Databases are everywhere. These structured systems gather data in rows, columns, and fields which are used to record customer lists, product catalogs, items for sale, personnel data, medical records, telephone numbers, and much more.
Some databases are massive, while others are fairly small. But they all have to be managed. And that provides plenty of jobs across the IT and business landscape.
Each kind of database has its own database management system (DBMS). These software packages help organizations to define, format, manipulate, retrieve, and manage the data contained within a database. DBMS’s contain rules about the various field names, how records and files are structured, and so on.
Here are some of the top trends in the database job market:Â
1. SAP and OracleÂ
SAP and Oracle are two of the stalwarts of the enterprise database market. SAP offers multi-model processing within SAP HANA, which provides an immense amount of in-memory processing for high performance.
The latest version of Oracle Database 21c includes an Always Free tier of Oracle Autonomous Database. It contains immutable blockchain tables, In-Database JavaScript, native JSON binary data type, AutoML for in-database machine learning (ML), and persistent memory store. It also offers enhancements for in-memory, graph processing performance, sharding, multitenant, and security.
As the most popular database platforms in the world, Oracle and SAP skills open a great many employment doors into large and mid-sized enterprises.Â
2. New Generation Database ToolsÂ
In some ways, SAP and Oracle represent the older generation. Even though they have gone to great lengths to bring their platforms to the cloud, their heritage still manifests in terms of architectural complexity.
Small businesses working with large corporations often run into difficulties with such systems when it comes to getting accepted as a supplier. The data fields to be entered are as obscure as they are endless. Some give up and decide that learning such systems isn’t worth the hassle.Â
Enter a new wave of simpler and easy-to-use cloud-based databases. There are many of these, and they are growing in importance in the market. Those learning these skills could find themselves doing well within a specific market niche.
For example, Knack offers an online database to structure data with data types that make sense, like names and emails. It helps to connect data by linking related records together and extend it with special options like formulas and equations.
TeamDesk is another online database that aims to remove the complexity of running and maintaining one on-premises. Its templates make it easy to create a custom database despite lack of technical knowledge.
There are plenty of other platforms too.
3. Multi-Model DatabasesÂ
According to SAP, multi-model databases are one of the trends in database software and management right now. As such, they represent plenty of job opportunities.
Multi-model databases offer a single, integrated data platform that can store, access, and process different types of data to carry out multiple tasks. With a multi-model database, you can unify various data types and models into a single solution, without having individual technologies for each specific purpose.
This is more beneficial than having individual technologies for each specific purpose. The resulting patchwork solutions can lead to silos that hamper business agility and innovation. A unified multi-model data platform can help overcome these challenges.
4. New Skills for Database FlexibilityÂ
The IT world is converging more and more. Not so long ago there were distinctly separate lines for telecommunications and data. Now, almost everything goes on one means of connection, resulting in disappearing land lines.
Similarly, storage, networking, compute, applications, and development used to be clearly separated disciplines within IT. Now, many are converging. Hyperconverged infrastructures have emerged.
As a result, database specialists are finding it harder to stick rigidly to their chosen area of interest. They are being asked to do more, even if that only goes as far as being knowledgeable in how the database interfaces with other systems. But increasingly, they are being required to possess wider skill sets such as security and storage.
For example, data mirroring as a means of protecting a database can lessen organizational risk and increase resiliency. By copying the database in real-time from one location to another, database administrators can ensure that if the primary copy of the database is lost, another one is immediately available.
“With cloud deployments, data mirroring takes on greater importance and particularly when core business applications like analytics and databases move to the cloud,” said Kirill Shoikhet, CTO of Excelero.
“Databases must have mirroring across availability zones. Technologies that can synchronously mirror while minimizing the number of round trips have an advantage, as cross-availability zones and regions means that there is some basic latency, due to the distance and physics.”
5. Current Favorites
As trends in database jobs rapidly change, it is smart to pay attention to reports about which technologies are best in terms of compensation.
Foote Partners’ “IT Skills and Certifications Pay Index” shows good news in general for the database job market. Pay rates as a whole have risen sharply over the past decade. But over the past six months, there are a few specific areas where salaries are surging. These include Amazon DynamoDB, data management, database management, data quality, MongoDB, PostgreSQL, NoSQL. HBase, and Oracle Forms.
Pay for those experienced in Apache HBase, for example, rose 25% in market value over a six-month span. This open-source NoSQL database runs atop the Hadoop Distributed File System and provides access in real time to large datasets.
Pay for pros working with Amazon DynamoDB also increased in value by 12.5%. It is another NoSQL database that supports the key-value and document data structures. It is part of Amazon Web Services and uses synchronous replication across multiple data centers to increase data durability and availability.
