Although it underpins your business, IT can be one of the most unforgiving work environments for your workers to be in because there is so much uncertainty regarding the future of any one given skill set.
At the same time, because the bulk of IT workers are committed to constantly updating their skill sets, most companies are able to field fairly formidable staffs from a technical standpoint. The key for most managers that are considering hiring more IT workers is to understand the basket of skills that you will need to pick up to have the strongest hand after your new hire starts reporting to work.
With regard to divining which skills will be necessary, here are some IT hiring trends that are going out of style:
Local Implementation Specialists:
Over the past 5 years, the cloud environment on top of the conversion from desktop PCs to Flat Panel computing devices has created a world where the only specialists that you need are working on enhancing servers and application services as they appear online in the cloud. There is no longer a need for desktop specialists to work one on one with computer users locally in order to install things correctly.
At the same time, a lot of people that apply for work with your IT department will tout that type of skill or background because it was how IT was run in the past. One suggestion if you like their other skills and you are interviewing them is to ask them to tell you how their now non-applicable skills can be applied to the environment that you currently have. You might find that they have some pretty creative answers that can give you a better picture of how they will turn out as an employee.
Network Monitors:
Most networks that are onsite in a business these days are focused on providing Internet access to the end user no matter where they are in the building. If your organization is used to working with people that have monitored using TAP networking or other types of LAN-specific metrics, you will likely find that the skills sets of the specialists that worked at large companies will no longer be of use to you in some respects. On the other hand, if they have Bluetooth and Cloud monitoring experience, they can definitely help trim your networks in terms of the geographic layout and ensure that every corner of your business receives the best performance consistently.
There is an interesting mix of hardware and software skill set that goes into a good network monitoring person. In addition to Bluetooth and Cloud monitoring, if you look at RFID and actual protocol experience with mobile technologies, you will be helping yourself prosper for the next couple of years.
Tech Support Specialists:
Unless you are working with an application that is very private in terms of its functionality, there is no longer a real need to hire technical support specialists that cover your applications. The job type might make them responsible for some very important people in your organization, but most firms have either centralized their support teams somewhere globally or taken them offsite to a trusted vendor.
Companies like Intel are famous for perfecting a process and then outsourcing it so their own workers can actually be adding value. Since technical support processes were fairly perfect in many respects a decade ago at most firms, it is pretty hard for many upper managers to justify keeping technical support specialists onsite.
IT Hiring is subject to change every quarter from a technical standpoint just like ACLS online renewal certificates change frequently- and that is the challenge that attracts many people that want to get involved. If you stay on top of the positions and skills that are likely on their way out, you can more effectively filter your next list of candidates.
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