After 40 years of recruiting for technology roles, we have seen incredible advancements and changes within the industry. From the rise of the internet to the growing use of AI in shaping our future, it has always been an innovative and future-thinking sector to work in.
Reflecting on our experiences got us thinking about the industry's present and future and, notably, the types of roles in growing demand. So, here are our top five most popular jobs this year and roles that will define the future of business and technology.
Software developers apply mathematical and scientific principles to design, develop, audit, and maintain software applications. As a result, they play a vital role in creating digital solutions that we use in our everyday lives, from web-based systems and mobile apps to desktop software.
Due to the rate at which technology advances and the continual adjustment of organisations' strategies to these advancements, you'll work in a constantly evolving and innovative environment. As a result, you'll work closely with systems analysts/architects in creating, testing, and maintaining systems to ensure they meet a company's standards and requirements.
Typical roles and responsibilities of a software developer include the following:
Software developers are usually required to hold a bachelor's degree in related fields such as computer science, software development, engineering, and mathematics. Occasionally it is possible to enter the role without a related university degree. However, this is on a case-by-case basis, and you need to demonstrate that you have the required skills or the capacity to learn them.
As well as educational background, software developers are also required to have specific skills, these include:
With technology continuing to advance rapidly, career opportunities are growing. For ambitious and skilled developers who have the drive to develop their interpersonal and soft skills, there is a clear progression path into management roles.
An example of a career path for a software developer is as follows:
Whatever your career path, a career as a software developer is enriching, innovative, and ever-evolving. You will be at the forefront of driving technological advancements and improving the process and productivity of businesses and people worldwide.
Data analysts are experts in collecting vast volumes of complex data using specialist tools and turning it into a narrative. This data-driven narrative can make forecasts, spot trends, and help businesses and public and political organisations make better-informed decisions.
The opportunities for data analysts are vast and highly varied, as they are in high demand across a cross-section of industries. The job can take them from major investment banks on Wall Street to big tech companies in Silicon Valley, such as Google and Meta. They can also work in governments, education, healthcare, retail, marketing and many other sectors.
The roles and responsibilities of a data analyst include the following:
Many employers require data analysts to hold a bachelor's degree in a relevant subject, including the following:
However, as with software developers, there are cases where employers consider other non-relevant degrees. In this scenario, you must possess the relevant skills listed below. If you have a relevant or non-relevant degree, it is worth considering in both scenarios a postgraduate qualification. This should be in a related field, such as data science, science and analytics, big data, and business analytics.
Data analysts are required to hold several specific skills, including the following:
The career opportunities for data analysts are vast due to their ability to work in such a cross-section of industries and teams. Therefore, the chosen career path depends on the individual analyst's appetite for learning and ambitions. To highlight this, Aswini Thota, who is a lead data scientist at Bose Corporation, stated:
"Unlike many IT roles, data analysts interact and coordinate with several enterprise teams, such as product management, data engineering, data science, IT, sales, marketing, finance, etc. These diverse interactions provide numerous career tracks for data analysts."
The rise of technology has done many wonders for the world. It has helped us develop societies, improve our way of life, and explore outer space. However, the rise of technology also increases the chances of systems, networks, programs, data, and people being victims of cyber attacks. Cybercrime will incur a global cost of $10.5 trillion by 2025. To highlight the extent of this, it would make it the world's largest economy behind China and the US.
To protect themselves against these attacks, many businesses hire cyber security analysts to prevent, detect, and manage threats. Job titles can differ from company to company, including cyber intelligence analyst, security consultant, and security operation centre analyst.
A vast array of organisations across the private and public sectors hire analysts. You can work in security directly for the organisation or offer security consultancy or services to companies. Examples of organisations that you could work for include:
Unlike many IT jobs, entering the profession without a degree is possible. This can be done by starting an entry-level IT job and working up to a cybersecurity position by learning the required skills and gaining relevant experience and industry certifications.
Some employees do require a university degree in a related subject. The subjects required will vary from employer to employer. Here are a few common ones:
As with many other IT roles, you can enter the profession with a non-related degree if you have industry knowledge, possess some of the skills, and have the drive to learn. However, as you advance your career, your degree will become less critical, and what you have achieved professionally will be crucial.
The skills required for this role include the following:
The career path in cybersecurity can be split into three steps - entry-level, mid-level, and senior-level. Usually, entry-level positions are analyst roles.
From this, you can move up to mid-level and become a cyber security architect responsible for designing, creating, and maintaining security systems within an organisation's IT network.
The next stage, senior-level, would be becoming a cyber security engineer responsible for creating and implementing highly secure network solutions that can protect against potential cyber-attack threats.
As technology advances, so will the need for cyber security to protect businesses, organisations, and people. It is an industry that will continue to grow, and being a part of it will mean you have a career with many opportunities to carry out vital work.
Machine learning engineers are expert technical programmers who research, design, and create artificial intelligence (AI) systems with massive data sets to generate algorithms capable of learning and making predictions. In addition, each time the software operates, it can 'learn' from its results and carry out future operations to a higher degree of accuracy.
For these systems to be designed and function correctly, they need the machine learning engineer to continually assess, analyse, and organise data, carry out tests, and optimise the learning process to aid the development of high-performance machine learning models.
The key responsibilities of a machine learning engineer include the following:
Design, develop, and create machine learning systems, schemes, and models.
Carry out statistical analysis and use the results to improve the ML models.
Identification of differences in data distribution that could affect the performance of models in real-life scenarios.
The training and retraining of ML models and systems as required.
Ability to understand when results and findings can influence and decide business decisions.
The study, transformation, and conversion of data science prototypes.
Enhancing current ML libraries and frameworks.
Machine learning engineers are expected to have at least a master's degree and, in some cases, a PhD in a related field, such as computer science. Engineers are also expected to possess advanced knowledge of mathematics and data analysis.
They should also possess crucial skills, including the following:
Due to the extraordinary rise of AI technology, the demand for machine learning skills is growing. According to Linkedin, it is predicted to be one of the most sought-after tech positions moving forward. In addition, Forbes has indicated that the need for AI and machine learning skills will grow 71% by 2025.
Machine learning engineers work across a cross-section of industries, such as:
After you've gained extensive experience coding machine learning and/or statistical modelling-based solutions (the level of experience will vary for different organisations), you can become a senior machine learning engineer.
Cloud architects are responsible for creating, optimising, and maintaining cloud computing solutions for clients. Clients can include IT providers, cloud computing businesses, tech research companies, and IT departments.
Examples of components of cloud-based solutions that cloud architects work with are:
Key responsibilities of a cloud architect include:
Most cloud architects hold a bachelor's degree in related subjects such as computer science, engineering, strategic leadership and management, and computer and information technology. However, whilst it is not a requirement, it can be advantageous when entering the profession to hold a master's degree.
It is also a requirement that you hold several skills, including:
You can gain many certifications from a vast number of vendors that will help build your skills and knowledge and ensure they are up to date. Furthermore, holding certificates from different vendors can be advantageous as it can open up the choice of organisation you can work for. These vendors include IBM, Microsoft, AWS, and Google. You can discover more about the most popular certifications available here.
As digitalisation continues across all business sectors, cloud service needs increase. Therefore the demand for cloud architects to create and manage these infrastructures is also growing. Due to this, the career opportunities for cloud architects are vast.
A typical career path is as follows:
As a leading provider of specialist technology staffing solutions, we are ready to connect you with some of Europe's most prominent and respected tech businesses.
We want to know you, your requirements, and your career ambitions. We can use this information to provide you with the latest IT jobs that best meet your needs. We will then support you every step of the way in the recruitment process.
For more information about how we can support you, visit our dedicated candidates' page and speak to the team today.
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