents
  • Stronger security that meets strict healthcare standards

What started as a staffing crisis became a high-performance, cost-effective, peace of mind service that keeps their critical systems running flawlessly, allowing them to focus purely on patient care.

SubscribeIT Remote Managed DBA Services provides flexibility, rapid resource availability and cost effectiveness.

We offer our Clients:

  • Cost Efficiency: all-inclusive pricing models often reduce annual costs by 30–40% compared to hiring full-time employees.
  • No Overhead: Save on training, certifications, tools, and employee benefits.
  • Active, not Passive: Proactive operational attention for your critical data environments, ensuring optimized, monitored, and secure.
  • 24/7 expert coverage and rapid, proactive incident response.
  • Access to senior-level skills across multiple data platforms.
  • Predictable costs and simplified, no-surprises budgeting.
  • Peace of mind with industry-leading service-level agreements.

Our Clients benefit from predictable expenses, peace of mind, and the freedom to focus on their core business, trusting SubscribeIT to ensure databases remain secure, performant, and always available.

Jake Griffioen, Client Executive at SubscribeIT

Want to learn more? Drop me a message on LinkedIn or email me jake@subscribeit.com

With more than 26 years of consulting experience, I help clients overcome their most complex data and integration challenges—empowering organizations to harness their information for greater efficiency and success