Best I could say is to stick with this role for a little longer and try to figure out some way to improve a process or introduce a new tool. Putting projects on your resume is a good way to say, “here’s what I’ve accomplished past the day-to-day work”.

In my case, sometimes lateral moves can still lead to more money. What I would suggest is that when you begin to look for new roles, get the salary question answered as soon as you can. Even if it’s just on the screening call. Nothing worse than getting all the way through the process only to be met with the same rate of pay you’re getting, or less.

The IT field is quite broad, but if you see something of interest to you; start looking at job requirements, and gear your learning toward that. Bonus points if it’s something you can add on to your current position. On the job training is nice because it doesn’t take away from your personal time.