Last week, Microsoft announced an impressive collection of free resources that they are providing to IT professionals in order to help make the transition to an IT career in the cloud. The resources were presented on Microsoft’s Server & Cloud Blog where they also quoted statistics like:
There is a significant opportunity for IT professionals to adopt the cloud. IDC believes that while IT employment worldwide will grow about 4% every year from 2015 to 2020, cloud-related positions will grow at more than three times that rate. By 2020, more than 1 in 3 IT positions will be cloud related.
The resources available to IT Pros are available under the IT Pro Cloud Essentials program from Microsoft. It is coordinated through www.itprocloudessentials.com
Those resources include:
- Free Azure credits to try cloud scenarios like backup, disaster recovery, security & dev/test.
- Free Pluralsight subscription for on-line training.
- Free Priority support in the TechNet forums.
- A free phone support incident for Azure or on-premises products.
- A free certification exam voucher. (Limited quantity is already gone.)
- Extended trials of Enterprise Mobility Suite and Office 365.
Another collection of resources is available through the Microsoft IT Pro Career Center, which includes:
- Map your IT cloud role.
- Follow a learning curriculum for your chosen cloud role.
- Evolve at your own pace & learn with your peers.
- Discover which cloud roles are in demand and their salary ranges.
- Get insights on your personality traits and how they match up to cloud roles.
- Hear from industry experts about the trends in cloud roles and skills you need.
Microsoft promises that as the cloud evolves, as will the program.