IT Skills You Need To Advance Your Career

Ready to take the next step in your IT career? It takes a balanced mix of skills to succeed in information technology — from coding prowess and network administration know-how to communication skills and a creative mind. Find out the top soft skills and technical skills you’ll need to advance your IT career.

Getting that first IT job felt great. It made all that work breaking into the field worth it. But after a few years, the position feels less fulfilling than it once did. Most people feel like this at some point in their careers.

One of the ways to get that spark back in an IT career is to advance to a new position that presents new challenges. But what skills are employers looking for? Which ones make candidates stand out??

Below is a list of the top hard skills and top soft skills for tech jobs that could advance your IT career.?

Information Technology Industry Overview?

Before we dive into the top soft skills and technical skills for IT jobs, let’s take a big-picture look at the information technology industry and its many roles and career paths. Whether moving up within a particular discipline or shifting to another realm of IT altogether, the opportunities for advancement are seemingly limitless. Some of the most prominent positions in IT include:

• IT technician: Provides tech support for an organization’s computer systems.
• Support specialist: Analyzes and troubleshoots tech issues for clients, customers, or the company.
• Quality assurance tester: Tests software and hardware to ensure it is working well and safe to use.?
• Web developer: Creates and maintains websites.
• Information security specialist (sometimes called InfoSec): Tests websites to see how hackable they are and handles information security issues for clients and companies.??
• Computer programmer: Writes and modifies code for programs and apps.?
• Systems analyst: Provides tech design solutions to common business problems.
• Network engineer: Oversees computer networks to ensure optimal performance.
• Software engineer: Designs computer software.
• User experience (UX) designer: Creates and designs programs, apps, and websites that provide users with a meaningful and straightforward experience.
• Database administrator: Oversees storage and organization of data using specialized apps.?
• Data scientist: Solves complex problems and uses analytical skills to extract data.
• Computer scientist: Creates computer systems using robotics, science, and programming theories.??
• IT director: Heads up the IT department and oversees the department’s daily tasks.
• Chief information security officer (sometimes called CISCO): A corporate executive in charge of all things IT.?

What Skills Are Needed in the IT Industry?

An IT pro needs to have the technical skills core to their role, be it fluency in top programming languages or network administration know-how. But they also need soft skills like communication and people skills, as interacting with people is often such a big part of an IT pro’s day.

Here is a quick explainer of both types of skills and some examples.?

Technical Skills vs. Soft Skills

Soft skills and technical skills are quite different, but the best candidates possess a blend of both. Tech skills, sometimes called hard skills, comprise the specialized expertise one needs to perform a job’s core duties — think proficiency in a coding language like Python or mastery of a cloud computing platform such as Amazon Web Services.?

Technical skills are developed through education, experience, or training. People can earn degrees or certificates in them. Or the tech skills can be mastered at home. They often involve special apps, tools, or equipment.

Soft skills are personality traits or abilities that apply to more than just IT. Communication and problem-solving skills are prominent examples. If troubleshooting a security issue, the ability to communicate the issue and figure out how to fix it are key. And you may need to call on those problem-solving skills to come up with an outside-the-box solution.?

Let’s take a look at some of the hard skills and soft skills employers most covet:?

Top Technical Skills for IT Jobs

Valuable hard skills in information technology include:

• Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning: Coding AI that can incorporate new information into its process to perform its programmed function better.?
• Data science: Involves designing processes, such as writing algorithms or creating models, for collecting data.?
• Analytics: Involves analyzing data to uncover patterns and trends that help businesses make informed decisions.
• Programming: Programming in coding languages like Python, Java, or C++.

Popular programs IT professionals should be familiar with include:

• Shared ledgers: Blockchain
• Developing platforms: Docker, .Net
• Database servers: SQL Server, SQL
• Coding: Python, Java, JavaScript, HTML, CSS, C#, C, C++
• Software for tracking file changes: Git
• Project tracking: Scrum
• Cloud computing platforms: Amazon Web Services, Oracle, Azure
• Operating systems: Linux/Unix, Microsoft, iOS

You don’t need to master each app, coding language, or tool on this list. It’ll depend on the job.?

Top Soft Skills for IT Jobs

The top IT soft skills employers like are:?

• Communication: The ability to communicate well allows IT professionals to explain the issues they are fixing or what they have discovered.?
• Organization: Organized information makes it easier to communicate and spot IT issues and trends.?
• Analytical abilities: The ability to identify and solve complicated problems is an invaluable skill in IT.
• Creativity: Sometimes the solution to an IT situation is less straightforward. Creativity can bring solutions that work.?
• Project management: Some tasks in IT take a while to complete. Successful IT professionals need to manage projects well so they’ll know their progress at any moment.?
• Perseverance: This is the power to keep working until the issue is solved.?
• Problem-solving: People who love to solve puzzles make great IT professionals since both involve problem-solving skills.?
• Resourcefulness: Any professional needs a selection of tools that makes their job easier, and the field of IT is no different.
• Curiosity: People who wonder not just why something happens, but also how, make great candidates for the IT field. Curiosity drives them to find answers, and that’s a good trait to have.

Top Skills for an IT Job

A good candidate for career advancement in IT is anyone with many of the above skills. But a great one will have:

• Technical knowledge of the apps and tools they’ll use
• Coding knowledge
• Analytical and communication skills
• Creativity
• Project management abilities
• A mind that loves to problem-solve
• A toolbox packed with resources
• The flexibility to switch projects as needed
• The capability to work in teams
• The drive to learn new systems and programs

The Future of Information Technology?

IT professionals who want to advance their careers will be happy to know their field is growing rapidly. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), people with top soft and hard skills for tech jobs are in demand. The agency projects a 22% growth rate for jobs in the IT field from 2020 to 2030 The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reports that the 2020 median pay in the field was $110,140 a year, or about $52.95 per hour.?

But as you no doubt know, you can’t rely on the same skills that got you an entry-level IT job to move up in the field.?

As LinkedIn trainer Bob McIntosh , a career strategist at MassHire Lowell Career Center, says: “Don't stop learning . Don't become complacent.”?

Being in the IT field means constantly learning new tools, programming languages, and processes.?

Top Takeaways

10 IT Skills You Need To Advance Your Career

• Both soft and hard skills are needed to advance an IT career.
• The best candidates for advancement continue to learn new skills.?
• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that there will be a 22% increase in IT jobs from 2020 to 2030.?

(Reporting by NPD)