More and more IT professionals are plugging into Cloud Computing
For a long time, the professional IT world has been very slow to embrace cloud computing. It’s not short-sidedness or fear that’s been driving IT workers away from cloud computing in the past either. Many in various tech fields thought that the introduction of cloud computing might herald the end of the road (or need) for traditional IT. Now that enough time has passed so as to allow the IT community to digest more of what the cloud is about, we’re seeing tons of IT professionals stepping forward and embracing the technology. IT professionals on Cloud Computing
According to some expert insiders (and some statistics gathered throughout the US), almost half of all IT employees are either currently involved in working with cloud computing or have been training in at least one of its major areas of concentration. In other words, the scales seem to be tipping in favor of the cloud. Now, if we can just think back (or peruse) upon some of the articles and statements made over the last several years (that wanted to indicate that cloud computing is ineffectual or would “never catch on”) we can paint ourselves a much clearer mental picture of what’s actually happened. The truth it seems, is that cloud computing is slowly replacing traditional IT in terms of infrastructure and individual capabilities.
However, this should not a time of mourning for IT professionals, on the contrary, the IT field is growing at an accelerated pace and is becoming more integral to the goals of most businesses. Responsibility is the key word here; IT workers are entering a new phase where they might actually have more of an impact upon their organization in terms of duties. As you are probably already aware, IT has traditionally been a “back office” sector, something that is needed, but existed only to provide functionality and didn’t normally participate in (or factor into) most decision making processes. Since technology is taking more of a dominant role in today’s marketplace, it only makes sense that the group in charge of managing technology for a business might need to play a more active role. After all, if a group of IT workers can devise a solution or design a product that will bring potential success to their organization, shouldn’t they be participating in a greater capacity?
Businesses are also waking up to the enormous benefits of cloud computing (both technologically and monetarily). Naturally, as more companies rush to implement cloud computing systems the demand for more qualified IT personnel will also spike upwards. At this point there are probably some IT pros that are getting nervous, right? The fear being that their career training might be redundant or that they’re simply out-of-touch with what’s going on in cloud computing. While these are valid concerns, the truth is that virtually any IT professional can easily and cheaply prepare themselves for a career in cloud computing through E-learning or, online education & certification.
There are essentially two facets to preparing for a cloud-based career move:
- Absorbing the cloud knowledge base through training
- Achieving some form of valid certification
In order to truly grasp cloud computing, it’s important to explore its foundations; certainly no one could argue against that. While this type of education and training will go far towards showing employers that you understand the technology that you’re working with (in addition to actually being able to complete your daily duties), it is certification that looks best on a resume’.
There are also other areas in which IT workers who are interested in cloud computing can explore, one of which is extremely valuable. I’m speaking of course about IaaS specialist training and certification. For all intents and purposes, it looks like IaaS (Infrastructure-as-a-Service) is going to serve as the flagship model for businesses who want to utilize cloud computing but want to employ their own IT department to do so. In a nutshell, IaaS is arguably the most IT career-friendly forms of cloud computing out there. Quite simply, all of the fears of years gone past about cloud computing making IT jobs redundant have been laid to rest by the emergence of IaaS (thankfully).
For those that are currently (or soon to be) employed in an IT-like capacity, it’s imperative that you explore and adapt some form of cloud computing education so that you’ll be better prepared. Employers are turning to the cloud, so are governments, universities and just about every other organization you can think of; you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to realize that this will create a demand for IT pros with cloud-specific skills. For those that realize this and capitalize on it now a much brighter future awaits.