If you want to work in a fast-paced environment and keep at the cutting-edge of new technologies, then you absolutely must consider an information technology (IT) career.
Information technology is a term that dates back to the late 1970s and refers to the processing of information (data) by computers.
Computers way back in the 1950s and 1960s were developing from calculation machines to those that could have direct office applications and the development of natural language programming was a key milestone in shaping the future of information technology.
In essence, early computing programming jobs required a background in mathematics and other roles that followed during the development of electronic computers in the 1960s added the skills of electrical and mechanical engineering, but as computers evolved, an “interpreter” capability emerged — in the form of a program which you can think of as the first type of computer operating system.
This allowed the translation of basic instruction or assembly languages into machine instruction code.
Next came the development of programming languages such as FORTRAN and COBOL, bringing in a new dimension of scientific and business applications to computing and the birth of information technology as we know it today.
Engineering and science continued to advance technology and programmers, analysts, and other business-critical skillsets continued to develop leading the industry to where we are today.
The future looks even more exciting — especially with the development of quantum computing and a host of other technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), and blockchain.
There is one other element that is becoming more and more essential as technology is developing and that is security and cybersecurity is one area to look at when considering a career in information technology, but we will talk more about that later when I list some key companies to look at.
Careers in information technology
There is one aspect of technology that is driving CEOs, scientists, computer experts, and mathematicians (among many others) crazy and that is the sheer amount of data that is being generated in the world of business today.
And that is down to the massive advances we have experienced in technology since the early days of the “calculation machines.”
Data is information and information is key…but that information has to be collated, stored, and analyzed.
But that analysis is the key — entrepreneurs and businessmen like myself can use this data to power innovation and larger companies can use it to streamline operations and also maintain their competitive edge.
The more information you have, the better decisions you can make, and let’s not forget the industry we are talking about:
Information technology.
I am a great believer in simplicity and especially when it comes down to technology and for me, the terminology, language, or “industry speak,” gives the clue.
Just like “hyper-converged technology infrastructure.”
I will talk more about the company that has defined the term later, but I am making a different point here and this may help all of you students out there:
Break the terminology down and we have:
“Hyper” — too much, above, greater, beyond.
“Converged” — to come together, to reach the same point,
“Technology” — You know that one!
Back to careers.
As you can imaging, there are a huge amount of career opportunities in this field and it would take a book to cover them all, so I am going to cover some of these by looking at what I believe looks to be the type of companies to work for if you are in the industry.
Also, if you are at school, then you should seriously consider a career in information technology and a great way to get started is to study computer science and the one subject many of us love to hate…mathematics.
I have been involved with information technology since I first worked as a recruitment consultant way back in the 1980s and then when I founded my own global technology staffing company and later when I co-founded a software company in the early 2000s with a mathematician and engineer.
This has allowed me to see varying sides of the industry — finding jobs for highly-skilled people, directly working with computer programmers, applied mathematicians, and having my own IT infrastructure in my companies.
Take a look at this article: “The 10 Most Important Skills for IT in 2020.”
And you can start to put together your own career development plan, to land a job in one of these sectors and if you at the start of your career, then make sure you have a plan.
Now, there are other roles within IT that do not require a great deal of technical knowledge or a technology specialty.
Take the area of sales for example — there are many people within the areas of sales and customer service who would make excellent technology salespeople.
Remember that all of this technology has to be shaped and delivered into the organizations that use it and it also has to be supported, by both technical and services people.
There are huge opportunities for salespeople both existing of just starting out when it comes to working in information technology.
Take a look at this article: “Sales careers: How to land a lucrative job in sales.”
Now I am going to take a look at 3 companies that caught my eye and I will tell you that I have no affiliation with these companies and I am simply looking at them because I believe they would have been companies I would have seriously considered working for.
And in my case, it would have been from a sales perspective…and they all have compelling value propositions!
Anyone looking for a career today should start to target themselves to the companies they would like to work for and look to create their own opportunities.
A Nutanix career
Nutanix operate within the hyper-converged infrastructure market and looking at the “what they do” component of their website, it says the following:
“We help our customers modernize their datacenters and run at any scale, on-prem and in the cloud.”
It goes on to explain:
“Nutanix software unifies private, public, and distributed clouds, and empowers IT to deliver applications and data to power their business.”
I love it!
But it’s the careers section of their website that really grabs my attention:
“Dreamers, Believers and Builders Wanted.”
And then:
“Nutanix is the leading cloud software company disrupting the multi billion dollar datacenter space.”
When you get to the “Culture” section of the careers section, you see:
“At Nutanix we’re guided by 4 values: Hungry, Humble, Honest with Heart. But we don’t want to just have values — we want to live them. With that in mind, we’ve created 12 culture principles — values in action — to guide the ways we work and interact.
I could go on…but the point is that this is a company working in a very in-demand space and it’s enticing people to join them.
I would definitely add them to your target list of companies that you want to work for….on face value that is!
A career with FIREEYE
FIREEYE is all about cybersecurity and in particular cyber intelligence.
You can’t help but take notice of a statement that reads:
“FIREEYE knows more about cyberthreats than anyone.”
They go on to add:
“And over 2 decades of experience and more than one million hours per year on the front lines of cyber attacks.”
I would be compelled to talk to this company as a result of reading the above and I would certainly consider them as a target company to work for.
If you look at the section “why FIREEYE,” then you see:
“Frontline Human Expertise
Our industry-recognized threat researchers, malware analysts, intelligence analysts, and investigators live on the front lines of cyber conflict every day.
Unique Learning System
This frontline knowledge guides the design of our innovative technology solutions to ensure they always address evolving threats and tactics.
Field-Proven Solutions
Some of our most demanding customers are our own field experts, who deploy our solutions in real-world environments against active threats. That’s how we know they’ll protect you in yours”.
It’s a compelling offering and a company definitely worth considering.
A Netjets career
I had to go outside of the pure IT industry for this one!
If you take a look at their information technology careers page, you will see the following statement”
“Netjets is investing in information technology like never before — and it’s not only requisite, it is also one of the ways in which we continue to lead the private aviation industry. Our Innovation Lab and ongoing cloud migration exemplify initiatives spearheaded by IT that assess end-to-end development of the business, covering everything from Owner-facing technology to internal necessities.”
And they are a Berkshire-Hathaway company to go with it!
And if you don’t know:
The pioneer and worldwide leader in shared aircraft ownership
NetJets® Inc, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is the worldwide leader in private aviation. We own, manage, and operate the largest and most diverse private jet fleet in the world.
NetJets began in 1964 as the first aircraft charter company. In 1986, we pioneered the concept of fractional aircraft ownership, offering individuals and businesses all the benefits of whole aircraft ownership and more, at a fraction of the cost. Today, NetJets offers a full range of private aviation solutions to satisfy almost every travel need, including the NetJets Share™ and the NetJets Private Jet Card in Europe and other Jet Card programs in the United States.
NetJets also offers aircraft management and on-demand charter services through its subsidiary, Executive Jet® Management.
At NetJets, each employee owns his or her own career. We support career ownership through a framework that improves role clarity and offers transparency in professional development opportunities throughout the business. Employees and managers are empowered to have productive, meaningful conversations about performance and career goals.
Conclusion
We have come a long way since the birth of the term “information technology” and we have seen a transition from huge calculation machines to powerful business and consumer information systems.
This has only been possible because people have had a willingness to enter new industries and forge new careers.
Careers in information technology offer a tremendous opportunity and it’s one that you should seriously consider and in any capacity.
If you want to talk further on the subject, then please get in touch with me.
After an entrepreneurial and business career spanning nearly forty years, I have made it my mission to help others in the areas that I know best.
neiljcfranklin@gmail.com
Neil Franklin
career advancement cybersecurity career datascience career information technology careers
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