If you’re considering a cyber career circuit in the tech industry, you’ll want to be sure you’re putting your best foot forward. Though the tech industry is booming, it can also be very competitive. New graduates or applicants without a traditionally tech-based background may find themselves struggling to stay ahead of the competition. Luckily, you don’t have to take your chances every time you apply for a job.
By targeting the industry’s most wanted attributes, you can organically increase your chance of landing a job. Of the many skills you should cultivate to improve your chances of getting hired, a few stand out as the most relevant to employers in 2023.
Familiarity with CNCF Open-Source Projects
Source: idgesg.net
Cloud Native Computing Foundation (or CNCF) projects invite collaboration and community amongst developers. You should be able to demonstrate that you know some of these significant projects, such as Kubernetes, Envoy, and Prometheus. Furthermore, you should know about their associated management platforms, such as these products for Kubernetes distributions.
Knowing current trends in technology like cloud-native applications demonstrates your investment in your field. The open-source nature of these projects allows you to explore them without tremendous financial commitment.
Fluency in Several Popular Programming Languages
Although which programming languages are best to learn is a topic under constant debate, you may want to look into which languages are most popular right now. Certainly, Python is a consistent winner, with C/C++, Java, Visual Basic, and JavaScript coming near the top of the list.
Tech industry jobs are often achievable with self-teaching, but you may also want to look into choosing a university program for software engineering. Some universities offer online programs, so even if you’re in a different phase of your life than the traditional college age, you can skill acquire the certifications you need to land a job in this growing industry.
Experience with Data Science Topics
Source: edx.org
Data literacy is becoming an increasingly crucial skill in the tech industry. At the very least, data literacy requires a conceptual understanding of representing and interpreting data. However, if this area is a point of interest for you, you might consider researching more in-depth data science tools and technologies.
Understanding Cybersecurity Best Practices
Cybersecurity is another growing field you would be well advised to brush upon. The good news here is that you do not need to hack anything genuinely to learn about exploiting and thus avoiding the exploitation of security vulnerabilities. There are plenty of online tools to help you hack ethically and learn from personal experience without the risk of legal trouble. If you learn to hack ethically, you can land a job hacking client systems on purpose in order to identify their vulnerabilities and help other cybersecurity experts patch the affected networks.
UI/UX Design Skills
Source: itprotoday.com
Though perhaps less coding-intense than the previously listed skills, UI/UX design is still a prominent tech field and in no short demand. Every app or piece of software needs to consider its end-users experience to be successful. These skills might be of particular use to you if you enjoy design or more creative work but want to incorporate that interest into a high-tech career.
Familiarity with Digital Marketing Skills
Digital marketing skills can include several topics, but the chief among them are SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and social media skills. As with UI/UX design, digital marketing can be looked down upon as encompassing “softer” skills, but the demand for SEO and social media skills remains high.
Also Read: 6 Steps to Developing an Impenetrable Cybersecurity Strategy
Soft Skills
Source: cloudfront.net
You could be highly technically skilled but lose out on a role in a tech job because you failed to make a good impression on the interviewer. Be sure to invest in skills like networking and tweaking your resume and interview skills so that you might more easily land a tech-sector job. Having the most impressive portfolio or skillset in the world won’t help you very much if you come off as awkward and standoffish in your interview, or if your email communication isn’t up to snuff.
Before You Go
These seven skills should help you stand out from the crowd when applying for tech sector jobs. Every employer will have their own list of prioritized attributes, but these traits take the cake for most desirable in the tech sector right now. Above all, remember that both technical skills and soft skills matter to employers. Armed with SQL and a positive attitude, you may just land your dream job.