As an IT professional, are you as upwardly mobile as you used to be? Or do you feel like you never really got off of the ground? There could be various things at play here, but the solution is relatively simple – you need to get with the times! Here are some tips for starting anew, as well as the qualities you want to make sure you have for best success.
The Curse
If there’s anything out there that’ll crush your IT career, it’s a stale resume. It looked pretty impressive a few years ago, but now it ends up at the bottom of the pile in any HR department.
The IT professional must evolve. If you want to be a developer, it’s pretty much a given that you’ll know Javascript, CSS, and the like. But how long has it been since you’ve even revisited the basics? Would another pro consider you full-stack? What else have you added onto your CV? If it’s been three years since your resume has had a facelift, you’re slacking, and aren’t in the right spot to compete for better positions.
If you don’t know where to begin with respect to new certifications and conferences, at least sharpen your IT skills with proper training. Video content, exercises, and practice tests are the perfect way to measure where you’re at if you feel you’re fading into the background.
The Right Stuff
Looking great on paper and staying updated on key skills can get your foot in the door. While your actual work is always the deciding factor, there are a few other qualities you need to stand out and become a leader in your field:
- Solutions. On any given day, ask yourself “What could go wrong?” and work out how you’d fix it. Imagine implementing that solution when tensions are high, or there’s a lot at stake. If you can deploy solutions quickly, with a certain amount of confidence, you’re on your way to becoming indispensable.
- Knowledge beyond your expertise. Even if it’s technically someone else’s responsibility, become familiar with positions adjacent to yours. This allows you to be a supportive team member during those times when departments need to communicate and work together.
- Initiative. In larger organizations, IT staff can feel like they’re at arm’s length. They don’t always work the same hours as others, and their work space might be far removed from everyone else’s. This means that you can’t always count on someone else to run the show. You have to be able to anticipate problems, meet deadlines, and if applicable, delegate.
- An incredibly sharp eye. This ties into anticipating problems and implementing solutions, except it applies to everything you do at work. How you handle the finer details on a daily basis determines major outcomes.
Sometimes a refresher course is all it takes to get reinvigorated on the job. As you revisit these skills, you’ll pick up changes that have occurred in the past few years, expanding your solutions toolkit. With your focus on evolving, taking charge, and spotting snags before they occur, you can revamp your career before the end of the year.
Founder Dinis Guarda
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