IT sectors and skills: the ones to watch in Q1

Contactless payment

After much excitement and anticipation, smartphone payment technology looks set to finally become a reality on the UK high street. The rollout of Apple Pay is reported to be on the horizon for the first half of the year and, in line with other Apple innovations, the launch of the ‘wave and pay’ service is expected to finally convince consumers on the value of this new technology.

Information security

After the Sony hacking and other high profile breaches, information security has risen up the corporate and political agenda, exacerbating talent shortages still further. With network and information security skills already 7th on Linked In’s list of most in-demand UK skills and new government measures being introduced to support the cyber security industry, talented IT professionals in this sector could enjoy a lucrative 12 months.

Big data

Severe skills shortages have already enabled big data professionals to command higher than average IT salaries and with more and more sectors realising the business benefits of using consumer data to predict future trends, demand for big data experts will grow in 2015. Described by SAS UK and Ireland as the ‘new oil’ that will power the future information economy, big data is definitely one to watch.