The Top IT Skills to Master in 2021

It’s renew or die in the world of technology. As an IT expert, you must always keep your eyes peeled for the new top IT skills that will help you stay relevant and advance your career. But the constant evolution of IT tools and the shifting business climate brought about by the pandemic can make it difficult. For example to decide where to focus your upskilling efforts in the year ahead.

While softer skills like communication and time management are life-long partners of success; technical knowledge needs to be periodically revisited and updated to keep up with enterprise trends. The rise of data science, the AI boom and the strong momentum of cloud computing are all setting the agenda for the most in-demand IT skills.

So, where to begin? This list is a good starting point for anyone looking to strengthen their CV/resume or redirect their career.

Top IT skills:

Python

This programming language has come a long way since its inception in the late 1980s. Online learning platform O’Reilly recently found Python to be the leading language amongst the developer community. Propelled by its data science and machine learning applications; Python is also favoured by coders for its easy-to-read syntax and quick implementation.   

Looking to get your feet wet? Here are some Python projects to try, from beginner to advanced.

SQL

Structured Query Language (SQL) is a domain-specific language for handling data stored in a relational database management system – a database structured in rows and columns in which all data points are related to one another.

Developers and database administrators use the language’s code to perform actions such as inserting, retrieving and deleting data. Thanks to its database structure, SQL also allows for quick data processing and is used by some of the most popular database management systems, like Oracle’s MySQL or Microsoft’s SQL Server. 

Java

Another beloved programming language, Java turned 25 last year. Jumping to fame for its “write once, run anywhere” portability,; open-source language is still one of the top 3 most popular programming languages out there.

In addition, Java keeps being updated and refined on a regular basis. Having expanded into a vast ecosystem of tools that range from the Spring Framework to enterprise application servers.

AWS and Microsoft Azure

Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure are the two leading cloud platforms today. While AWS holds the pole position, Azure has made great strides in recent times and is now a solid number 2. Given cloud computing’s importance in the post-COVID business world. And being proficient in any of these cloud environments can prove very beneficial to your career prospects.  

Would you like to know about life in the cloud? Check out our Microsoft Azure career overview and discover all the paths you could take.

Docker

Scalability. Easy and fast deployment. Security. Those are just some of the benefits of containerization, and Docker is the king of containers.

Knowing your way around the platform and app containerization have become a must for future-oriented developers and IT teams. Containers allow developers to create and deploy applications in self-containing units that can run on any computer environment efficiently and without bugs; a huge advantage over the more traditional virtualization.

Need tips on how to find a job in IT? Check out our IT job hunting guide.