The 12 Most Difficult IT Jobs for Employers to Fill

Matthew George | Monday, March 23, 2020

The 12 Most Difficult IT Jobs for Employers to Fill

The IT sector will be investing in key roles and IT jobs this year, especially those that focus on increasing operational efficiency and improving the customer experience. There is also a big push in spending on cybersecurity protections, transforming business processes and improving profitability. Focusing on these areas may require new talent, but the area of cybersecurity has been suffering from a huge skills shortage in recent years, and with the push to hire more professionals in IT jobs who have these skills, the shortage will likely become more pronounced. As for transforming processes and improving profitability, an important first step for IT businesses is to go back to the drawing board and think about how to redesign, implement and manage infrastructure as things evolve into a more cloud-based world. If you're looking for a role and find yourself asking "how do I find an IT job", it's good to know what specific roles and skills are in demand. Areas such as security are seeing a higher number of challenges due to the rise of new technologies, such as the hybrid cloud, and the shift from user-centric thinking to human-plus-machine thinking. Skills you'll need for popular IT brands including AWS, Oracle, IBM, VMware, or Mirantis for example are growing in demand as more companies move to the cloud. In other words, artificial intelligence (AI) — a continuously evolving technology in terms of its capabilities and availability — is growing in use for the building, analyzing and visualizing of data models.

There are also skills gaps when it comes to customer experience. This likely happens because companies are leading with security protocols when selling products, and their focus tends to be on skills and experience that align with what they’re selling, so other skills may be sidelined. To alleviate this and other skills gaps, there is scope for IT training, upskilling and reskilling, as well as hiring from a diverse pool of talent. Employers can start closing these knowledge gaps by sending employees to IT conferences or classroom training, or — as a more cost-effective option — introducing in-house training programs, such as private group training, immersive virtual learning with a live instructor or self-paced online learning modules.

According to the 2020 State of the CIO survey, employers have the most difficulty filling IT jobs in these 12 areas:

  1. Cybersecurity
  2. Data Science/Analytics
  3. AI/Machine Learning/Robotic Process Automation
  4. Cloud Services/Integration
  5. Legacy Technologies
  6. DevOps/DevSecOps/Agile Processes
  7. Internet of Things
  8. Cloud Architecture
  9. Design Thinking/User Experience
  10. Software Engineering
  11. Application Development
  12. Multi-Cloud Management

The Most Difficult IT Jobs to Fill

Our list of the 12 most difficult IT jobs for employers to fill outlines the salaries, types of roles available, and details about courses you can take to prepare yourself. If you're looking for virtual training, we have courses covering all of the subject areas in this list including SAP, VMware, AWS, IMB, and more. Our virtual training solutions allow you to benefit from real-time, on-line, instructor-led training from the convenience of your office or home. Keep reading to find out what jobs are the most highly sought after in the coming year. 

1.  Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity — also sometimes called “IT security” — encompasses security and protection against any form of cyber attack. An organization sets up various technologies, processes and practices to protect its IT assets, including networks, devices, software and, ultimately, data. Cybersecurity is a vital part of any good IT system, as cases of cybercrime continue increasing and criminals try to obtain sensitive data, such as customer credit card information. As companies enhance their security measures, cybercriminals become more sophisticated, so the need for good cybersecurity technicians is ongoing and stands at an all-time high. 

Jobs in this area include:

●       Cybersecurity graduate/junior

●       Cybersecurity engineer

●       Senior cybersecurity architect (inside IR35)

●       Cybersecurity analyst

●       Cybersecurity internal audit manager

●       Senior cybersecurity analyst

●       Cybersecurity architect

●       Second-line cybersecurity analyst

●       Cybersecurity senior consultant

●       Senior cybersecurity specialist

●       Senior Java developer – Cybersecurity

●       Senior cybersecurity engineer

●       Senior web developer –Cybersecurity

●       Cybersecurity incident response consultant

View Cybersecurity Training Courses

2.  Data Science/Analytics

“Data science” is the term given to the broad range of skills used by experts who extract meaning and usable insights from raw and structured data. Above all, their purpose is to find an answer to a question that we may not even know needs answering — it’s all about spotting patterns that can enhance business.The primary function of data analytics — which falls underneath data science — is to capture, collect and process data and perform statistical analysis on it to generate insights that can be used to help a business grow.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Junior data analyst

●       Graduate/junior data scientist

●       Data analyst

●       Data science and analytics director

●       Data engineer

●       Data scientist

●       Senior/lead data scientist

●       Data analyst – Marketing/retention

●       Data scientist (outside IR35)

●       Data scientist – Global big data lab

●       Senior strategic consultant – Data science and analytics

View Data Science Training Courses

View Analytics Training Courses

3.  AI/Machine Learning/Robotic Process Automation

AI focuses on building intelligent machines that have capabilities similar to humans, such as learning and speech recognition. A subsection of AI, machine learning revolves around the study of algorithms and statistics, which computers will self-learn and then use to develop statistical models to perform specific tasks without human intervention. Robotic process automation (RPA) occurs when a business uses software or AI to automate specific roles.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Junior machine learning engineer: RPA, Python, TensorFlow

●       AI/machine learning principal enterprise architect

●       Head of RPA program delivery

●       RPA developer

●       AI/machine learning principal enterprise architect

●       Senior web developer C++, C# or Java .NET and AI, RPA

●       Business development manager – RPA + intelligent automation

●       Document imaging senior web developer C++, C# or Java .NET and AI, RPA

View AI and Machine Learning Training Courses

4.  Cloud Services/Integration

Cloud services encompasses applications, resources and services that are made on demand from the cloud to enhance data storage and computer power. Cloud integration includes tools and technology that are used to connect many different applications, systems, etc., for real-time data exchange and the use of processes. The idea is that once fully integrated, all cloud services and resources can be accessed by multiple devices over the internet or a specific network.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Cloud engineer

●       Cloud solutions architect

●       Oracle platform-as-a-service integration developer

●       Azure developer

●       Digital services: Azure developer

●       Cloud integration architect

●       Consultant, cloud integration and API strategy, cloud engineering

●       Senior consultant, operations integration

●       Senior operations integration consultant – Global financial services

View Cloud Training Courses

5.  Legacy Technologies

“Legacy technology” refers to the previous way of doing things, as in, archaic or outdated systems, but are still in use. This can include dated methods, technologies, computer systems or application programs. A legacy system is typically used by a company for a long time, and is too fundamental to the business to be stopped, disrupted or integrated into newer technology.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Business development manager – Legacy systems support

●       Senior data migration lead – SAP, legacy, transformation, consultancy

●       Sales engineer, application modernization

●       Data conversion specialist

●       Integration developer (ETL) II or senior

●       Data services analyst

●       Data specialist

View all IT Courses

6.  DevOps/DevSecOps/Agile Processes

DevOps (development operations) combines development and operations teams to enhance communication and collaboration to speed up the process of developing products. DevSecOps (development security operations) integrates the security side of business into the DevOps process. The agile process helps to manage complex tasks by breaking down large processes and focusing on collaboration and customer feedback to create small but quick development releases.

Jobs in this area include:

●       DevSecOps/(DevSecOps) engineer

●       DevSecOps consultant/engineer

●       DevSecOps project lead with security clearance

●       Security architect (DevSecOps)

●       Application security engineer (DevSecOps)

●       Security architect DevSecOps, software, SOC, IAM, cloud, retail

View DevOps Training Courses

7.  Internet of Things

The internet of things (IoT) refers to the interconnectivity of interrelated computing systems over the internet. This includes any device and any mechanical and digital machine with a computer embedded into it, enabling the capability to send and receive data without the need for human manipulation.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Product manager – Software, IoT and apps

●       IoT security expert

●       Senior information security architect, IoT

●       IoT specialist solution architect

●       Head of IoT – Smart cities

●       Marketing manager – IoT

●       Standardization manager (consumer IoT)

●       Consultant – Industrial IoT

View IoT Training Courses

8.  Cloud Architecture

“Cloud architecture” is the term given to the many different components and subcomponents needed to effectively use cloud computing. These components include databases, software capabilities and networks, which have been specially designed to harness the cloud in order to provide a solution for various business needs. 

Jobs in this area include:

●       Cloud and infrastructure architect, AWS

●       Cloud architect

●       Cloud infrastructure architect – Oracle 936

●       Solution architect

●       Cloud solutions architect (AWS)

●       Platform architect/cloud architect

●       Google cloud architect

●       Service cloud architect

●       AWS cloud architect

●       Security architect, emerging technologies – Senior manager

View Cloud Training Courses

9.  Design Thinking/User Experience

Design thinking — a structural methodology for designing concepts — assists user experience (UX) developers in breaking down large and complicated problems into component parts, some of which may be unknown issues in terms of developing products. This process incorporates issues of design cognition as well as strategic and practical processes into the design thinking methodology. The purpose of design thinking is to provide a practical and logical innovative solution to solve whatever problem is presented.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Senior UX designer

●       Senior user interface (UI) designer

●       Senior product designer

●       Head of UX and design

●       UX/UI designer

●       Senior experience designer

●       UX and design undergraduate

●       Design lead

●       Interaction design lead

View Design UX Training Courses

10. Software Engineering

Falling under the broader term of “general engineering,” software engineering is a form of computer science in which developers use a systematic approach to the engineering and creation of new software technology. It is a form of systems engineering and is combined with general engineering in many disciplines. Software engineers combine their specialized knowledge of engineering and coding languages to produce better software packages, computer games and other various networks and integral systems. It is the applied use of software principles in practical and real terms that affect the world.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Software engineer

●       Graduate software engineer

●       Software developer

●       Software engineer – C++, Qt

●       Embedded software engineer

●       Robotic systems software engineer

●       Software developer – C#, MVC, SQL, Javascript

●       NFTS NMS software engineer

●       Systems engineer

●       Software engineer Jython

●       Electronics and software engineer

●       Software engineer – FX technology

●       Software engineer, machine learning

View Software Engineering Training Courses

11. Application Development

Application development is a branch of computer science in which software engineers are specifically employed to design, develop and roll out computer-based applications. In the business sense, app development entails the creation of computer programs to fulfill certain requirements, such as scheduling sales reports. A well-developed app designed with a specific purpose in mind will solve a problem internally, enabling a company to run more efficiently and cost-effectively.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Application development

●       Mobile application developer

●       Android mobile developer

●       Web applications developer

●       GIS web application developer, WorldPop spatial data infrastructure

●       C#/MVC E-commerce developer

●       Applications developer – SQL/Java

●       Senior C# application developer

●       C++ application developer

●       IT application developer

●       Retek application developer

●       Mobile application developer – iOS & Android

View Application Development Training Courses

12. Multi-Cloud Management

As implied by its name, multi-cloud management means that a user utilizes multiple clouds from different providers at once, helping to solve the problem of space and speed, as each cloud is used for a single and separate task. Multi-cloud management relocates information and workloads from one cloud to another, and allows for continuous, seamless operation of different applications and programs simultaneously.

Jobs in this area include:

●       Multi-cloud solutions marketing manager, NEMEA

●       Building software-embedded cloud services for a more efficient, scalable and profitable cloud business

●       Solution architect, multi-cloud, consulting

●       Multi-cloud engagement lead (AWS/AZURE/GCP)

●       Bridging multi-cloud deployments with Kubernetes

●       Adobe marketing cloud – Multi solutions consultant

Where to Start

With so many pathways to get into these 12 IT jobs employers are struggling to fill, it can be hard to know where to start. In many cases, there is a fair bit of overlap with other IT areas, so businesses would benefit from implementing in-house upskilling, reskilling and IT training programs for the staff they currently have. Programs like this help employees not only enhance the skills they need to excel in their role and propel business forward, but also explore new IT areas that may have higher skills gaps. It all starts with the right training.


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