Your business plans need to take into consideration one line item that’s likely to soar in coming months: the salaries of  IT staff.

High unemployment and the economic slump have made it a buyer’s market when it comes to hiring for most types of jobs. Not among them would be your IT workers, who are seeing salaries rise and job openings aplenty.

Of course, all this depends on skill sets and employer needs, but the fact of the matter is that IT salaries are costing most companies more these days.

And they’re expected to increase 5.3% on average in 2013, according to new research by staffing firm Robert Half International.

In fact, starting IT salaries will grow more than any other field next year, says Robert Half.

Which positions will see the biggest bump? Mobile applications developers (9.0%), wireless network engineers (7.9%) and web developers (7.3%) to name a few.

Fierce competition for skilled IT people with expertise in emerging technologies like mobile, big data, cloud computing and virtualization is helping drive salaries skyward.

But that doesn’t mean the guys and gals in the trenches won’t see higher starting salaries as well; Robert Half says IT pros working in technical services/help desk/technical support will get offers that are 4.52% higher on average than their current salaries.

Salary may be the deciding factor for candidates

According to Robert Half, the results of its research underscore the need for hiring managers to stay on top of IT salaries in their geographical area. Without this information, says the company, hiring skilled IT workers will be difficult for a number of reasons:

• The pool of qualified candidates is shrinking at the same time demand is climbing
• You’re not just competing for talent within your own industry, but against business of all types across all industries, and
• It’s likely candidates will receive multiple job offers, which means they can be picky when deciding which one to accept.

To avoid a staffing crisis, Robert Half recommends businesses:

• Avoid overburdening existing employees with more work than they can handle, which may lead to increased turnover (especially when tech jobs are plentiful)
• Consider hiring consultants or temps to get by in the interim, and
• Put together the best package possible: competitive pay, great benefits and professional development opportunities, such as mentoring programs and e-learning courses, for example.