TechieGen Career Guide
Getting Started With Cloud Computing
TechieGen's Cloud Computing career guide is intended to help you take the first steps toward a lucrative career in cloud computing. The guide provides an in-depth overview of the skills you should learn, the best training options, career paths in Cloud computing, and more.
15 Minute Read
Table Of Contents
What Is Cloud Computing?
Cloud computing is on-demand access, via the internet, to computing resources—applications, servers (physical servers and virtual servers), data storage, development tools, networking capabilities, and more—hosted at a remote data center managed by a cloud services provider (or CSP). The CSP makes these resources available for a monthly subscription fee or bills them according to usage.
Compared to traditional on-premises IT, and depending on the cloud services you select, cloud computing helps do the following:
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Lower IT costs: Cloud lets you offload some or most of the costs and effort of purchasing, installing, configuring, and managing your own on-premises infrastructure.
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Improve agility and time-to-value: With cloud, your organization can start using enterprise applications in minutes, instead of waiting weeks or months for IT to respond to a request, purchase and configure supporting hardware, and install software. Cloud also lets you empower certain users—specifically developers and data scientists—to help themselves to software and support infrastructure.
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Scale more easily and cost-effectively: Cloud provides elasticity—instead of purchasing excess capacity that sits unused during slow periods, you can scale capacity up and down in response to spikes and dips in traffic. You can also take advantage of your cloud provider’s global network to spread your applications closer to users around the world.
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The term ‘cloud computing’ also refers to the technology that makes cloud work. This includes some form of virtualized IT infrastructure—servers, operating system software, networking, and other infrastructure that’s abstracted, using special software, so that it can be pooled and divided irrespective of physical hardware boundaries. For example, a single hardware server can be divided into multiple virtual servers.
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Virtualization enables cloud providers to make maximum use of their data center resources. Not surprisingly, many corporations have adopted the cloud delivery model for their on-premises infrastructure so they can realize maximum utilization and cost savings vs. traditional IT infrastructure and offer the same self-service and agility to their end-users.
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If you use a computer or mobile device at home or at work, you almost certainly use some form of cloud computing every day, whether it’s a cloud application like Google Gmail or Salesforce, streaming media like Netflix, or cloud file storage like Dropbox. According to a recent survey, 92% of organizations use the cloud today and most of them plan to use it more within the next year.
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There are three types of cloud computing and the users can deploy the one as per the business requirements -
1. Public Cloud
This infers to computing services where the service provider helps the users by making resources available via the Internet. Resources vary according to the requirements of users and the provider but may include storage capabilities, applications, or virtual machines, and clients pay for a subscription or a pay-per-usage model. It allows for scalability and resource sharing.
2. Private Cloud
A private cloud is a resource used exclusively by a single business and it can be located on the on-site data center of the company in physical form. Here services and infrastructure are maintained on a private network, thus the name.
3. Hybrid Cloud
As the name suggests it combines both public and private clouds, allowing data to be shared between them. This ensures high flexibility, better deployment options, and optimized infrastructure, security, and compliance.
Blogs To Get Started With
What Does a Cloud Engineer Do?
Cloud engineer is less a specific job title and more of an umbrella term used to describe a number of cloud computing roles that focus on engineering, architecture, development, and administration, Mullen says. Here are some of the typical responsibilities of professionals in the most in-demand cloud computing roles.
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Cloud Engineering
Those in cloud engineering roles assess an organization’s technology infrastructure and explore options for moving to the cloud. If the organization elects to move to the cloud, a cloud engineer is responsible for overseeing the process, referred to as migration, and maintaining the new system.
Along with these technical skills, cloud engineering requires managerial skills. Engineers are often called upon to negotiate with vendors, coordinate with other IT team members, and communicate with senior leadership about the progress of a cloud migration project.
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Cloud Architecture
These roles focus primarily on assembling the cloud infrastructure, Mullen says. Within a cloud environment, there are numerous computing, networking, and security services that all need to be configured properly. Configuration serves two key roles: To ensure that the right users have access to the right services (depending on their role within the organization) and that the company doesn’t incur unexpected or unnecessary charges.
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Contracts to use cloud services can be as concrete as charging to rent hardware to store data, or as abstract as charging to execute a function within a line of code, Mullen notes. This variability means architects need to pay close attention to the fine print of cloud contracts and compare that to how their organization intends to use a cloud-based service.
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Cloud Development
These roles are responsible for creating the functions, applications, or databases that run on the cloud. Many of the best practices—fast load times, support for multiple Internet browsers, using as little memory as necessary—are analogous to more traditional software and database development, Mullen says.
“But now, [these individuals] also need to understand the cloud environment, the tools, and how that’s different than working on a single machine or a private data center,” he adds. For example, these developers must understand how an application will respond when accessing databases in different locations or how to run functions or queries efficiently when renting hardware.
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Cloud Administration
These roles are similar to the traditional system administrator function that manages an organization’s on-premise hardware and software, but with an emphasis on cloud-based services. Primary responsibilities include developing and implementing policies for the use of cloud services, managing requests for new technology, establishing a secure cloud environment, and ensuring appropriate availability of services, also known as uptime.
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Security and availability require careful attention, Mullen emphasizes. The cloud platforms use a “shared model” where they guarantee for some but not all security measures. For example, an individual organization is responsible for building a firewall around the network that’s used to access cloud services with sensitive data and business applications.
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Cloud engineers must refine specific cloud computing skills in order to be successful in their roles. These skills range from software development and database administration to change management and data security, Mullen says. Paying attention to details and working as part of a team is also important. These skills are similar to what a student in a typical computer science course may learn, or what a professional in a traditional on-premise computing environment may need. Many other computer science principles are also applicable to cloud computing, including computation, data structure, and system architecture. While there is often overlap between computer science and cloud computing coursework, there is value in education and training that is specifically tailored to a career in cloud engineering, Mullen asserts. Cloud engineers can especially benefit from specialized training in two key areas: gaining hands-on experience with cloud platforms and understanding how cloud resources are allocated and paid for.
Skills You Should Learn To Become A Cloud Engineer
The demand for certified cloud computing professionals has soared, outpacing the disruptive shift from in-house servers and computing power to the flexibility and scalability of cloud-based systems. The shortage of qualified professionals in this domain presents a golden opportunity for those who are willing to learn the necessary cloud computing skills. The most in-demand cloud platforms are maintained by Amazon (Amazon Web Services, or AWS), Microsoft (Azure), and Google (Google Cloud Platform).
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Here are the top cloud computing skills to develop in 2021:
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Cloud Security
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Machine Learning and AI
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Cloud Deployment and Migration Across Multiple Platforms
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Database Skills
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DevOps
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Cloud Security
The very nature of cloud computing—outsourcing the storage and retrieval of often-sensitive business data—necessitates a profound focus on security and trust. IT security is (or should be) a top priority in most organizations, since a single security breach has the potential to expose customer data, steal valuable intellectual property, and permanently damage a company’s reputation. The demand for cybersecurity talent in general is massive and growing every day, but particularly in the cloud domain.
Simplilearn’s free Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) course, consisting of seven hours of self-paced video tutorials, is a great place to start. This introductory course will help you understand common vulnerabilities and risks, cloud application security, cloud architecture security, and more. When you’re ready to proceed toward your certifications, enroll in the full CCSP course. This program consists of 50 hours of applied learning (a combination of live, online, instructor-led courses, self-paced videos, and hands-on projects) and includes a voucher for the certification exam.
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Machine Learning and AI
Machine learning and artificial intelligence in general is a red-hot market segment, cloud computing aside. But since the major cloud vendors have offered tools and services that provide greater access to cloud-based AI and machine learning applications, they have become vital cloud computing skills. Once referred to as “infrastructure as a service” by Amazon’s AWS division, cloud computing can deliver the computing power and infrastructure needed by organizations of any size that want to dabble in AI and machine learning.
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As the machine learning industry has matured, the delivery of machine learning solutions over the cloud is now referred to as machine learning as a service, or MLaaS and is expected to experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 43 percent through 2023. As with cybersecurity, machine learning and AI are in need of talent generally. Combining cloud computing skills with AI skills, however, could exponentially raise your stock as a professional in the field.
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Cloud Deployment and Migration Across Multiple Platforms
As organizations continue to migrate native IT systems to cloud platforms, or from one cloud platform to another, they have a need for professionals with deployment and migration skills. This isn’t as simple as flipping a switch, but requires advanced cloud computing skills in order to protect the integrity and security of data while minimizing downtime. While it’s always smart to avoid limiting yourself, many organizations need professionals who understand all three major cloud platforms. If you have AWS skills, Azure skills, and Google Cloud skills, you’ll have more career opportunities and more value within a given organization.
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Database Skills
Globally, we create 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every day, much of it unstructured but with the potential to provide enormous value for organizations. As these databases are mostly hosted on cloud platforms, the interest in distilling useful insights from this information fuels the demand for professionals with the cloud computing skills to manage, store, and access data. If you’re an IT professional, this is the perfect time to invest in learning a database querying language and an associated database platform.
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DevOps
Derived from the term “developmental operations,” DevOps refers to the popular method of software development that takes the entire software lifecycle into account, from planning to maintenance. The DevOps method allows organizations to automate certain updates and get updates out much quicker and efficiently. It’s an important development process in the world of cloud computing, so adding DevOps to your set of cloud computing skills is a smart move.
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Other Cloud Computing Skills to Consider
While we have highlighted some of the most important cloud computing skills to pursue, they’re hardly the only ones you should take up. Everyone’s career path, organizational needs, and existing skill sets are different, after all. These skills are also important to the world of cloud computing:
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Serverless architecture
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Programming languages
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Linux certification
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Quality assurance
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Of course, the need for new cloud computing skills that we haven’t discussed here (or which have yet to be developed or identified) are sure to arise. Check back next year for the top cloud computing skills for 2022!
Why is Cloud Computing a good career to explore?
Companies have now started to rent access for their data storage from cloud service providers, which helps them to save upfront costs and problems that arise due to owning and maintaining their own IT infrastructure or data centers. This has created a win-win situation for both service providers and companies, which has thereby led to a significant increase in the number of cloud computing service providers across industries. To cater to the increasing database of consumers, these service providers lookout for skilled and knowledgeable cloud computing experts and pay them excellent salary packages in place of their services. Here's why Cloud Computing is a good career option:
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High Demand
The demand for people to fill cloud computing roles is growing fast. If you have the right cloud computing skills, then you can find a meaningful job in cloud computing.
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It is a Booming Field
A lot of technology players and researchers have already realized the potential of cloud computing, providing a huge number of job opportunities for cloud computing professionals.
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Variety of Job Roles
In cloud computing, you will not be limited to any one type of role. In this field, you can work as a cloud architect, cloud administrator, cloud security professional, software engineer, etc.
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High Earning Potential
With the rising demand for cloud technologies, the pay scale of these jobs is also increasing rapidly in the market. You will find better-paid jobs in cloud computing. The average salary for a cloud computing professional at mid-level is Rs. 20-30 Lakh per annum.
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Opportunities for Career Growth
As a seasoned cloud computing professional, you will have the to move up the career ladder at your current company or land more prominent roles at other organizations.
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Where to find Cloud Computing jobs?
ou can shortlist the companies you want to work with and then reach out to them through their official websites or job portals. Before applying to a job, make sure that you meet the eligibility criteria and have all the desired skills.
What should your resume include?
1. Add Relevant skills
While hiring a cloud computing professional, companies usually look for a variety of skills. On the basic level, specific programming languages and frameworks are ideal for candidates. You can go through the cloud computing platforms and technologies mentioned in this guide. Saas, Java, SQL, Python, Linux, and DevOps are some of the frequently searched-for terms for people looking for or hiring for cloud-computing jobs.
2. Add Relevant Experience
You can also include your relevant experience with cloud, IT consulting, and different operating systems to make your resume stand out.
3. Other Skills
If you have applied for a job at a company that implements different cloud services, then you will need more than just a technical skill base. Knowing how to negotiate, manage projects, maintain security and compliance standards, etc. will boost your resume.
4. Stay up-to-date
If you want to crack your cloud computing job interview, then you have to keep yourself up to date with the latest technologies. You should also keep practicing and implementing concepts to understand Cloud infrastructure better.
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After following the above-mentioned roadmap, all you need to do now is to start looking for a job.
Which Cloud Computing industries you should consider?
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Healthcare
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Insurance
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Automotive
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Education
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Financial
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Hospitality
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Real Estate
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Production
Top companies hiring for Cloud Computing Professionals
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Accenture
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Adobe
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Amazon
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Capgemini
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Capital One
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Deloitte
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Google
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Gartner
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IBM
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KPMG
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Microsoft
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Oracle
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PricewaterhouseCoopers
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Salesforce
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Dell
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Cloud computing is one of the most demanded skills in the IT industry. This field offers several exciting career opportunities for IT professionals to leverage their expertise for growth. If you are thinking about starting a career in cloud computing, then now is the time. We hope this article has clarified all your doubts surrounding how to start a career in cloud computing. Now all you have to do is figure out what the best path forward will be as per your current skills, experience, interests, goals, and market needs.
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