5 Hot New IT Jobs Emerging in 2017 and Beyond

If you looked at the IT job market recently, you might have noticed some unusual job titles. But this is nothing new in the technology world, in fact, we have seen it many times over the last two decades.

Whether it was a job for a software evangelist or a social media rockstar, we have grown to expect creative titles from the world of technology.

As the present day demands more cost-cutting, innovation, and enhanced security, new job titles have to reflect these needs while trying to attract the attention of top talent. Google is probably the best at this with titles like chief futurist and innovations manager, but what are other companies like? What strange job titles have they come up with?

Here are five of the hottest new IT jobs that sound a bit strange, but play an important role in today’s workplace.

1. CIoTO (Chief IoT Officer)

As the Internet of Things gets rapidly adopted across industries, chief IoT officers will be very much in demand. This position comes with the responsibility of integrating the IT department with new product development as new smart connected products (and maybe systems) are developed.

It’s also a role that will be required by large enterprises that need to hire a CIoTO to develop IoT initiatives and strategy. As the IoT space grows rapidly and transforms various industries, a competent senior leader will be required to figure out how enterprises can quickly benefit from comprehensive analytics of data generated by smart objects.

Getting this right will mean rapid gains and a competitive advantage now and into the future, so you can expect to see the demand for CIoTOs to rise in the months to come.

2. Data Protection Officer

As data protection laws become more prominent in the U.S. and Europe (General Data Protection Regulation), staying compliant will become a priority. As a result, you will see more job advertisements targeting data protection officers.

This role will probably be around for a long time as enterprises also need to anticipate and prepare for future regulation. The key here will be to have an established effective privacy program that will be able to manage gaps and absorb new regulations.

3. VP of DevOps

DevOps management jobs have gone mainstream and are quite common and highly paid. More often than not, job descriptions list the following requirements:

Manage engineering teams
Track implementation of new technologies
Track costs

A VP of DevOps will be important for large enterprises that utilize tools that manage code pipelines and automated testing. A lot of the jobs that are currently listed look for individuals who can develop automated processes for maintaining production systems, administrative functions, and troubleshooting.

The new focus here is development efficiency via automation that enables tasks to be completed rapidly and more effectively.

4. Automation Architect

As enterprises look to automate their data centers, a whole new set of challenges have come up that require human intervention. The demand for automation architects is also increasing as companies are looking to develop a comprehensive and holistic automation strategy.

Furthermore, automation architects are also a fundamental part of DevOps, so you can essentially expect this role to grow and address needs across departments. As more and more companies run on software, it’s now vital to automate it to maintain reliable environments while keeping costs down.

The automation architect can be part of any team that’s actively writing code. They can build or tear down infrastructure, deploy code, and test through automation. As the rapid evolution of technology helps businesses stay competitive by speeding up processes, so you can expect to see this position play an important role for years to come.

5. Penetration Tester

In the digital age, nothing is more important than security. As ransomware attacks become the norm, penetration testers will be needed to attack hardware applications, networks, and other technology assets to identify vulnerabilities.

The most effective penetration testers will have skills in data exfiltration, social engineering, vulnerability research, and software exploitation. But beyond these skills, enterprises will also zero in the traits of the penetration tester as ingenuity and curiosity will play a major part in this new role.

Most organizations will require penetration testing in bursts, so this might not be a full-time in-house position unless the company is concurrently running multiple projects. Furthermore, different projects will require different penetration skill sets, so you can expect penetration testing to grow as a managed service.

What else would you add to this list of hot new job titles?