Month: June 2018

When it comes to IT, many people are under the misconception that all it requires to make it in the industry is good technical skills and a decent education. While these things certainly tend to help, they are just the tip of the iceberg in what’s required to land your dream job. The market for jobs in IT support, consulting, and managed IT service in Miami is highly competitive and requires more than just the things listed above to be able to succeed.

With this in mind, it is worthwhile to take a deeper look into some of the core skills outside of the technical aspects that are required in order to succeed in this space. While you certainly will still need to the skills required to get the job done, these tips will help you stand out amongst other applicants, and keep the job you land for a long time to come.

Persistence
As with any technical-oriented area, careers like IT support in Miami require you to be constantly paying attention to new changes within the industry. Technical fields move fast, so it can be hard to keep up with new trends and information. This moves over to your skillset as well, as the industry changes, you will need to learn how to use new tools and skills to accomplish your goals. In order to be able to thrive in an environment such as this, you’ll require persistence. Things will get overwhelming and tough, if you are the type to give up easily, this might not be the career for you.

Patience
Users, co-workers, and clients with less the adept technical knowledge can be more than frustrating to any IT professional. If you don’t have the patience to deal with mundane, boring questions, you will not last long in any IT area that requires you to interact with other people, which is more or less all of them. Due to this, you need to be approachable, nice, and easy to work with, or else you simply will not be offered new opportunities. This applies if you’re self-employed as well, as clients who don’t enjoy dealing with you will likely find someone else to do the job next time around.
Skills

As with any job or project you may try to approach, you’ll need the skillset to make it happen. In IT, this is a very vast and diverse area. It can be worthwhile to learn as many skills as you can, as knowing a little bit of everything will help you understand co-workers and produce better work. The people who work with you will be viewing you as a professional who knows what he’s doing inside and out. You need to be able to meet that expectation or the company you work for will find someone else who will. Get educated, go to school, and pursue certifications to prove your prowess in the field.

If you can master these areas, you’ll be well on your way to thriving in a great career within the IT industry. Learn the technical skills, personal skills, and communication skills required to excel in this area and you’ll come off as a much better option come hiring or promotion time.

In order to thrive in the IT field, you will need to employ hard work and a handful of key skills. While these are all essential to making a career work in IT, they are far from the only things needed. “Soft skills” are becoming more and more important within this industry, and those wishing to become employed in careers like IT consulting in Miami, would do well to improve in these areas.

While there are countless ways you can improve yourself in this area, these are some of the biggest factors for soft skills within the IT industry. While these are valued in this specific sector, it is worth noting that these skills will do you well in any career or project you pursue.

Practical Experience
Experience within the industry is always the place that shines the most when it comes to your resume. The more work you’ve done, the better you look to employers. In the technical fields, it is worth trying to become a sort of “jack of all trades”, knowing at least the basics in all the different technical areas will not only help you land that dream job but also be successful in your efforts in excelling at it.

Continued Education
Whether you’re gaining a new certification or just taking a course on Udemy or LinkedIn, continuing to learn and grow on your own is becoming increasingly valuable to careers of all types. This is especially true in the IT support in Miami, as this area is constantly evolving and changing. Take time to keep up with industry standards and new developments, as well as learning new core skills. Going out of your way to get, maintain and improve your knowledge and certifications will do wonders for your career.

Organization Skills
When it comes to dealing with complex technical aspects and large projects, proper organization is key. Good organizational habits, a tidy workspace, and proper time management are all skills needed to be able to thrive in the IT space. Additionally, they are crucial in order to work properly within a team, a reality many IT professionals face. Technical skills will allow you to excel at the job itself, but good organization will help you shine as a team member overall.

Communication Skills
IT professionals have sort of a reputation for being a little forward and brash. This is actually a bigger problem than many people tend to realize. If you are difficult to approach, your co-workers will be reluctant to try to communicate with you. This can cause friction within the workplace, delays in projects, and issues that linger longer than they need to. These are all things no employer wants to deal with. Whether you are talking to your boss, co-worker, or clients, it goes a long way if portray yourself as polite and approachable.

Project Management Skills
Projects are common within many IT careers, so you need to know how to properly handle managing them to really be able to succeed. Effective leadership, employee management, and solid teamwork skills can make all the difference between you and the other guy shooting for that next big promotion. Furthermore, the connections you’ll gain from these sorts of projects will pay you back ten-fold in the future.

These skills are useful to have in just about any industry you may be trying to break into, but they certainly have an emphasis placed on them within the IT industry. With so many people vying for those coveted positions, it is more than worthwhile to invest in the skills that will set you apart from the rest.

If you’re interested in any job in tech, like running a managed IT service in Miami, you’re in luck. There are more jobs than ever in these fields, and all types of companies need people to run them. However, if you’re unemployed, chances are it may not feel that way, as it rarely does for people on the outside looking in. You may be doing everything right, but have trouble getting your foot in the door. It’s important in situations like these that your resume is actively helping your efforts rather than hindering it. Here are some things you should look out for.

One thing to keep in mind when it comes to a tech resume versus another field is that even jobs that sound similar may require a whole different set of skills to work with. It’s important that when you apply for a job, you specify not just what technical expertise you have, but also relevant soft skills that may be important to the job. For example, let’s say you were applying for a job IT consulting in Miami. You would want to list your certifications, but it may also be worth it to mention relevant experience in leadership or communications. These are essential for a consultant to effectively merge into an existing workforce.

This belies a universal rule when it comes to resumes—always customize a resume for each situation. For example, if you are looking at a job that requires uses of certain software, display your relevant experience appropriately. If you have a past history of employment with major companies in the field, make sure that you display it as well. In some cases, it’s not what you put on the resume but what you don’t put. For example, saying something like Microsoft Word proficiency for an IT job really gives you the impression that you’re trying to pad your resume out.

Another thing to keep in mind is the importance of brevity when it comes to your resume. Tech, more than other fields, is constantly changing. Something that you list, even months ago, may not be as relevant as you think it is. A good tech resume is constantly changed to make sure the most relevant and recent points are added.

There’s also something to be said for presentation. Rather than a stark listing of your past history, you want to think like a hiring manager. What traits does this resume show that means this person will benefit the company? Ideally, show your daily duties and any proof you have that you directly benefitted your former workplace. This basically does the hiring manager’s job for them, and will probably increase your chances of that all-important-callback. If the job is competitive, everything helps.

Another thing you want to do is take advantage of any chance you have to personalize, appropriately, a cover letter is a valuable way to do that, plus you can use it to help establish a bit of a narrative for your resume.

The IT world is a burgeoning one, full of potential, from networks service in Miami to a variety of tech support jobs across the country, for just about any company. What is difficult to understand is how exactly to break into such a field, especially as things start to get more and more competitive. Here’s a look at the options on hand, whether you’re a student getting out of high school or someone looking to switch gears later in their career.

When it comes to IT, there are generally going to two main branching trees in terms of jobs, engineers, and mechanics. In essence, these are people who administrate existing systems, like with IT support in Miami or create new programs and products, such as a software developer. Some career paths may dabble in both, but this generally isn’t the case. It’s important to make this distinction because they require different skill sets.

For example, an administrator starts with basic repair and support and then may move on to rolling out operating systems or software additions for a company or business. As they get more experience, they may end up running an entire network or server, and then manage other people at that level. The most important traits here are problem-solving skills. By comparison, engineers come from computer science backgrounds and may have more of a solitary day than their administrator counterparts.

This will also guide your educational path. The good news is that a general computer science bachelor’s degree will work for both of these paths, though an engineer will want to focus on picking up knowledge of a few programming languages during their education. One issue both paths have to grapple with is the constantly-shifting nature of technology. Different platforms and programs can become obsolete at the drop of a hat. As a result, you want to make sure that along with your education, you take a look at relevant certifications in your field of choice. When it comes to earning power, nothing can drive up your asking price as quick as a certification in a hot area.

Speaking of earning power, when it comes to IT jobs, one may wonder how to make a transition from the classroom to the workplace. Like a lot of other careers, a relevant internship is a big help. If you can’t get one at a company, you may want to be a bit more resourceful. From small businesses to non-profits to other organizations, there are plenty of places that will be happy to have a student’s help with various IT tasks.

In addition, IT is a great side job for those with tech knowledge but without the ability to commit to full hours. Basic technical support, web design, or app development are skills in high demand, and you may be able to convert that into a nice resume stream for yourself. In addition, if you’re a student having trouble getting a full time IT job right away, this can be a nice way to keep your skills sharp during your search.