Businesses are drowning in data, the cloud solutions provider Oracle says, warning that the volume and velocity of digital intelligence flowing in and through its information technology pipelines creates a “decision dilemma.”
Nearly 75% of business leaders and employees who responded to its 2023 Global Decision Dilemma Study said they are making 10 times more decisions daily than they did three years ago.
More findings reported in Oracle’s 2023 Global Decision Dilemma analysis, which surveyed over 14,000 business leaders in 17 countries, include:
- 59% delayed making a decision at least daily
- 86% said increased decision-making complicates their personal and professional lives
- 72% believe most of their available data is relevant only to IT professionals or data scientists
- 89% said the exploding number of data sources is limiting company performance
- 72% feel that this quantity of data has stalled their decision-making
“The hesitancy, distrust, and lack of understanding of data shown by this study indicates that many people and organizations need to rethink their approach to data and decision making,” the researchers wrote.
Competition is fierce for IT engineers, cloud architects, analysts, administrators, and project managers with advanced insights in designing and deploying systems that bring data under control.
Why Is IT a Growing Career?
The pandemic forced organizations of all sizes — from global tech giants to small- and medium-sized businesses (SMB) — to slam their digital transformation and emerging technologies integrations into high gear.
SMBs, in particular, are investing heavily in information technology based on the experience of early adopters during the pandemic. According to a Microsoft survey, companies that began migrating their digital assets to the cloud during the COVID-19 era were twice as likely than latecomers to post higher revenue growth. Moreover, they are four times more likely to be confident about achieving business objectives.
As a result of the early adoption results, a third of SMBs are spending as much as 10% of annual revenue on IT expansion. For IT professionals, this is good news.
A Gartner survey found that business leaders rank a shortage of IT talent as the single-most critical barrier — ahead of costs and security — to emerging technology adoption. And the gap between supply and demand is expanding.
Three years ago, the business research organization said, just 4% of IT executives had trouble attracting digital information experts. Post-pandemic, that number soared to 64%, putting their strategies for automation and workplace technology adoption at risk.
“Of all the IT automation technologies profiled in the survey, only 20% of them have moved ahead in the adoption cycle since 2020. The issue of talent is to blame here,” according to the report.
Demand for software developers and analysts, for instance, is expected to grow by 25% through 2031 — about seven times faster than the rate for all occupations. Annual salaries for cloud architects average $134,807, according to the Indeed Career Guide.
How Do Professionals Acquire IT Skills?
The Indeed Career Guide acknowledges that a master’s degree gives candidates an advantage over the competition, not only because it develops and hones role-related skills but also because it “highlights a commitment to your career.”
Graduates of a Master of Science in Information Technology (MSIT) program, such as the one offered online by Emporia State University, are well equipped to fill high-demand roles in software engineering, architecture development, IT project management, and systems development and implementation.
The accredited program immerses students in the following courses, among others:
- Systems Analysis and Design focuses on project leadership tools and techniques businesses need to analyze, design, and document information systems.
- Cloud Computing and Management provides students hands-on experience developing cloud migration solutions, a top C-suite agenda item for digital transformation strategies.
- Electronic Commerce explores the foundations and functions of e-commerce systems, a $1 trillion revenue source that requires IT pros with expertise in revenue models, consumer data applications, and legal, ethical, and technical factors.
Emporia’s STEM-based online MSIT program enables graduates to future-proof their careers by developing strategic perspectives, critical thinking skills, and technical expertise that organizations need to manage torrents of data and help address the “decision dilemma.”
Learn more about Emporia State University’s online Master of Science in Information Technology program.
