As a scaling tech business, there are many roles that are in demand. A cloud engineer is one of them. 85% of businesses worldwide are currently using cloud technology to store information, and experts claim that the cloud computing market value could reach $623.3 billion by 2023. With a rise in big data, reliance on tech and a huge cultural shift towards remote working, it’s no surprise that cloud engineers are one of the most in-demand tech roles at the moment.
Cloud-based solutions offer affordable convenience. They also provide flexibility and resilience to businesses as well as a higher degree of security.
As more and more companies adopt remote or hybrid working strategies, nearly all organisations have moved some of their workloads to the cloud and away from on-premises infrastructures. Businesses in a range of sectors are becoming cloud-first, and with this comes an increased demand for skilled cloud technologists and engineers. Demand for cloud engineers is high, and in tech recruitment, this means it’s becoming even harder to hire skilled individuals. With every business out there competing for cloud skills, should your tech scaleup be joining the race?
But what exactly is a cloud engineer, and how can they help your organisation as you scale?
What is a Cloud Engineer?
A cloud engineer is responsible for a business’s cloud-based systems and infrastructures. They are an IT professional responsible for building, maintaining and monitoring cloud services, ensuring that they run effectively and remain secure at all times.
Cloud Engineer is an umbrella term as many businesses and individuals become more reliant on cloud-based storage and technologies. Therefore, in larger scale, more complex organisations, the position can be broken down into cloud architects, cloud software developers, cloud system engineers and cloud network engineers. Each role focuses on a specific aspect of cloud computing.
What does a Cloud engineer do?
Individuals working within cloud engineering roles regularly assess the organisation’s technology infrastructure and explore opportunities for moving to a cloud-based system. They oversee migrating to the cloud and then continuously maintain the system to ensure business continuity and minimal disruptions.
Generally speaking, cloud engineers work with the engineering team to implement cloud-based solutions, define best practices and strategies before deploying them to the broader team, and provide guidance. They also ensure that the application performs well, manages cloud environments, and maintains security and quality guidelines.
Cloud computing can be broken down into three areas:
Cloud Architecture – this refers to the configuration of cloud-based systems, from ensuring the correct people have access to the right services to enabling security services. It involves reviewing contracts to use cloud-based services, ensuring that companies have appropriate amounts of storage and assessing the fine print details.
Cloud Development – this means creating functions, applications or databases which run in the cloud. It’s often more complicated than traditional development as different internet browsers and use in varying locations must be considered and ensure that the applications use as little memory as possible.
Cloud Administration – cloud administration is similar to the traditional system administrator’s role; in that, they manage a businesses hardware and software – only this time it’s cloud-based. They must develop and implement policies for using the cloud, establishing a secure cloud environment and ensuring the cloud is accessible and available when needed. This is where firewalls and protecting sensitive data come into play, particularly with the cloud-computing “shared” model.
When should a company hire a Cloud Engineer?
It makes sense to outsource your cloud capabilities for smaller-scale businesses, especially if your main priority is facilitating remote workers. However, of companies looking to deploy cloud services or further their cloud technology on a larger scale, they could benefit from having an in-house cloud computing professional.
If you work with big data or in a digital-first business where downtime could be catastrophic, cloud-based solutions could help as they’re less vulnerable to cyber-attacks.
Or, if you’re simply looking to future-proof your business and prepare for whatever comes with this new era of remote working, cloud-computing could be a good idea for you.
What industries do Cloud Engineers work in?
As remote working becomes a more significant part of our lives, we can expect more and more industries to rely on cloud computing. Often, the cloud is the only viable way to ensure all employees can work from home and have shared access to files and documents. Cloud computing is revolutionising so many industries from creative agencies, recruitment and even tech startups as it creates a more resilient and collaborative approach to working. It’s no surprise that companies in all industries and sectors are looking to hire cloud computing professionals to help them embrace a new era of work and simultaneously streamline their business.
- Here are some industries, however, in which cloud computing is making a huge impact:
Finance – cloud computing helps financial businesses strengthen their security as it’s less susceptible to attacks like phishing emails which previously brought all networks down. Cloud-computing offers sophisticated and resilient security architecture. It also provides unlimited data storage, which for an industry like the financial sector, is crucial. It enables employees to work from anywhere, making fintech businesses much more scalable.
Manufacturing – cloud computing has the potential to transform the manufacturing industry. It will provide opportunities for companies to innovate and grow. For example, digital simulation can help designers and engineers visualise real-time product and performance; cloud solutions could make this more accessible and increase flexibility.
Healthcare – Cloud computing can be used in healthcare to integrate data throughout healthcare systems. It’s making patient data available quickly and efficiently to all healthcare professionals and accelerating the delivery of care. Cloud computing allows for more personalised care plans for patients and ensures no aspects of care are missed. It also provides more opportunity for medical research, with the ability to store and process large amounts of data.
What qualities should you look for when hiring a Cloud Engineer?
Cloud engineers should have cloud services experience, including Bootcamp/open source technology, software development, DevOps, programming languages like Java, Python and Ruby. It’s also essential for a cloud engineer to have experience with at least one of the three major cloud providers: Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform. They should have a working knowledge of cloud concepts form clustering and auto-scaling to data storage and serverless cloud models, amongst others. Cloud engineers should have a range of technical skills and computing fundamentals, so a degree in computer science or engineering is a great foundation.
Cloud engineers should understand cybersecurity, including encryptions and authorisations. They should also be fluent in data analysis and work well with multi-disciplinary teams, including business analysts, developers, and data scientists.
Above all, they should be hard working and have your business’s best interests at heart. Ensuring they believe in your mission and employer brand will ensure you have a cloud engineer dedicated to the business’s success.
Talent Works specialise in finding top tech talent to help companies grow and innovate. Through direct sourcing, digital recruitment marketing and attraction strategies, and building employer brands that cut through the noise and resonate with the tech market. We’re a flexible RPO provider which means our tech recruitment solutions can be scaled up or down to suit demand.
To find out how we could help your scaling business find and connect with leading cloud computing professionals to keep your business safe as you scale, contact us.
