Narayan Mahadevan, the founder of BridgeLabz, is a technologist with strong technical skills and extensive knowledge of the mobile and cloud spaces. an entrepreneur with over two decades of experience shared evenly between the USA and India. He led engineering departments at several product companies and brought a wealth of knowledge to organisations that engaged in product engineering and R&D.
On the occasion of Engineers' Day, Mr Mahadevan shared his expert insights on how new technologies will be creating jobs for engineers going forward.
Earlier this year, Tata Tea marked its debut in Metaverse with a virtual Holi party. IIFA 2022 became the first International Indian Film Award show in Metaverse. Recently, Metaverse users celebrated the 75th Independence Day of India by hoisting the national flag in the virtual world. These are a few examples of how common people have become a part of the ever-evolving technology universe.
Big tech companies are constantly working to grow by using technology and enhancing experiences across segments, from shopping and banking to employee engagement. Besides hefty investments in blockchain technology, India also showcases the huge potential for Web 3.0. Tech Mahindra is working on 60 Metaverse projects, of which 24 are Edtech projects.
The IT Industry is set to witness a boom with the demand for roles in blockchain, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, NFTs, cyber security, AR/VR, etc. More than 300 gaming companies will be launching into the VR world. As per LinkedIn News, there are 65,000 openings in the IT industry.
Let’s take a closer look at some of these technologies and how they will be creating jobs for engineers going forward:
Blockchain
A blockchain developer is responsible for building system records and secure blockchain architectures that enable smooth digital transactions. They help to design application features and interfaces and maintain client and server-side applications. A person wanting to work in blockchain must have good computer networking skills and knowledge of cryptography, algorithms and data structures.
Cyber Security
With wide-scale digitalisation has come the threat of high-scale data breaches. Cybercrimes have risen globally in the past few years, especially since the pandemic. The increasing need for more cyber security experts results from rising hacking, phishing, and ransomware incidents. However, there is a massive skill gap in the market among cybersecurity engineers. There are about 3.5 million vacancies for cybersecurity jobs.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence is leading the fourth industrial revolution. It has been estimated that technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI) will contribute significantly to India’s efforts to become a $5 trillion economy by 2024. As per studies, engineers with skills in robotics, AI, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are in high demand. The increased reliance on AI-led solutions is leading the innovation sector. For engineering students getting ready to take up jobs, it is essential that they pay attention to the skills in AI.
Full stack developer
Several in-demand roles, like that of a full-stack developer, have attracted many talents in 2020 and are likely to continue doing so. Python has always shown an upward trend from 2020 to date. A full-stack developer is a software engineer who manages the full stack in web development, right from the front end to the back end. The front end is what a consumer faces, such as a login page, and the back end is what happens behind the scenes, responding to consumer demand. Demand for full-stack skill sets continues to grow in volume and velocity, making them among the most in-demand tech talent. Companies are looking for flexible talent working across technologies.
Also, this year, one technology will be in demand, and another can replace the current technology in no time. Technologies keep changing, and one needs to ensure that he/she is job-ready. This can be achieved only through experiential learning.
Experiential learning is an integration of theory and application where tech talent can put in the time to practice their skills and learn the nuances of the latest technologies. This type of learning offers practical implications for the knowledge with constant feedback from the mentors to strengthen the areas of improvement. Experiential learning helps faster and easier learning as it follows the method of learning by doing. When the talent performs a task, the talent gets a chance to do some critical thinking, develop problem-solving skills, and have decision-making ability.
Last but not least, when talent is confident in working across all technologies, he/she is sure to improve his/her employability quotient. As a result, a good-paying job is automatically guaranteed.
