Solution providers are looking to hire more people with startup expertise to help customers break into the Internet of Things market.
"For our customers, each IoT project feels like a 'start up within the parent' organization," said Brian Blanchard, vice president of cloud solutions at 10th Magnitude, a Chicago-based solution provider. "Respecting that fact, we look for entrepreneurial spirit and preferably some level of startup experience. We want team members that can join the customer in that start up journey."
Customers that have IoT business goals aren't necessarily asking about IoT-related technology right off the bat, said Blanchard. They're aiming to solve problems, he said, noting that their goals are around improving productivity and efficiency. They want to understand how IoT solutions can help them reach long term goals and how partners can design a strategy to achieve these aims, Blanchard said.
[Related: DataXoom Amps Up IoT, Mobile Expertise With New Bundle For Transportation Industry]
Reed Wiedower, CTO at New Signature, a Microsoft partner based in Washington, D.C., said that "breaking in" customers to IoT requires " technical knowledge, business development chops, and certain entrepreneurial focus."
Wiedower, whose company is actively hiring around IoT, said that he wants to build up a team who understand the vertical background of customers, as well as how they can actively solve underlying issues.
"IoT has a real impact on a company’s bottom line, so when we sell to customers we have to get them to first realize they have a problem that can be solved with an IoT solution, and then we have to be able to deliver value quickly, in a matter of weeks, not months, to achieving objectives," he said.
Wiedower isn't alone in looking for new IoT talent. According to a survey of vendors, service providers and solution providers by 451 Research, 46 percent of respondents said they face an IoT skills shortage. Roughly 71 percent of IoT survey respondents will train existing IT administrators on IoT skills, and 50 percent will hire new staff.
However, 10th Magnitude's Blanchard said that business problem solving is a skill that can't necessarily be taught. His firm is looking for experts who have already worked in startups and have experience with proofs-of-concept or "seeing the bigger picture."
"We’ve found that this skillset is impossible to teach," he said. "If engineers are willing to help the customer see a much bigger picture, it’s better for the customer in IoT engagements."
Blanchard says 10th Magnitude does also look for technical skills while hiring IoT specialists – but understanding how to guide customers through business problem solving processes is more important.
These specialized skill sets include data transformation skills, like a deep understanding of connectivity, endpoint management, infrastructure, application modernization, serverless coding, and API management.
"Technical skills are important … However, the challenge with IoT is less about the technology. There are a number of repeatable tools, approaches, and assets that we leverage in IoT projects," he said. "Since IoT is so broad, we want people that are brave enough to push the conversation beyond their technical comfort zone."
related stories
Video
trending stories
sponsored resources

Cysurance
Cyber Insurance 360

EPOS
EPOS

Fujifilm
Fujifilm

Dell Technologies
Dell Technologies Storage Learning Center

Mimecast
Mimecast

Carbonite
Cloud Storage 360

Application Integration 360

Hitachi Vantara
Hitachi Vantara

Dell Technologies
Dell Technologies Cloud Learning Center

Tenable
Cyber Risk 360

Webroot
Webroot Learning Center

NPD
Industry Trends 360

BlackBerry
BlackBerry Learning Center

Symantec
Symantec Business Security Learning Center

Sherweb
Sherweb

Acer
Remote Workforce 360

APC by Schneider Electric
Digital Services for Edge Learning Center

Channel Chief Showcase

StorageCraft
Disaster Recovery Learning Center

Vertiv
Edge Computing Learning Center

Wasabi
Wasabi

Dell Technologies
Dell Technologies Hybrid Cloud Learning Center

Cradlepoint
5g for Business 360

Comm100
Collaboration & Communications 360

Veeam
Veeam

Smart 3rd Party
3rd Party Maintenance 360

Sophos
Sophos Cybersecurity Learning Center

Trend Micro
Trend Micro Learning Center

VMware

HubStor
Cloud Backup 360

eSentire
Managed Detection and Response 360

Comcast Business
Comcast Business Learning Center
