Microsoft Azure – There’s a high demand for skills in the cloud and data architecture

The ever growing career line is IT since the world is moving towards mobile-first, cloud-first world at an increasingly fast pace and Microsoft Azure opens up the market. Microsoft encouraged those in IT to gain skills in cloud and data architecture.

“As more enterprises, consumers and cities embrace the cloud and it becomes part of everyday life, the demand for cloud architects is obviously growing. It’s an exciting industry to be in, with lots of areas of specialization, and more jobs being created each year,” says Dele Akinsade, Server and Tools Business Group Lead for Sub-Saharan Africa.

Microsoft welcomes more than 93, 000 new subscriptions a month in their cloud services – Microsoft Azure. At the recent global AzureCon and Strata summits, Microsoft unveiled a series of new offerings across cloud, big data and the Internet of Things. One of the new products will unleash big data productivity with Azure Data Lake. This will make big data processing and analytics simpler and more accessible for developers, data scientists and analysts to store data of any size, shape and speed, across platforms and languages.

“IT infrastructure is definitely running towards cloud solutions. Most enterprises have accepted this vision. Individual consumers are already fully embracing cloud even if they don’t know it.  Most personal services are dominated completely by cloud computing and mobile internet.” Umit Sunar, an Azure cloud solutions architect in Turkey said.

Soon, everybody will have a representation of themselves as a virtual identity stored in the cloud, together with their private and business data, “strong cryptography will ensure our data can only be accessed with our knowledge and consent. We will interact with technology seamlessly across a multitude of different devices.” Microsoft’s cloud solutions architect, Eric Ballnath foresees.

Cloud architects like Umit and Eric are key to helping Microsoft achieve its vision, according to Mr. Akinsade. “They are the ones who are building secure and robust cloud-powered experiences for our customers and setting us apart from our competitors.”

Microsoft’s unique approach to the cloud spans three areas. Hyper-scale infrastructure to assist organizations to reach their customers; hybrid differentiation, which allows organizations to combine cloud and on-premise servers; and enterprise grade to ensure security and compliance, as well as flexibility and choice. Microsoft Azure Trust Centre also gives customers peace of mind that they are protected by the world’s leading security measures and certificates. These measures mean more people across the Middle East and Africa are moving to the cloud to enjoy features that enhance productivity and security.

Cloud security specialists are also in demand. Often a deterrent for new customers of the cloud is data security and lack of education around data protection and privacy laws. Microsoft’s hybrid approach helps those who are hesitant, to be guided into the cloud, not pushed. The company’s international experience and expertise means the latest security measures are automatically updated. With its partner network across the region, there will always be back-up support and education for customers within their local legislative context.

“Cloud computing will see immense growth when countries across the Middle East and Africa have strong legislation in place to ensure data protection. Governments can gain by prioritizing this because cloud provides the most affordable and scalable way for businesses to be competitive, and this is what’s most exciting. Cloud drives innovation,” says Mr. Akinsade.