In our previous article, we began a discussion about the most in-demand IT skills in 2022. But even we were surprised at the sheer number of skills that have emerged as “must-haves” in today’s ultra-competitive cyber marketplace. So we decided to continue the conversation with another article outlining even more skills that IT professionals can pursue to make themselves valuable – and irreplaceable – in their organizations.
IT Skills Your Team Needs
- Penetration testing: Penetration testing reveals system vulnerabilities before a cybercriminal has the opportunity to exploit them. Penetration testing is an offensive strategy against the scourge of cybercrime, which is only rising in 2022.
- Compliance: Compliance refers to the actions taken or facts necessary to comply with a regulation, typically governmental or financial in nature. It is essential to understand the many aspects of compliance as it affects your particular IT function.
- Database administration: An organized database is an efficient database, and an administrator is responsible for the configuration and maintenance of the database management system. This includes updating database code for new emerging technologies and managing all facets of an organized database environment. SQL is the standard programming language for relational databases, and it is vital that IT pros are also proficient in structuring and managing these systems – making an effort to obtain comprehensive SQL knowledge essential.
- Data analytics: An data analytics IT pro has the capability to evaluate data sets and come to conclusions that assist their organization in achieving better results, utilizing machine learning and programming languages – as well as analytic skills – to get the job done.
- Data visualization: The complexity of data sets make them difficult to understand, so companies need team members with IT skills to analyze and create data visualizations to explain what the data means – and why it matters. Data visualization helps guide decision-making across the organization and up to the C-suite.
- Data science: Companies in 2002 need those with the ability to interpret raw data and change it into an easy-to-understand format that decision-makers can use. Understanding a variety of programming languages (SAS, R, and Python, for example) can help your IT team achieve this.
- Big data skills: Big data utilizes new technology tools to process amounts of data that existing tools cannot effectively handle. In-demand IT skills relating to big data include effective problem-solving and data-handling capability – as well as an understanding of programming languages.
- Professional skills: One of the best ways for IT professionals to differentiate themselves from their colleagues is to develop professional skills that transcend their IT skill set. Effective communication and active listening are skills that will set an IT professional apart, as they are competencies not often pursued by IT staff. Flexibility, adaptability, and teamwork were needed during the pandemic, as people were expected to suddenly work well together in uncertain and unfamiliar circumstances – and those that stood out were the superstars. Continually improving professional skills should be a top priority for IT specialists.
There are so many different aspects to being an IT professional these days, and it can be difficult for companies to find the right people to fill all the necessary roles. Because these professionals are in such high demand, they can also come at an unattainable price in regards to recruiting and retaining talent.
Managed services are an ideal solution for organizations that need to fill the IT skills gap but do not want to continually hire new team members. At Alliance IT, we provide a deep bench of IT professionals to help you fill those gaps and continue to focus on what you know best – growing your own business.
