It’s an excellent time to be in the field of tech, with 2020 predicted to show a continuing proliferation of jobs in the tech industry. Tech is taking over, with more and more businesses turning to automation to handle their business and workflow. This year is forecasted to be especially strong in the fields of artificial intelligence, robotics, and data science.
Every year, LinkedIn releases a number of
emerging job reports based on a specific country or region. LinkedIn’s recent
2020 Emerging Jobs Report for the U.S. shows that this year will be another one of growing advancements in tech and AI. Jobs in these fields have taken over an increasing number of cities in the U.S., even spreading to smaller cities such as Pittsburgh and Portland. Knowledge of AI has emerged as a leading skill due to its relevance in fields such as cybersecurity and data science, not to mention the increase in robotic technology and autonomous vehicles.
With this knowledge in mind, let’s take a look at the top 10 emerging jobs of 2020!
| | Position | Average Salary (USD) |
| 1. | Artificial Intelligence Specialist | $136,000 |
| 2. | Robotics Engineer | $ 85,000 |
| 3. | Data Scientist | $143,000 |
| 4. | Full Stack Engineer | $82,000 |
| 5. | Site Reliability Engineer | $130,000 |
| 6. | Customer Success Specialist | $90,000 |
| 7. | Sales Development Representative | $60,000 |
| 8. | Data Engineer | $100,000 |
| 9. | Behavioral Health Technician | $33,000 |
| 10. | Cybersecurity Specialist | $103,000 |
(Information taken from LinkedIn).
Guy Berger, the Principal Economist for LinkedIn, notes the growing importance of AI in 2020 as it has become increasingly pervasive in other fields. Interestingly, due to higher automation in the workplace, Berger also highlights a higher demand for soft skills this year. Soft skills include skills such as teamwork, leadership, listening or positive attitude.
Let's take a more detailed look at LinkedIn’s top 10 jobs. The list includes relevant information regarding each position.
#1). Artificial Intelligence Specialist
Artificial Intelligence Specialists are the programmers behind computer thought simulation. Wages for these positions are typically highly competitive. This high pay, combined with a major growth in hiring figures, have made A.I. Specialist the top emerging position of 2020. Artificial intelligence is being increasingly used throughout a diverse number of fields. The key industries hiring for this position include Computer Software, Internet, and Information and Technology Services. Looking forward, artificial intelligence is a field that should be considered significant, with its demand rapidly continuing to increase and diversify.
#2). Robotics Engineer
Robotic engineers are engineers who specialize in the field of robotics. Typically, these engineers have a background education in mechanical, manufacturing or electrical/electronic engineering. Knowledge of microprocessors, integrated systems and computer logic is also necessary. Duties of a robotics engineer include testing, designing, and building robots built for various application across many fields. The continued diversification in the use of robotics across many industries has driven this position to the top of the list when it comes to the current top emerging jobs.
#3). Data Scientist
Data scientists collect and analyze large sets of data which can be used for the benefit of a company. As more companies look to big data in order to glean information, the rising demand for data scientists has made it one of the number one jobs in the U.S. leading into 2020. A data scientist must know many different methods for extracting and interpreting data sets. Skills in statistics, mathematics, programming, SQL and machine learning are necessary when working towards this role.
#4). Full Stack Engineer
A full stack engineer, also known as a full stack developer, is someone who works on both the front and back ends of a website or an application. These developers can fill the role of both a front-end and back-end developer. Because of this dual role capability, most full stack engineers must know separate programming languages for both ends. For example, these professionals may know HTML and JavaScript for back-end work, and also be familiar with Python for the front end of a project. High salaries, often reaching six figures, and an increasing demand for these diverse developers make the full stack engineer a key emerging job this year.
#5). Site Reliability Engineer
The role of Site Reliability Engineer was one created by Google in 2003. After proving their usefulness and reliability to Google, Site Reliability Engineers began to be used by other large technology companies began to use the role. Since then, the role has become its own field, and has grown to become one of the top emerging jobs of 2020. The field is highly involved in DevOps, and Site Reliability Engineers help other practices such as continuous delivery. These engineers often work to develop automated solutions for operational aspects of a site, for example, on-call monitoring. Interestingly, Google has a book on the role, titled “Site Reliability Engineering - How Google Runs Production Systems”.
#6). Customer Success Specialist
As noted earlier in the article, with the increased automation of tasks in the workplace, the demand for soft skills is increasing. This can include people skills such as communication. This increased demand for workers with soft skills is apparent with the role of Customer Success Specialist highlighted by LinkedIn as a major emerging job this year. Typically, these specialists are involved with the software and IT industry. They often must know the technology, but the role focuses on managing customer relations. A Customer Success Specialist can expect face-to-face or other means of communication with clients. They are often responsible for customer retention and satisfaction. They also may be assigned to help grow additional sources of revenue for the company.
#7). Sales Development Representative
A Sales Development Representative focuses on generating leads for a business who have a high chance of potentially becoming customers. It may be surprising to see Sales Development Representative on the list of 2020’s top 10 emerging jobs. It is a position which has been around for a long time and doesn’t necessarily rely on the latest research. However, according to LinkedIn, the constant growth of technology services has kept the role of Sales Development Representative relevant as there are more and more ways to generate leads who may become customers.
#8). Data Engineer
While the Data Scientist works to analyze big data for a business, it is the role of a Data Engineer to prepare this data so that it may be analyzed. A Data Engineer is really a software engineer who uses code to bring together data from different sources in a format which will eventually be easy to analyze. The end goal of this job is to improve a company’s processes or overall performance. These professionals can create data warehouses to be used for future use by the scientists. With two roles involving data on this list, it is clear how important big data really is in the business and tech world.
#9). Behavioral Health Technician
A Behavioral Health Technician helps with the treatment of patients with behavioral health issues. These issues can include PTSD, substance abuse, mental instability, etc. Typically, Behavioral Health Technicians work alongside doctors and nurses, who provide a patient’s treatment plan. The technician then helps patients carry out their prescribed plan. Generally, a associate degree is needed in a relevant field to this position, and then a certification in behavioral health will mark someone as a qualified Behavioral Health Technician. With incredibly high demand for professionals in the medical field, it would not be surprising to continue to see Behavioral Health Technician in the list of top emerging jobs along with other related health professions.
#10). Cybersecurity Specialist
Though the Cybersecurity Specialist position is number 10 on this list, the demand for the field is incredibly high, and sure to increase into the future. This is a relatively new position, but as more risks emerge on the digital landscape, it has become atop priority for businesses to have these specialists working on their side. A Cybersecurity Specialist is essentially responsible for security of a digital product, service, location, etc. For example, they may be held accountable for security during development of a software package, keeping intruders off a company’s servers, or finding potential security gaps in a network and building firewalls. With an increasing number of businesses migrating their work to the web, Cybersecurity Specialist is certainly a career to keep an eye on in the year of 2020.
Summary
Though this report does come from a popular, annually published report, there are many other emerging jobs in the U.S. and around the world. Therefore, this list could be written in many different ways. For example,
an article by Business Insider that highlighted the “best paying jobs of the future” noted high growth in the medical field, with the position of Physician/Surgeon making it onto their top 10 list. There are many ways to choose top emerging positions, whether it be pay, growth, benefits, etc. However, the LinkedIn report shows some positions which are set to emerge and grow considerably within the next year.
As you can see, 2020 is set to be a year especially strong in the field of technology. According to Guy Berger, today more work and education is completed on the web than ever before. Therefore, I believe it is necessary to have a workforce full of professionals familiar with and working in the tech industry, especially with other fields becoming increasingly automated. Learning is made even easier on the web, and one route to success is to stay ahead of the times and take advantage of the tools available to you!
Thanks for reading! Please comment below if you are involved with one of these positions, or if you have your own ideas for the top emerging jobs of 2020.
Sources
- https://blog.linkedin.com/2019/december/10/the-jobs-of-tomorrow-linkedins-2020-emerging-jobs-report
- https://www.businessinsider.com/best-jobs-future-growth-2019-3