ICT system administrator to cloud engineer
An ICT system administrator already meets 31% of what the cloud engineer role asks for. The move turns on 22 required skills not yet in the profile.
76.6/ 100
1 How much of what a cloud engineer is expected to do is already part of an ICT system administrator’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the cloud engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A cloud engineer role treats 11 of its required skills as things an ICT system administrator already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- ICT system integration
- ICT system programming
- automate cloud tasks
- cloud monitoring and reporting
- cloud security and compliance
- cloud technologies
What stands in the way is 22 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A cloud engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an ICT system administrator background worth leading with.
- already held operating systems information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held cloud monitoring and reporting information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held ICT system integration information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held automate cloud tasks communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held cloud security and compliance information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held ICT system programming information and communication technologies (icts)
All 12 carried skills, including the 11 the cloud engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 33 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn align software with system architectures required
- still to learn analyse software specifications required
- still to learn debug software required
- still to learn deploy cloud resource required
- still to learn develop software prototype required
- still to learn develop with cloud services required
- still to learn do cloud refactoring required
- still to learn manage keys for data protection required
- still to learn plan migration to cloud required
- optional, not held apply ICT systems theory optional
- optional, not held design interaction model optional
- optional, not held use query languages optional
- optional, not held perform data analysis optional
- still to learn database development tools required
- still to learn service-oriented modelling required
- still to learn systems theory required
- still to learn web services required
- still to learn computer programming required
- optional, not held ICT security standards optional
- optional, not held Java (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Python (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Ruby (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held data engineering optional
- still to learn design cloud architecture required
- still to learn design cloud networks required
- still to learn design database in the cloud required
- still to learn design for organisational complexity required
- still to learn respond to incidents in cloud required
- still to learn implement cloud security and compliance required
- still to learn analyse business requirements required
- optional, not held apply risk management processes optional
- still to learn cyber security required
- optional, not held ethics optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a cloud engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 align software with system architectures practise this
- 02 analyse software specifications practise this
- 03 cyber security study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 12 skills that carry over
- already held ICT system integration knowledge
- already held ICT system programming knowledge
- already held automate cloud tasks skill
- already held cloud monitoring and reporting knowledge
- already held cloud security and compliance knowledge
- already held cloud technologies knowledge
- already held interpret technical texts skill
- already held manage cloud data and storage skill
- already held operating systems knowledge
- already held solve ICT system problems skill
- already held systems development life-cycle knowledge
- already held security engineering knowledge
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ICT security standards optional
- optional, not held Java (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Python (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Ruby (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held apply ICT systems theory optional
- optional, not held design interaction model optional
- optional, not held use query languages optional
- optional, not held apply risk management processes optional
- optional, not held data engineering optional
- optional, not held ethics optional
- optional, not held perform data analysis optional
48 held skills the cloud engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role Apache Tomcat knowledge
- not needed by the target role IBM WebSphere knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT accessibility standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT infrastructure knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT recovery techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role ICT system user requirements knowledge
- not needed by the target role acquire system component skill
- not needed by the target role adjust ICT system capacity skill
- not needed by the target role administer ICT system skill
- not needed by the target role apply ICT system usage policies skill
- not needed by the target role apply system organisational policies skill
- not needed by the target role digital systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role domain name service knowledge
- not needed by the target role engineering processes knowledge
- not needed by the target role execute integration testing skill
- not needed by the target role hardware components knowledge
- not needed by the target role implement ICT recovery system skill
- not needed by the target role implement ICT risk management skill
- not needed by the target role implement ICT security policies skill
- not needed by the target role implement a firewall skill
- not needed by the target role implement a virtual private network skill
- not needed by the target role implement anti-virus software skill
- not needed by the target role implement spam protection skill
- not needed by the target role information security strategy knowledge
- not needed by the target role install signal repeaters skill
- not needed by the target role integrate system components skill
- not needed by the target role interact with users to gather requirements skill
- not needed by the target role interfacing techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role internet governance knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain ICT system skill
- not needed by the target role manage changes in ICT system skill
- not needed by the target role manage system security skill
- not needed by the target role manage system testing skill
- not needed by the target role migrate existing data skill
- not needed by the target role monitor system performance skill
- not needed by the target role network engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role network standards knowledge
- not needed by the target role organisational policies knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform backups skill
- not needed by the target role provide ICT system training skill
8 further entries not listed here
12 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn cyber security required
- still to learn database development tools required
- still to learn service-oriented modelling required
- still to learn systems theory required
- still to learn web services required
- still to learn computer programming required
- optional, not held ICT security standards optional
- optional, not held Java (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Python (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held Ruby (computer programming) optional
- optional, not held data engineering optional
- optional, not held ethics optional
Other moves recorded from ICT system administrator
- ICT network technician 39% covered · substantial
- ICT network administrator 36% covered · career change
- ICT security administrator 30% covered · career change
- cloud software developer 30% covered · substantial
- ICT system integration consultant 29% covered · career change
- telecommunications engineering technician 28% covered · career change
- cloud DevOps engineer 27% covered · career change
- ICT network architect 24% covered · career change
Common questions about this move
Can an ICT system administrator become a cloud engineer?
Yes, and it is a career change move. An ICT system administrator already covers 31% of what a cloud engineer is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 11 of which the cloud engineer role treats as required.
What skills does an ICT system administrator need to become a cloud engineer?
22 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by working with computers. The single most important is align software with system architectures.
How hard is the move from ICT system administrator to cloud engineer?
Its learning distance is 76.6 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.