Abinash Nanda has more than a decade of experience working in both MNCs and startups across various industries. In his most recent assignment, he served as a general manager at Livspace where he was managing a business worth $1 million per month, while also strategising on overall business growth for the northern region. Nanda has previously worked with organisations such as Tata Steel, ZS Associates, Paytm, and Livspace in senior management positions.
The tech revolution across various industries has created a huge demand for IT products and services. Technology cycles are getting shorter, leading to certain processes becoming otiose. Replacing old methods, newer processes, and products are constantly being invented calling for a new breed of workforce. To add to it, marketplace shifts and evolving demands of customers also pose a threat to the tech industry. Existing IT employees say that they must continuously upskill to keep pace with innovations in machine learning, logical thinking, coding, and different emerging technologies. Let’s take a look at three things you should focus on to give yourself an edge over the competitor.
1. Communication Skills
This doesn’t seem like a crucial skill needed in the tech world, right? But no matter how tech-savvy or smart a person is, it’s difficult to perform any job efficiently without effective communication and interpersonal skills. Being able to communicate with others is important for two reasons. First, as an IT professional, it helps you extract the information needed to diagnose a problem in a clear way. Second, it plays a role in explaining what the problem is and guiding through the necessary steps to resolve the said problem.
With many tech users only having a basic comprehension of the subject, it’s critical that a specialist is able to break complicated information down into layman’s terms. This will help in getting a point across without confusion. It especially makes sense when communication is done over the phone or via text. In addition, a specialist should have etiquette and a polite demeanor to ensure pleasant conversations regardless of the job role.
2. Tech skills
It goes without saying, having a high level of technical skills is important. But this is not just talking about basic skills. It refers to gaining skills in more advanced technical topics such as Coding, Data Analysis, Machine Learning, and so on. Not only are these skills the norm nowadays but give you an edge when applying for a job.
Data Science & Analytics
Two in-demand tech jobs within Big Data include data science and data analytics. Revenue within this segment alone is projected to grow from $5.3 billion in 2018 to $19.4 billion in 2026.
Around 84% of companies have introduced advanced analytics to speed-up their decision-making process and bring about greater accuracy. This is part of why data science has earned a top spot on LinkedIn’s emerging jobs report for all three years i.e. 2018, 2019, and 2020.
Programming Languages in General
Having a foundation in a programming language can open doors for you in many ways. According to Glassdoor’s list of top jobs for 2020, careers requiring coding skills are at the top of the list. Front-end engineers are the most in-demand, however, Full-stack engineering has seen 35% hiring growth, consistently since 2015.
When it comes to specifics, there are some notable skills: HTML and CSS are the easiest languages for beginners, Python is the fastest-growing language and one of the most popular, and JavaScript is the most commonly used language. Of course, there are other in-demand skills, but the language that’s best for you to learn depends on your specific goals.
Artificial Intelligence
AI is changing the work landscape in a fairly obvious way, making it an exciting time for those who are looking for something new. The hiring rate for AI specialists has grown 74% annually over the past four years. Due to its increasingly widespread adoption, AI specialists earned the top spot in LinkedIn’s emerging jobs spot.
3. Project Management
This might seem to be more of a soft skill rather than something needed in tech, but project management is vital for technical projects. Plus, it often requires complex programs and systems that aren’t easily mastered. A good project manager makes for an effective leader, especially with the delegation of tasks, and measuring the success of every project. This skill can come in handy with Benchmarking, Budget Planning, Engineering, Operations, etc. making it useful if you want to climb the professional ladder or learn the ropes.
Possessing the aforementioned skills lays the foundation for an IT specialist to perform their duties. If you’re looking for a new job, regardless of the industry or role, having said skills on your CV will make you stand out from the crowd. This can be extremely desirable to a potential employer, giving you a pole position in this competitive market. What’s more is that the demand for IT professionals extends to Industries needing data professionals, which spans across education, finance, health, software, and more.