It’s an understatement that the technology industry is booming. The recent explosion in remote working, the mass adoption of virtual tools like Zoom for both work and personal communications, and a huge uptick in online courses have all drawn our lives ever more deeply into technology.
The technology sector has long been considered the exclusive domain of the tech-savvy. Traditionally it was thought that only the likes of highly tech-trained and tech-skilled professions, like engineers, scientists, programmers and coders were employable in this area of the economy.
Tech isn’t just for techies anymore. If you’ve been considering a career change but aren’t a particularly technical person, there are some very compelling reasons to work in tech.
Wide variety of roles
There are countless non-technical roles required to keep technology functioning.
Roles such as graphic design, human resources, recruiting, accounting, marketing, sales, training, compliance, legal, project management, and office administration are all vital to the function of technology companies.
If you have skills and experience in areas like these and other non-technical professions, you’ll have no trouble finding roles.
Abundance of funding
Technology has always been a tremendous area of interest for venture capitalists and investors, and this is truer today than ever before. Everyone wants to get in on the ground floor of the “next big thing” that will take the market by storm.
Additionally, it’s a rare tech company that doesn’t need to fund its research, development and growth plans.
Many tech companies will reward their employees with equity in the company. If the company goes public, you could suddenly find your net worth becoming millions of dollars. This alone is a pretty good reason to work in tech!
Be part of the “next big thing”
Getting in early on the “next big thing” isn’t just good for investors. Tech companies around the world are doing amazing things. They develop products and services that are helping to battle climate change, solve crimes, restore health, and even empower the average person to start their own dream business.
They’re the people behind amazing things like blockchain technology, cryptocurrency, virtual and augmented reality, new ways of communicating, social media, search engines, and vaccines to prevent disease. All of this is one of the great reasons to work in tech: You get to be on the ground floor of the bleeding edge of innovation.
Future-proof your career
Technology isn’t going away any time soon! Another reason to work in tech is that the skills you learn and the experience you gain, even in a non-technical role, will equip you for progression and success as well as position you to be more attractive to other companies.
At the same time, continuous learning is encouraged and expected in tech, an industry in which the cliché “The only constant is change” is a reality. Seeking out and taking advantage of opportunities to learn and enhance your skills and experience will be a big advantage.
Useful skills for a career in tech
Just as there are multiple reasons to work in tech, there are many in-demand skills that will serve you well for a career in tech. Many of these are relatively easy to learn and obtaining them will give you a competitive advantage, regardless of your role. Here are just a few of these skills:
Data analytics
Also known as business intelligence, data analytics is one of the hottest jobs today. It starts with the volumes of raw data and metadata that is being collected by millions of companies.
This raw data is used to generate spreadsheets, reports, graphs, charts, and dashboards. This summarized and simplified information is used by business, operations, quality, and marketing teams to identify trends, give insights, and help them make data-driven decisions.
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Project management
Tech projects often have many moving parts. Every project has varying levels of complexity in timelines, resources, budgets, deliverables, and schedules that must all be coordinated and managed. Even if you’re not building a product yourself, understanding how product development teams deliver new products to market is important.
Learning the Agile project management methodology and developing broader project manager skills can help you have a successful project management career in tech.
Managing remote teams
Teams are the backbone of all technology projects. Many companies have teams that are spread across several time zones or around the world. Managing remote teams is a skill that is vital to tech projects, but also for supporting, motivating and developing your team members when you’re not working face-to-face.
Being an expert user of team communication and collaboration software and apps like Slack, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams is even more valuable. In the past few years, these virtual communication tools have been adopted by companies of all sizes and industries and have become vital to their operations.
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Basic coding
With new software and apps being created daily, coding and programming are some of the most high-demand skills in the technology industry. But while coding and programming are essential for developing complex, sophisticated software and apps, you don’t need to be a coding wizard if you’re looking for reasons to work in tech.
Knowledge of more basic coding, such as HTML, Microsoft Excel macros, Markdown, JavaScript, and several others is valuable in many departments in essentially all tech companies, from accounting to digital marketing.
Subject matter expertise
This is a skill area with a lot of versatility in the tech industry. As a subject matter expert, you’ll be communicating technical concepts and information even if you don’t work with or build it directly.
It’s an essential sales skill for sales executives and business developers, because you need deep knowledge of your product and to be able to explain its features and benefits to a prospective customer.
As a technical recruiter, you must be able to review a candidate’s resume or CV, assess their skills and experience, and determine if the candidate is sufficiently qualified to present to the hiring manager for a potential interview.
The bottom line
The technology industry boom continues to grow at a blistering pace. While traditionally considered a field only for the professionally tech-savvy, opportunities for the not-so-tech-savvy are plentiful today.
There are many reasons to work in tech: a variety of available roles, an abundance of funding, being a part of the “next big thing,” and future-proofing your career. Many skills can be useful for a career in tech, and not all of them are overly technical. For example, understanding the different project management methodologies, managing remote teams, and developing subject matter expertise are all valuable skills in any tech company.
So remember, there are many great reasons to work in tech and you don’t have to be a techie to do so. If you are considering a career change, the technology industry might be a good fit for you!
