20-04-2012, 05:05 PM
Global Knowledge
SP_TopITSkills2011.pdf (Size: 151.97 KB / Downloads: 40)
Introduction
During the economic downturn, many American companies experienced months of staff reductions through
layoffs and delays in hiring replacement workers for those who had retired or left voluntarily. Many of these
companies held off from performing upgrades to their current IT systems or delayed implementing new systems
altogether. That was the bad news. The good news for IT professionals is that the IT economic doldrums seem to
be changing. Companies appear to be ready to hire new workers again. Some have already started, as they need
skilled personnel for new endeavors, such as system upgrades or implementing new systems. Now that some
companies are looking to hire new IT personnel for 2011, which skills will be the most in demand?
Cloud Computing
In its simplest state, cloud computing is the delivery of hardware and application services over the Internet on
demand. This is done as an alternative to hosting and maintaining your own servers and application software. In
cloud computing, businesses only pay for the resources that they consume. Businesses that host services and applications
in the cloud improve overall computer utilization rates, as servers are running at or near full capacity
from clients connecting remotely. Cloud computing offers several models:
Virtualization
Virtualization is having multiple physical servers moved to a virtual machine environment. Virtualization vendors
such as Citrix, VMware, and Microsoft are making it possible for companies to improve the efficiency and
availability of IT resources and applications. Virtualization is being adopted by companies of all sizes as a means
to reduce costs through consolidation of servers and lower cooling requirements. Application Virtualization has
become very popular with businesses. Having the skill set to deploy applications that connect securely through a
browser is critical for companies that have numerous offices.
Voice
Pick your voice flavor of choice, Lync Server 2010, Polycom, Avaya, or Cisco to name but a few. They all require
highly skilled and knowledgeable people. This is even more so when trying to integrate conferencing or Unified
Messaging into the network. VoIP is growing rapidly. Businesses are demanding the integration of voice
with their messaging and conferencing networks. The problem is there just aren’t that many experienced voice
people, especially ones who are skilled in two or more platforms. If you happen to be a Cisco voice guru and
have also mastered the intricacies of Office Communications Server 2007 R2 Unified Messaging and
conferencing, then you are set!
Project Management
Project Managers are always in demand; this is especially for IT Project Managers. IT Project Managers must
have an understanding of the business on a larger scale as well as knowledge of the IT world. This skill set will
be in great demand as companies will be upgrading their IT environments next year.
Business Intelligence
Companies are constantly compiling, processing and maintaining vast amounts of data. Businesses will require
developers who can work with the business side and who also understand user requirements. These individuals
can develop the necessary codes and tools that can be delivered through user-friendly portals (think SharePoint).