Cybersecurity, AI Most Sought after IT career in 2019

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It is no longer any news that tech talents are “hot-cakes” in the tech industry and the reason for this is not far-fetched- technology has become not just an essential part of any corporation but the backbone through which it runs. The increased interest is now being placed much more than ever on tech developments and the effect radiates down to affect demand for tech professionals. It has been established that across company sizes, the skills which rank highest in demand by organizations include expertise in cybersecurity, infrastructure hardware, end-user hardware, networking solutions, and software deployment.

Cybersecurity jobs have been on the growing demands for all industries and job openings have become higher for them and even steadily growing. Forbes.com estimated that the cybersecurity industry will grow from $75 billion to $170 billion by 2020 and by 2019, the demand for the cybersecurity workforce has been given a projected rise to 6 million. This anticipated prosperity in cybersecurity can be explained by cyber attacks which have become more common especially in manufacturing, healthcare, finance and government, these attacks have led to a lot of patient records compromised, several retail chains extorted financially and manufacturing operations disrupted, all of these factors have placed managers and executives of companies in a position to scout for skilled employees that can help prevent these attacks.

Going by comparing data by size of companies, large corporations who have greater than 5,000 employees have been shown to more likely seek AI expertise than their smaller counterparts and it is to no surprise when a survey showed that it is the second skill these organizations demand after security know-how. In 2019, there is a great projection that job outlook is promising for IT employees. This projection has thrown many IT professionals into polishing their skills which can boost their chances in landing themselves in one of these highly competitive and financially rewarding jobs and this is the same way in which large enterprises (most especially) are on a serious lookout for employees with specialized expertise in cybersecurity, AI and DevOps.

What this projected increase in the demand which has outstripped the supply for cybersecurity professional and AI means could be varied based on interest and focus of different bodies involved. For institutions of learning, it is a need to open up chances in different colleges for the offering of different degrees in cybersecurity as well as AI. For current tech professionals, it is a call for the augmentation of their skills so they could be positioned for this great opportunity for employment benefits, most especially because working as a cybersecurity professional and AI expert could mean a six-figure salary with an assurance of job-security and also excellent benefits and swift upward mobility.

In addition to having a cybersecurity certificate, other skills which are usually required by everyone interested in joining the cybersecurity workforce include communication skills, knowledge of scripts and programming tools, ability to access client’s security needs, a working knowledge of malicious codes, ability to recognize intruder techniques and a working knowledge of common network protocols.