Today is the Fourth Annual IT Professionals Day from SolarWinds

Technology professionals have become an unsung hero in modern enterprises. To celebrate them, SolarWinds, an IT management software solution provider, has dedicated the third Thursday of every September to IT Professionals Day. In conjunction with the fourth annual  IT Professionals Day, global technology professionals were polled through a series of studies to provide unique insight into what a world powered by tech pros looks like.

SolarWinds today released their IT Pro Day 2018: A World Powered by Tech Pros survey. The results explore what technology professionals would do if they had the time, resources, and ability to use their technology prowess. This can include anything imaginable in the IT space.

“Today’s technology professionals face a tremendous amount of responsibility at work, from one-off user requests and help desk tickets to the expectation of continuous technology implementation,” said Joseph Kim, executive vice president, and chief technology officer, SolarWinds. “As a result, they have very little time to dedicate to being Tech PROactive. In honor of all the work they do, we want to celebrate the fourth annual IT Professionals Day by giving tech pros the freedom to explore all the ways they would use their technology aptitude to take their worlds forward—from IT optimization to helping solve societal challenges like environmental sustainability.”

End users are the top priority.

• Nearly 70% of tech pros surveyed respond to one-off user requests on a daily basis, and over half (51%) of tech pros respond to help desk tickets on a daily basis.
• Even when they have time to be proactive at work, researching new technologies that will benefit the end user is still the number one priority (by weighted rank).

Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, deep learning, and cloud computing would not only transform IT environments, but the greater good, according to respondents.

• The top three new technology advancements that tech pros would use to solve challenges within their IT environment if they had more time would be:
  1. AI/machine learning/deep learning
  2. Automation
  3. Cloud (by weighted rank, respectively)
• Technology professionals say they would use these technologies to:
  1. Uncover more actionable insights for business leadership
  2. Make repeatable tasks quicker and more accurate
  3. Scale easily and cost-effectively by using the public cloud
• The top three technology advancements that tech pros would use to solve broader societal issues if they had more time to do so would be:
  1. AI/machine learning/deep learning
  2. Big data analysis
  3. Cloud (by weighted rank, respectively)
• Technology professionals say they would use these technologies to pursue two main societal challenges:
  1. Affordable education, housing, and healthcare for all
  2. Environmental and sustainability initiatives

Personal development is top of mind but requires a time commitment outside the traditional workday.

• The top three work-related activities that tech pros would spend their time on if they had one extra hour in the workday:
  • Developing a skillset (41%)
  • Researching new technologies (21%)
  • Planning/strategizing future technology innovation in your IT environment (19%)

“In 2017, we revealed that technology professionals are the backbone of our businesses,” Kim added. “This year, we’ve seen this trend continue, with tech pros going above and beyond their responsibilities to explore new technologies and educate themselves further. Forty-one percent of technology professionals shared that they’d continue developing their skillset if they had one more hour in the workday, and 21% shared that they’d spend it researching new technologies. We’re excited to celebrate this fourth annual IT Professionals Day by highlighting their interests—at work and at home—and their dedication to their field.”