The cloud computing industry is a sector that continues to see significant growth and a huge demand for skilled people. Plus, the professionals with a high knowledge of cloud are among the highest earners in the IT field. The people with the cloud based skills have the ability to use new methods of implementing, testing, developing and planning IT projects. But, before starting a new career in cloud computing, it is essential to develop the skills and have complete knowledge of the various different services, technologies and concepts used.

Here are a few steps to learn more about cloud computing:

Understand key concepts

One of the first steps is to get a basic understanding of the different concepts that relate to cloud computing. It is important to learn about the dynamic scale of the on-demand cloud environment. Plus, it helps to learn how to develop the infrastructure as code (IAC) in an attempt to match the needs of a particular company or service. This is particularly useful for developers that want to fully manage the logistics and workload. Other important concepts to learn relate to DevOps, continuous delivery (CD), continuous integration (CI), containers and virtualization.

It helps to start with the complete basics and slowly develop from there. Focus on a particular key area, such as cloud-oriented technologies or specific vendor platforms.

Gain practical experience

There are plenty of great opportunities to get practical cloud experience with several major vendors making it possible to trial their platform for free. The popular choices like Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Microsoft Azure and AWS give the option to use their service for a limited period. This is usually in the region of one or two months. However, AWS does offer a limited service for up to 12 months. Simply signing up for these platforms gives an easy way to get knowledge and experience. Other options to gain practical experience include making contributions to open-source projects.

Gain certification

A specific course that leads to earning an industry-recognized certification is a great way to learn the necessary skills. This also shows a future employer that you have the latest, up-to-date knowledge and the type of person that is willing to learn. Most of the major vendors have complete training courses in place that provide hands on experience. Plus, there are various courses to choose from, such as those intended for systems administrators, solutions developers and solutions architects.