Top 10 Tech Skills to Master in 2023 

Introduction 

In today’s rapidly evolving IT industry, job seekers must focus on future tech skills to stay ahead of the market crowd. Tech companies are driven by highly skilled IT professionals, who play a pivotal role in shaping and driving a robust digital economy.    

Organizations are willing to pay high for professionals, who bridge the gap of tech skills with certification and relevant work experience. In order to meet such competitive demands, job seekers should acquire in-demand tech skills and work experience.

10 Most In-Demand Tech Skills to Master This 2023   

 If you are looking for a lucrative career in top tech companies or want to switch careers, here are the top 10 tech skills to master in 2023: 

1. Cloud computing 

Cloud computing is one of the highest paid tech skills due to the limited supply of cloud experts. Furthermore, today’s organizations have migrated their workloads to the cloud. This results in the need for highly qualified and experienced cloud experts who manage cloud infrastructure along with development, engineering, and securing various cloud-enabled products. 

Skills required to master Cloud computing:  

• Expertise in coding 
• Experience on cloud platforms such as Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) 
• Understanding of business 

2. DevOps  

DevOps stands for development and operation. DevOps is one of the most in demand tech skills, responsible for developing platforms and tools that help companies to build applications and offer services. It allows organizations to render services faster than software development processes. DevOps as a skill is becoming more popular as tech companies need faster product delivery, greater scalability, automation and more. As a result of higher productivity need, DevOps has become one of the highest paid tech skills in the market. In the past two years, there has been an increase in job opportunities for DevOps professionals by 118%.  

Skills required to become a DevOps engineer:  

• Linux Fundamentals and scripting skills 
• Automation and security  
• Coding and Scripting 
• Cloud computing skills 
• Configuration and Version Management. 

3. Artificial Intelligence

At present, AI is the current biggest buzzword and considered as one of the most in demand tech skills. Therefore, AI career opportunities are expected to be around for a long time. AI professionals enable organizations to understand complex tasks and carry out relevant solutions, which increases efficiency, minimizes costs, and enhances customer experience. According to Fortune Business Insights, the global AI market could rise to $360 Billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 33.6% during the period 2021-2028.  

Artificial intelligence skills to master in order to pursue a career in AI: 

• Programming languages like Python, R, and Java.  
• Linear algebra and statistics 
• Signal processing techniques 
• Neural network architectures 

4.Data Science

Data science is a combination of machine learning, programming, statistics, business intelligence, research skill, and data analytics. Data science skills enable employees to access the world of opportunities, as they help companies make better business decisions. According to Gartner, 91% of organizations have not yet reached a transformational level of information and data maturity, which will increase the number of jobs requiring data science expertise up to 27.9% by 2026. Currently, data science is one of the highest paid tech skills in the world.  

Skills required to become a Data Scientist:  

• Statistical analysis and computing 
• Machine Learning 
• Deep Learning 
• Processing large data sets 
• Data Visualization 
• Data Wrangling 
• Statistics 
• Programming skills 
• Big Data  

5. Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity is one of the highest paid tech skills of 2023, given the amount of information companies store in cloud databases and cloud systems. Cyber security experts are responsible for preventing cyberattacks and securing the organization’s IT infrastructure from attackers, viruses, and other cyber threats.  

The demand for cyber security skills is on the rise due to the remote and hybrid working models. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, by 2023, there will be around 1 million cybersecurity job openings across the country. Some of the cybersecurity roles are cybersecurity engineer, security architect, malware analyst, penetration tester, application security engineer, incident manager and more. Professionals who gain expertise in cybersecurity can avail opportunities in various sectors such as healthcare, finance, education, IT, government etc, as their responsibilities involve safeguarding IT networks and assets by identifying cyber threats and preventing cyberattacks.  

Top skills to become a cybersecurity engineer -: 

• Networking and System Administration 
• Knowledge of Operating Systems and Virtual Machines 
• Network Security Control 
• Programming skills 
• Risk analysis 
• Internet of Things (IoT) Attacks. 

6. Blockchain Technology

According to Glassdoor, there was a 300% growth for blockchain-based jobs in 2019 and the demand has grown year on year. Organizations need blockchain technology to encrypt data, and store and distribute data in real-time. Blockchain experts allow companies to manage and secure data on a large scale. They create a distributed ledger technology, which logs transactions and keeps track of assets. The impact of blockchain on innovation has created enormous job roles such as blockchain developers, blockchain web designers, and blockchain engineers.  

Top Blockchain Technology skills to become a blockchain professional: 

• Knowledge of distributed systems, data structures, cryptography, security principles, blockchain ecosystems, and standards.  
• Understanding of how blockchain technology works 
• Expertise in one of the programming languages like Python, java etc. 

7. Full Stack Development

Full stack development is one of the most in demand tech skills in today’s IT industry. Thorough knowledge of full stack development enables professionals to work on both front-end and back-end development. When it comes to start-up companies, full-stack developer skills are in high demand, as they help minimize costs and increase the efficiency of projects. More importantly, communications and collaborations are streamlined when an individual handles both ends of software development. As a result of such efficiency, organizations consider full-stack development as one of the most in demand tech skills of 2023. 

Top skills needed to become a full stack developer 

• Front-end Languages and Frameworks 
• JavaScript 
• Database Management Systems 
• Web architecture  
• Version control system (VCS) 

8. Internet of Things (IoT)

An increased use of internet-enabled devices has led to the advent of some of the best IoT companies. IoT gave rise to investments in smart cities and higher adoption of cloud technology services due to the emerging need for connected infrastructure and data driven decision making. According to Statista, almost 75 billion smart devices will be linked worldwide by 2025. The adoption of the Internet of Things is expanding every year, which is creating new job opportunities.  

Top IoT skills to master:  

• Node.js development 
• Information security 
• Cloud computing 
• Programming  
• API automation and testing 
• UI/UX-centric design. 

9. User Interface (UI) /User experience (UX) Design

Organizations need professionals with UI/UX design skills to build a strong digital presence. UI/UX is one of the highest paid tech skills and is used to build websites or mobile apps for brands. The skill enhances the quality of user experiences and acts as a bridge between customers and brands. Today, brands with poor user experience and user interfaces are no longer taken seriously. Digital platforms with excellent UX and UI tend to deliver better customer satisfaction. When it comes to ranking, UI/UX is ranked 6th on Glassdoor’s list of “Top 25 highest paying entry-level careers”.  

Top UI/UX skills to master:  

• Prototyping, user flows, and wireframing 
• Visual design and design software 
• Agile Application Development 
• Information Architecture

10. Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)

Technologies like augmented reality and virtual reality help to link the virtual and real worlds. Organizations use these technologies to present content as it appears in the real world by creating an immersive experience. Professionals with AR & VR skills have enormous job opportunities as they are needed in industries such as healthcare, gaming, travel, education, aviation, automotive and more.  

Essential AR / VR skills are: 

• Coding  
• Experience with building solutions 
• Understanding of extended reality 
• 3D animation and modelling  
• Understanding of User Experience design