It Sector: Careers, Opportunities and Challenges

The technology sector is a rapidly growing area of work. As a result there are laws that need to be followed in order to protect the workforce and the company itself. In this assignment , I will look into the legislation that exists in order to effectively guard this information as well as looking into the vast amount of careers, opportunities and challenges that fall under the umbrella of the IT sector.

Legislation

Just like most sectors nowadays, there is a lot of rules which must be followed in order to protect people and their identities as well as from seeing the wrong kind of content when they use such powerful technology. This information is protected by the Data Protection Act of 1988 and 2003. This law was ultimately born to guard people's private information and to protect personal data. This includes copyrighting, which legally brands peoples own work as theirs, which grants no-one else permission to use that work without the authors/ composers etc. permission.

The Health, Safety and Welfare act 2005 and 2010 also aims to protect communications workers in the workplace. This is important while working with communications as it is very like that the workers will be dealing with technology, machines and other people who may, on occasion, act in a physically or verbally abusive manner.

The Freedom of Information Act 2014 is also important for maintaining an effective communications system in Ireland. This law states that everyone is allowed to access information which belongs to a body that is not exempt from the freedom of information legislation; anyone can change official information in relation to themselves if it contains errors and also asks the person to retain reasons for their decisions that affect themselves. These laws and regulations allow the opportunity for communications workers to work in a safe environment as well as safeguarding the private information belonging to the general public.

Although these laws are highly advantageous in protecting the worker and the data associated with communications technology, it can also restrict us from achieving what we need to achieve in order to carry out tasks to the best of our abilities. This can be in the form of website blockers on non-harmful websites such as YouTube or common information sites such as WikiHow etc.

Careers in the IT industry

As the I.T. industry is an exponentially growing sector, there is no shortage of work and work opportunities. The list of IT occupations is endless ranging from web design to computer engineering and assembly to marketing. This makes it an interesting field to work in as there are constant opportunities to broaden your horizons and progress to new levels of work. Technology employees often work their way up the ladder and progress from their start point, earning themselves higher salaries and greater opportunities.

Perhaps the most reputable organizations in the IT sector in Ireland are Intel, Google, Facebook, SAP and Cúram Software. These organizations provide people in various different areas of specialty in the technology sector with a broad range of career opportunities. Intel Ireland is located in Leixlip and offers employment to over 4,900 people throughout Ireland, making it a tech giant on Irish soil. Facebook is also a massive IT based company and has been named the best tech firm to work for in Ireland by the Irish Times as a result of their benefits packages and their treatment of employees.

Key Challenges and Opportunities facing the IT Sector

One of the biggest challenges facing the IT sector today is the shortage of a skilled workforce. The technology sector is growing at such a rapid rate that it is difficult to find people with the qualifications needed in order to fill the available amount of jobs. While this is ideal for employees, it could be a cause for concern amongst employers. How can they run their company efficiently with a shortage of staff?

A very attractive aspect of working in the IT sector is undoubtedly the opportunity to travel. As many computer systems run on universal coding languages, there is little to worry about in terms of differences in work when you travel abroad. For this reason, someone with efficient IT skills can travel across the globe and always find a suitable job.