Randstad USA, a provider of HR services and staffing, has singled outfull stack developer, big data engineer, security engineer, IoT architect, and VR/AR engineer as the big in-demand IT careers for 2017 .
In many of those cases, Randstad has tracked exploding demand -- anywhere from 45% to 117% more job listings year-over-year -- and listed skills and specializations that might not seem obvious at first glance.But some of these jobs are staple positions that would be tops in most any year, andRandstad's list is as notable for what's missing as what is present.
"Big data engineer" seems like an obvious on-fire specialty for the year, and other companies have reached the same conclusion. Staffing and recruiting firm Robert Halfsaw starting salaries for such positions range from $135,000 to $196,000. Randstad's estimates are more conservative -- $121,950 to $159,800 -- but the number of such jobs tracked by Randstad nearly doubled over the course of 2016.
Randstad also considers big data to be highly synonymous with sensitive data, as the certifications listed for that job type include secret and top secret clearances. Given that big data security is widely perceived to be a mess , it might be a good idea to start addressing that problem from the human side rather than the technology side.
Security engineer, a position for "develop[ing] systems to prevent data breaches and keep confidential information safe," has many of the same stipulations as well. While Randstad doesn't see salaries there as high ($145,750 tops for starters) and hasn't tracked anywhere near the amount of growth (only 15% over the last year), it did see slightly more jobs for that position, and in more markets.Full-stack developer isn't anyone's idea of a cutting-edge IT position, but according to Randstad it's made amajor jump in growth, with more than twice the number of listings over the past year. And while "full stack" may be in the job description, Randstad clearly believes the front end is pivotal; the skillset for the job prominently lists javascript, CSS, and HTML. It isn't clear if JavaScript in this case includes Node.js as well as browser-side development, but it wouldn't hurt to assume so.
The IoT (Internet of Things) is great in concept: A connected world! Smart devices everywhere! But in practice it'smessy,insecure, and -- most important here -- lacking for qualified, experienced people . This last is typical for any nascent or emerging field, and so Randstad has tracked more than a doubling of job offers for IoT architect over the past year. (Indeed.com has seensimilar movement.)
IoT's skillset is somewhat reminiscent of the full-stack developer set, as both backend (AWS) and frontend (UX) skills figure into the list. Randstad also expects IoT work to be in-the-field, hands-on work in potentially far-flung settings, as one of the recommended certifications is Water Safety Instructor.
Last on Randstad's list is VR/AR engineer, another emerging tech that enterprises and businesses are taking more seriously now that consumer-grade implementations are catching on. The jury's still out on what it'll be used for --data visualization seems like a contender -- but there's no question smart, skilled people will be needed to build those positions. Randstad only counted 45 percent more IoT job listings over the last year, and the pay is still conservative compared to the other fields mentioned here, but an increase is still an increase.
What's not in Randstad's top 5? Blockchain and machine learning, to name two oft-cited movers and shakers in modern IT. Blockchain tech is gradually disassociating itself from its long-standing default use case, bitcoin, especially asother uses for it come to the fore andbig-name IT firms invest in the underlying tech. But there hasn't yet been the kind of market-wide breakthrough in demand for it one has seen with other technologies.
Other job surveys of IT,like Indeed's, have shown Machine learning/AI-related tech leading the pack when it comes to emerging technologies. It's possible some of the work done in this field can be folded into the heading of "big data," especially since ML/AI rely on datasets and not just algorithms to do their magic. But this is one field that deserves to be singled out as it grows in both size and influence.
