Traditional technical skills remain paramount for IT professionals, but these days they are no longer enough. Many companies, particularly in regulated industries, are now looking for IT talent that also comes with expertise in business analytics, accounting and management, reports Jack Cullen at Baseline magazine.

"It's not about screwing phone systems into the wall, or swapping out hard drives--that's the smallest part of the IT/business relationship," said Rick Endres, president and founder of The Washington Network. "It's all about being able to speak the language of the business, articulating IT strategy to decision makers and affecting the bottom line."

A highly regulated environment complicates previous IT challenges. It makes it imperative that the IT pros understand the specific needs of the vertical and are able to communicate in the language of that vertical. In financial services, for example, more stringent rules stemming from the Dodd-Frank Act have precipitated a need for more advanced risk management programs. 

In the legal sector, sophisticated document management has become critical as rules surrounding e-discovery become stricter. Other regulations that apply to the practice of law increase the complexity of the IT systems.

"The document management system may require an API that ties into the billing and time management database, which in turn ties into their financial and accounting ledger," Endres said. "All of these disparate systems are then tied together and maintained in a central knowledge base. IT professionals working in this environment who understand legal regulations, financial requirements, document workflow best practices, and how all of these technologies work together to affect the bottom line possess the truly multi-dimensional skills that companies seek today."

For more:
- see Jack Cullen's article at Baseline

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