12 IT Skills Every Employee Should Learn

In any job, skills are very important as they enable employees to deliver on their responsibilities in a competent way. There are various types of skills namely the technical and soft ones. Both of them are very crucial to any employee. A good combination of these types of skills makes an employee stand out from the rest. In the modern employment world, hiring managers use skill assessment as a way of getting the right kind of employee for a particular job. Having a strong skill set cannot be overemphasized and potential employees try to develop their skills so that they can really be ahead of the pack.

In the IT world, employees are required to possess various technical skills besides the general soft skills. With proper IT skills, a professional will be able to handle any IT task he or she is assigned without facing many hurdles. Technical IT skills help employees to perform the various roles.

On the other hand, soft skills help employees to be able to deal with all the factors pertaining to the IT working environment such as managing teams or communicating issues or ideas. So, it is essential for any employee to have a solid background of these two types of skills so that hiring managers can be sure they are hiring a competent person. With the world being taken over by IT, it will pay handsomely if you get to acquire the below skills that are discussed below.

1. Microsoft office skills

This is one of the basic IT skills any professional, including IT experts, should know and acquire. The Microsoft office suite is the basic tool that majority of the people get to use while doing various tasks. It has the word processing, spreadsheets, presentation tool, database, and publishing. Knowing how to interact with this office suite will give you a good platform to develop your computer literacy skill even further.

2. Presentation skills

As an employee, you will deal with project management and project tasks which you will be required to explain to your team or other relevant persons. Good presentation skill is essential as it is a point whereby you pass information to other people within a given timeframe.

Presentations should be compelling enough to capture the listeners’ attention. Poor presentation will lead to confusion and misunderstanding and your listeners will be disconnected to what you are trying to put across. A good presenter should be well informed, speak clearly, engaging and should use proper presentation layout.

3. Typing skills

As an employee, you will be required to use the computer or laptop, which means that you will have to type all the time. This makes typing skill an essential skill for an IT professional. In fact, it is one of the basic things that first-time people interacting with the computer are taught.

Newbies will always use their fingers to type as they slowly familiarize with the keyboard and the layout. Experienced IT professionals will always be doing what is commonly referred to us touch typing since they now are so conversant with the keyboard keys. Slow typists are not likely to be hired because the work environment is very computer orientated and things need to move fast.

If you are slow in typing, then you can enroll for typing courses online or download typing software and practice. Ratatype and Keyhero are some of the available online typing platforms.

4. Emailing skills

Email is the most used communication channel in many organizations today and it is therefore important for employees to acquire email mannerism. IT professionals should be able to write professional emails that are clear and which communicate the right information. In addition, the employees should know all the emailing formats and the use of proper email signatures.

5. Social media savvy

In our modern world today, we have been treated to a wide range of social media platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and snap chat among others. This skill is essential to an employee to engage with clients and people from across the world. The platforms have been a good avenue for sharing information with a much larger audience considering the fact that many people are now in the online space.

Employees should be social media savvy so that they can easily interact with clients, colleagues, and other stakeholders.

6. Problem-solving and decision making skills

This is an essential skill in the employment world today. Employers want to hire people with the ability to see problems and then come up with viable solutions. The business world has series of issues that poses numerous amounts of challenges and it is not for the fainthearted.

For instance, with the emerging threats in the IT world, it calls for people with creative ideas to come up the best possible solutions. An IT professional should be able to make sound decisions even when under pressure. Sometimes there can be an emergency that requires fast attention. An IT expert should be able to make split seconds decisions and stand by the decisions they have made whether the outcome is good or bad.

7. Creativity skills

This is also another key skill that employees should possess. The business world requires lots of creativity in terms of solving problems or in terms of coming up with ideas and concepts with the potential of achieving the desired objectives. For instance, UI/UX designers should be able to come up with well-thought-out and compelling concepts that can attract the customers and make them happy with the company products and services.

8. Critical thinking skills

A creative employee should be able to think critically and creatively. Good employees should be able to analyze problems, think critically and come up with different solutions and then go with the best possible alternative. An employee should be able to think critically first before making any kind of decision. This minimizes the chances of making huge and costly errors.

9. Troubleshooting skills

In the employment world, there are a lot of systems in operations from the general pc, servers and network systems, which can malfunction and one should at least have the know-how of troubleshooting and resolving system issues. As an employee, you need to be sharp in resolving system issues when called upon. At least, one should be able to know how to troubleshoot some of the basic issues of a computer system.

10. Project management skills

Employees are required to develop concepts and come up with projects which they will need to manage until it is over. Strong project management will be crucial to the success of any project. One needs to be conversant with the project cycle so as to guide the flow of projects.

For instance, graphic designers and web developers will handle lots of different projects for various clients within strict timelines. With good project management skills, it will be easy to do the project and deliver even before the deadline is due. This will prove to your clients that you value your work and you are competent and professional.

11. Communication skills

This is an essential skill to all professionals, including those in the IT sector. Good communication allows for much easier interactions between different parties. A competent professional should be able to deliver information or intended message to the other parties in a clear and concise manner.

An employee should be able to communicate verbally and in written form. With good communication, it means that there will be no misunderstanding as the intended message will be understood very well. In addition, good employees should be able to have great listening skills as this also forms part of good communication. Many IT tasks are detail orientated and this will mean being able to take instructions the right way, which is reliant on proper listening skill.

12. Improve your skills

This is not really a skill but a way of saying it is important to update and improve your skills each day. Try to learn new IT skills since the world is being taken over by the power of this realm. With a strong skill set, you are better placed for many opportunities. Employers are looking for people with strong skills base since they feel they have the capability of handling any job assigned.

Conclusion

Possessing strong IT skills is very important. The skills are necessary to help you climb up your career ladder. A good skill set will help boost your potential alongside the experiences you acquire as you progress. There are various ways one can get to boost his or her skills such as attending conferences and seminars, doing online courses and being mentored. Hiring managers prioritize assessing the candidates’ skills rather than just looking through the resume. Many companies nowadays also give employees skill testing exams just so that they can able to identify the skills their potential employees have. Therefore, ensure that you update and improve your skill set every time, as this will be a strong tool to help you stay stable and relevant in the job market.