10 Tech Jobs You Should Consider for a Lucrative Career

Today’s most innovative companies use digital transformation to drive business growth, streamline processes and target new markets. As a result, the demand for professionals who can lead digital transformation initiatives is multiplying.

These individuals use their knowledge of productivity processes to manage everything from inventory and suppliers to workflow. For example, operations management professionals help companies operate more efficiently and effectively. They analyze processes and identify ways to reduce costs without sacrificing quality or service.

With the pace of technological innovation accelerating and digital transformation reaching every industry, a career in technology is very attractive. The reality is that the demand for tech professionals continues to grow in both the private and public sectors. In fact, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in technology is projected to increase by 13% by 2030. Let’s explore what a path in technology can look like for you.

Why pursue a career in technology?

We’ve all read the headlines about how robots are coming for our jobs and how we need to retrain for new occupations, but the reality is that human employees will always need to oversee the technology that powers our world. Moreover, many businesses look to technology to transform how they serve their customers, conduct business and manage their operations.

Tech is an exciting field with great creativity, problem-solving and creative thinking potential. As a tech professional, you’ll work in an area where you’ll seek new and innovative ways to use technology to solve problems. Furthermore, you’ll create new ways of doing business and produce positive outcomes. As technology continues to mature and expand, so do the career options available to aspiring technology professionals.

Explore a STEM field

STEM stands for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Many technology jobs require training in one of these fields, even if they’re not strictly in the technology sector.

STEM fields of study are often connected to one another and are frequently recognized as essential for solving future problems and challenges. Many people benefit from exploring a career in STEM as these are fields of study that are essential to everyday life.

With STEM fields growing and expected to be in high demand, there are plenty of job opportunities. These fields also have high salaries, making pursuing a career in STEM a smart decision from a financial standpoint. If you are interested in a STEM career, you could explore options such as computer science, engineering, and research careers.

Develop employability skills

Technology pros are tasked with keeping up with the latest trends in their field and keeping their skills up to date. As you progress on your chosen path of study and prepare for your future career, you will need to identify critical employability skills expected across many industries. This will allow you to determine which technology-related fields are a good match for you. For example, some tech jobs require heavy analytical and problem-solving skills. A computer scientist’s job is to create an algorithm that solves a problem. As a result, this career path may be of interest to you.

There are a lot of issues in the world that need to be solved. Other employability skills entail critical thinking. Perhaps you are someone who thinks critically through a situation and comes to the correct conclusions. That is a highly valued skill in the tech world and the workplace.

If you are more of a people person, you likely have strong communication skills. There are plenty of roles for tech professionals in collaborative environments where clear and concise communication is vital. One example would be jobs in user experience (UX).

Build skills and experience

As you explore careers in technology, you have the chance to develop and further your skills through study. While in the past, further education may have been inaccessible to individuals who needed to work full time or were supporting a family, the rise in digital learning and online courses means that anyone can make studying work for them. Working towards a degree such as a master in operations management online gives you the opportunity to learn from accredited experts and build a portfolio of transferable skills that will help you progress in your chosen IT field. The ability to specialize and focus on areas that interest you the most means that this is a great choice for mature students who want to return to education. Furthermore, while online education is sometimes seen as a more individual-oriented form of study, you will still be working alongside other students from a range of different backgrounds. The ability to network (albeit virtually) with your peers in the IT sector will present you with an array of different experiences, viewpoints, and future contacts in the field.

Watch out for internship opportunities

As you prepare for a job in tech, you may also have the chance to gain valuable experience through a paid internship program. In an internship program, a company hosts you as an employee for a short period. This often happens during a summer or a semester. During that time, you’ll gain valuable hands-on experience in the industry and earn money to help offset your expenses. Internship programs are a great way to gain vital experience in technology and can also help those changing careers. For example, you can test different fields for a short period to determine which industries you want to commit to in the long term.

Be on the leading edge of change in tech and society

Technology is constantly changing and evolving, which puts technologists on the leading edge of change. Whether you work in the private or public sector, you have the opportunity to help drive and direct innovation and transformation. If you like to be on the cutting edge, technology is the perfect field for you. Moreover, it’s a career path that keeps you challenged and engaged, and that allows you to push your skills and knowledge to the limit. You’ll also have the opportunity to see how your work impacts society and makes a real difference.

Operations management uses tech to drive business

Before we start on our 10 tech jobs for a lucrative career, let’s explore another lucrative field that is tech-adjacent: operations management. It’s an excellent career for people who want a hand in multiple aspects of a business. Moreover, for those with an advanced degree, such as a master’s degree, it’s a highly lucrative path. For example, you could earn a mean annual wage of $115,250, depending on your position.

Operations management pros are responsible for designing and overseeing the implementation of processes, such as supply chain management, inventory management, and procurement. They also monitor and analyze performance and make adjustments as needed. In short, operations managers manage a company’s business processes. This could include inventory and procurement, shipping and delivery, human resource management, and financial systems. Operations managers are typically responsible for other areas as well, including employee training and development, creating budgets, and developing strategies and tactics.

The tasks and responsibilities of an operations manager vary by industry, but they are generally responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of a company. To do so, operations managers analyze the current state of operations to identify potential problems and inefficiencies and devise solutions to correct them. It’s helpful to have fluency in mathematics, statistics, and data analysis. In operations, you’ll use data to make decisions, and you need to know how to interpret it correctly.

The tech world is one of the fastest growing and most competitive industries today. With the advent of AI, machine learning, and other cutting-edge technologies, tech professionals now have more career opportunities. Here is a look at 10 high-paying tech jobs.

1. Mobile developer

Mobile developers create apps for mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets. You’ll need to know a programming language, and you can specialize in either Android or iOS (the dominant platforms). You can also specialize in a specific type of app. For example, you can develop gaming apps or social media apps. Mobile developers are in high demand right now. In fact, the need for these skills is so high that many companies hire contractors to do the work on a long-term basis. Moreover, demand for mobile developers is only expected to increase.

2. Software developer

Software developers create computer programs that can solve a variety of business problems. Their work ranges from designing an app to manage inventory to building a program that processes millions of customer transactions. Software developers need strong critical thinking skills to break down business problems into smaller pieces and create efficient solutions. They also need technical skills in at least one programming language.

3. Web developer

Web developers design and build websites for clients. They need to understand both the design side of the website as well as the code behind it. In addition, they need to understand the business side of their projects, including their target audience’s goals and overall purpose. Web developers use many tools to create websites. For example, they use programming languages, website builders, and design tools.

4. Computer programmer

Computer programmers write instructions in computer code. This code is then compiled into a program that a computer executes. There are many types of programmers. For example, programmers exist in networking, software development, database administration, and artificial intelligence. Computer programmers need strong technical skills in programming languages. Thanks to their expertise, they earn a high annual salary.

Photo by Clément Hélardot on Unsplash

5. Computer systems analyst

Computer systems analysts translate business or organizational issues into a set of programs or systems aimed at improving efficiency and productivity. Computer systems analysts need to have strong knowledge of the business and the processes it uses. They also need computer programming, database management, and information architecture skills.

6. Data scientist

The data scientist is one of the most in-demand jobs in technology. The demand for data scientists is high, yet many people don’t know what exactly they do. The job of a data scientist is to mine data in search of insights that can help an organization operate more efficiently and make better business decisions. Working as a data scientist usually requires at least a bachelor’s degree in a technical field, such as computer science or engineering.

7. Software Quality Assurance professional

Software quality assurance (SQAs) jobs have emerged thanks to the growing popularity of agile software development. SQAs ensure that the software built meets the project’s business and technical requirements. SQAs may work in many industries and use various technologies but are particularly prominent in software development. This career path often requires a bachelor’s degree in engineering or computer science.

8. Network administrators and engineers

Network administrators are responsible for managing an organization’s computer network, while network engineers build these networks. Network engineers usually have a higher level of technical skill and are often responsible for designing a network from scratch. In addition to a solid technical background, these occupations require strong customer service skills. Network engineers and administrators often communicate with other departments in the company about network performance and other issues.

9. Information security technician

Information security specialists have the responsibility of protecting an organization’s technological assets from threats such as cyberattacks. It is their job to protect a company from internal and external threats, such as hackers. They install security software, review suspicious activity, and recommend security measures. This job typically requires a bachelor’s degree and experience in information security. Many information security specialists hold certifications in cybersecurity or risk management.

10. Program analyst

Program analysts create programs that automate processes and help businesses run more efficiently. They may make a program to schedule employees or automatically track inventory, for example. Program analysis is expected to grow over the next decade as businesses look for more efficient ways to run their operations. Program analysts research a company’s strategy and procedures and use that insight to make recommendations or create improvement plans.

User experience designers and human factors engineers

The jobs mentioned above focus heavily on technology. However, there’s another path for people who like exploring human behavior. User experience (UX) designers and human factors engineers use technology to make products more usable and easier to operate. In other words, although they use technology, their primary focus is the customer or end user. The job outlook for both fields is robust and significantly above average.

The amount of technology used in all industries has increased dramatically in recent years. As a result, user experience designers and human factors engineers are in high demand as companies are looking to technology to solve critical challenges. For example, they may want to know how to get consumers to buy more products online or how to improve the way their employees work. That’s where the expertise of UX designers and human factors engineers comes into play.

The untold story: The career outlook for technology jobs

Technology is transforming every sector of the economy, and this is spurring on the creation of many new job roles. These positions are often called “tech jobs” because they involve technology. However, this doesn’t give you a complete picture of what it’s like to work in tech, nor does it truly reflect what your career prospects might be. In short, there’s a full range of job opportunities that only grows each year.

Traditional thinking leads people to believe that there are only so many tech jobs, such as software developers, engineers, and programmers. However, with the evolution of technology, new careers are constantly emerging. Today, we need data scientists, security specialists, user experience designers, and network administrators. In reality, tech touches almost every industry, from agriculture to real estate and everything in between.

The complete picture of the tech job market

We see an incredibly healthy job market when we look at all the tech jobs, many of which are in industries where tech has been applied for decades. As mentioned earlier, the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects employment in the tech sector to grow by 13%, so taking in the complete picture of the tech job market is vital. It gives us an expansive view of emerging jobs and what types of roles are being created.

These days, technology is used in many sectors that have not traditionally been considered tech industries. For example, modern tech is used in agriculture and financial services. Neither of these industries was regarded as technology-driven in the past. Healthcare is another field with a heavy reliance on tech. All you need to do is look at what happened with the pandemic and the rapid development of vaccines to see the potential of modern technology.

There is no question that the healthcare sector has transformed thanks to technology. As a result, many jobs in this field are tech jobs. For example, some people are pursuing careers in cloud technology for the sector, while others are seeking employment in the industry focusing on tech in health informatics (managing patient records and data). As technology continues to advance, we can expect to see many more tech-focused roles.

A bright future for jobs in technology

A career in technology is an exciting and rewarding pursuit. With digital transformation accelerating across industries and governments, the demand for technology professionals will continue to grow. Keep in mind that average salaries and projected growth rates can vary significantly depending on a specific company, your skill set, and other factors. When evaluating potential tech jobs, it’s essential to consider these factors.

As you explore a career in technology, remember that you can take many different paths and explore many fields of study. Additionally, technology is often a field where employees are allowed to explore creative problem-solving and creative thinking. Find out which companies in your area are hiring and which ones align with your interests and skills. From there, you can develop a plan to land a rewarding position in an industry where the future is always full of change and innovation.