Top career opportunities in technology

With technological innovations and changes taking over the IT sector, there are growing speculations of this trend causing a massive disruption to the job market. An increasing number of tasks that were traditionally managed by humans can now be handled by machines. Due to these developments, there is uncertainty on the future of IT professionals in India. Will this lead to an actual reduction in the number of jobs?  

Well, contrary to popular belief, the scenario is not as bleak as what initially catches the eye. Although automation is expected to transform the job market, it will not necessarily lead to a massive displacement of workers. In fact, innovations will lead to the creation of new jobs. India, being a strong player in providing both onshore and offshore services to the global market, is in a good position to leverage emerging technologies to its advantage. With this, an entire range of opportunities are expected to be available for IT professionals in India. Here's a look at some of the opportunities:

IT architects: Capable of designing IT systems for corporations, IT architects are responsible for masterminding the information technology infrastructure. Necessary skills include programming, design, analytics and people management  

Security engineers: Just like any other system, technology is vulnerable to information hacks and thefts. Security engineers are in charge of safeguarding technical systems and data of an IT company. Relevant skills include intrusion detection system (IDS)/intrusion prevention system (IPS), penetration and vulnerability testing, firewall, intrusion detection/prevention protocols, secure coding practices, ethical hacking and threat modelling, and various database platforms.

Data scientists: In the future, almost every company will require data miners who can provide large quantities of data which will in turn offer the insights needed for growth and improvement. As a result, big data is expanding rapidly and data scientists and engineers are expected to be in huge demand in the coming years. Skills needed include data-driven problem solving, programming, statistics, mathematics, visualisation and communication.

QA engineers: Unless vigorously tested, software systems can do more harm than good. Thus, having QA engineers on-board is critical for every IT organisation. Critical skills include engineering, technology, verbal and written communication, reasoning and  logic.

Front-end engineers: Users view and interact with the front end of a website and therefore it is crucial for companies to hire front-end engineers capable of ensuring the user experience is smooth and seamless. The skills needed are HTML, CSS and JS structure, prototyping, copy and SEO.

Mobile developers: In today's world, every business needs mobile presence in order to be accessible to consumers.

Mobile developers capable of app development can expect to find a range of opportunities emerging in the next decade.

The skills needed are analytics, UI design, agile methodologies, problem solving, programming and cross-platform development.

Network engineers: Network engineers are responsible for building, securing and maintaining the diverse networks companies use internally. The skills needed are application flows, cyber security, SD-WAN, DNS, Internet of Things and network automation.

Full-stack programmers: As compared to having separate testers, developers and business analysts, companies now prefer full stack programmers, who understand the length and breadth of the entire process. The skills needed include HTML/CSS, web application architecture, algorithms, data structures, back-end languages like SQL and Javascript.

Solution architects: Solution architects are responsible for developing solutions to problems by understanding needs, managing risks and delivering results based on complex business requirements. Skills needed include analytical skills, management know-how, programming and development experience.

While these are just some of the jobs, one needs to constantly learn new skills to remain relevant. Hence, one needs to be agile and willing to learn to move ahead.

(The author is chief executive officer, Magna Infotech, Hyderabad)