Due to the high market demand that exists for professionals more related to software development, it is very common that the timelines and advertisements of all people who study or work in the IT field are taken by courses, articles, podcasts and all. type of content related to software development.
Associated with this demand, it is natural that a lot of content is generated in this regard, after all, this is what people are looking for. All this associated with the passage of a long time inserted in this type of reality, can end up causing, especially in people who are starting to study and/or work in the IT area, a mistaken impression of how comprehensive the IT market is.
In fact, while I was taking my technical course in information technology (focused on the development area) I couldn't have the slightest notion of all the options I had available as possible areas of activity for my future.
To some extent, I wouldn't say it was harmful, but it had a very big impact on my graduation decision for example.
This post aims to discuss a little this idea of what an IT professional really is, the possibilities of action, how comprehensive this market is, and more, to deconstruct this stereotype that some people have that IT is just software development, working in software houses and decide between learning Python, Java or C#.
It is a known fact that within any medium-sized or larger company a specific IT sector is simply indispensable. From the moment a company grows to the point of having a more complex internal network and/or starts using electronic equipment of the most diverse types, the demand for an internal IT sector in the company becomes something concrete.
The point of conversion is when it becomes more expensive and time-consuming for the business to rely on an external IT professional.
And while the stereotype that "IT == software development" is not so easy to find people who think that all companies have professionals in the field of software development.
A medium-sized company, whether from any area of operation in the market, has professionals specialized in software development, yes, but it also has database administrators, a good support team (both internal support and for external users), it also has people specializing in infrastructure, process management, computer networks and 'n' other functions besides the infamous software developer.
Another setback of this type of thinking is that people who are already established in other areas of the market and want to relocate as a professional moving to the IT area may feel a little frustrated, since the knowledge about software development it is something very specific to be studied (for example, it does not share matters with other areas of knowledge).
But as we will explain below, this is not quite the reality, within each of the IT areas we have specific skills that are shared with other knowledge such as knowledge about: administration, marketing, communication, among others.
Below, we will have some of the different areas of expertise available to an IT professional, we will also try to address a little bit about the technical specifics that are interesting for each area.
Process Management Area:
All companies, from the moment they have a larger number of people on their team, tend to intuitively create internal processes. Several times, not even these processes are defined in a meeting with the team where the best way to carry out each of them is defined. Thus, technology is the best way to not only map these processes, digitize them and make them much faster to be executed, thus saving time and money for the company.
Knowledge about BPM (Business Process Management) is extremely valuable to companies and is generally applied associated with the IT sector of companies.
To put on the table a more empirical experience about process management, at the stage I'm doing at the time of writing this post, I had my first personal contact with this area.
In fact it was a very big surprise, I didn't even imagine all the complexity of the existing processes within a large company, to see this applied to technology to improve the performance of these processes is something very interesting and it is certainly adding a lot of knowledge about it. process management, as to the functioning of the business world as a whole.
Some colleagues who accompany me in the process area, in addition to knowledge about the IT area, know a lot about business management, administration and related areas. Thus, if you are interested in this area or already work in it and are looking for a replacement, this can be an excellent opportunity to be analyzed.
Support Area:
Every IT sector, in any company, has a person or group responsible for supporting users. Both internal and external support. This area of IT is dedicated to helping users in different ways, both answering questions related to a computer system that is operating within the company, and answering users' calls regarding the most diverse procedures related to some computational structure.
Generally speaking, the support department is the "ordinary" person's first contact with the company's IT department. Thus, people working in this sector should have skills related to communicating with other people, a good ability to explain complex issues to more lay people, and also the necessary technical knowledge. All of this, of course, applied to the reality of the company's IT sector.
Therefore, if you understand yourself as a professional with the above skills and/or already work in an area where this knowledge is required, the support sector can be a good option if you are looking for new adventures in the IT field.
Infrastructure Sector:
The infrastructure people are responsible for keeping everything running when we think of all the hardware and facilities that a company might require. Problems related to equipment maintenance, installation of new technologies acquired by the company and other things more specific to each company. It is quite common for the relationship between support and infrastructure to be very close.
Knowledge about hardware in general, computer networks, other types of connections and even a little skill with electrical installations is always a good thing if you want to work in this area. If, in any way, you already work with this, know that if you want to try a possible remarketing, you will by no means be starting from scratch on this journey.
Business Sector:
This is perhaps one of the sectors a little more difficult to start operating. In general, people who work in the business sector within a company's IT are people who for some reason already know very well how not only the company's IT works, but also all other sectors and their connections.
These professionals have a lot of knowledge, with this, in addition to the great responsibilities, comes bonuses. It's up to you to understand if this is a position you would fit in and work towards it if you feel like it.
Again, if you are a professional who already works in a company, maybe you already hold a leadership position and you have a lot of knowledge about how all the areas of work within the company work, this could be a position you occupied. Of course, in some way, technical knowledge about databases is very important to do more elaborate analysis and other skills inherent to this activity.
Again, you won't be starting from scratch.
In addition to the sectors mentioned above, there are several others, each with their specific skills required and different profiles of professionals that best fit them. The sectors presented in this post are the ones I've had the most contact with so far and so I can talk a little more about them. If you know of other possible areas of expertise for a professional, it would be very interesting to read their content recommendation in the field right below this post.
In general, as you could see while reading the TI post, it is by no means limited to software development. Not that there is anything wrong with this area either, but it is important to understand that the market will not live only from Devs, but from business analysts, process managers and many other professionals.
Also, if you're not as comfortable coding, it's great to know about all the other opportunities you have.
Anyway, I hope I helped you in some way. If you have any kind of content suggestion and/or comment regarding this post, you can send it both on our social networks available in various parts of the site and in the suggestion box below.
Remembering that here we are all learning, so even corrections to possible errors are very welcome. ✌
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