LinkedIn recently cited Cloud and Distributed Computing as the number one skill that can get you hired in 2016.

LinkedIn members with skills like Hadoop, HBase, and Hive listed on their profiles increased dramatically from 2014 to 2015, making it jump from not even being rated (due to a low number of members adding these items to their profiles) to the #1 spot in 2015, and the best skill to get you hired in 2016.

As cloud computing has become a technological cornerstone for businesses across the globe, employer demand for cloud professionals has exploded. In 2015 alone, there were an estimated 18 million cloud computing jobs globally, according to WANTED Analytics.

Of those 18 million, 3.9 million of those jobs are in the U.S., with 384,478 in IT alone. And according to WANTED Analytics, the median salary for IT professionals with cloud computing experience is $90,950, and the median salary for positions that pay over $100,000 a year is $116,950.

Basically, it’s a great time to be working in cloud solutions, so let’s breakdown this flourishing industry into five popular skills required of the modern cloud professional.

Migration

It takes longer for some companies than others to get up to date with the latest tech standards. Millions of businesses are still in the process of planning and executing the migration their on-premise infrastructure. This means there is still a significant demand for professionals with the skills to facilitate the process.

If you’re put in charge of overseeing this migration, you will need a sound knowledge of the different cloud deployment models available to businesses. You’ll also need to understand the existing infrastructure of the organization you’re working with and the knowledge of how to map applications and workloads running on existing servers and relocate them to their cloud equivalent.

Looking for a course you can take to learn the ins and outs? Try Microsoft’s Private Cloud certification, Specialist certification in Implementing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions, and MCSA: Windows Server 2012 course (which can be deployed across both public and private cloud offerings.)

Security

According to RightScale’s 2016 State of the Cloud Report, security is a top concern for companies using cloud-based platforms.

The top challenge cited for companies was is lack of resources/expertise (i.e. there’s a high-demand for skilled workers!) which remains a consistent concern across the levels of experience these companies have working in the cloud—experience was divided into 3 subcategories: Cloud Beginners, Cloud Explorers, and Cloud Focused. The second most important challenge (especially to Cloud Beginners): Security.

Security was ranked as the #2 challenge by Cloud Beginners (35 percent), the #4 challenge by Cloud Explorers (28 percent), and the #5 challenge by Cloud Focused users. While security concerns decrease as a challenge as users gain cloud experience, it is still a crucial concern for companies across the board.

To develop your cloud security skills, then (ISC)2’s Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP) certification is for you.

Database Querying Languages + Platforms

The amount of data that we create today is almost incomprehensible. Each day, in fact, we create 2.5 quintillion bytes of data, but this explosion of data is a very recent one. In fact, 90% of the data in the world today has been created in just the last two years. But all that data is meaningless unless it can be analyzed and accurate conclusions can be drawn from it.

Companies need employees with the skills to thoughtfully and meaningfully draw insights into their customers, the market, and their products as well as the ability to store and manage this data. This is where learning a database querying language and an associated database platform come in.

SQL is by far the most important language to learn, and there are courses all over the web that offer lessons in this. Start out with Codecademy, and from there you can see if you need to supplement other courses.

Popular database platforms include Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle Database, and open-source platforms like MySQL, Hadoop and MongoDB. Oracle has their own certification courses, as does Microsoft. MongoDB provides their own MongoDB University and Oracle provides MySQL training. Cloudera can help you learn Apache Hadoop.

Linux

More than 25% of servers powering Azure are Linux based, which means there’s a very high demand for cloud professionals with Linux expertise in the market right now. Microsoft has been increasingly working in the open-source market, which means the demand is only set to grow.

Learn how to design, architect, build administer, and maintain Linux servers with the Linux Foundation Certified Systems Administrator course. Microsoft also offers a MCSA: Linux on Azure course that will help you develop the skills to create cloud-enabled Linux solutions that take advantage of the full potential of the Azure platform.

Programming languages

Everyone knows that developers are always in hot demand, and working in the cloud has only allowed developers to build, deploy, and manage applications more efficiently. Companies need talented developers to manage these efforts. Languages like Python, Perl and Ruby have become more popular in recent years, but traditional languages like .NET, Java, and PHP continue to have high demand.

Again, Codecademy is a great resource for learning many of these languages, and their courses are free.

Conclusion

As the world moves more and more into the cloud, the need for cloud professionals is only set to grow. No matter if you’re looking to make a career change, shift, or simply increase your value as an employee for a potential raise or promotion, learning these skills will make you invaluable to your employee and the team you’re working in. Don’t miss out on this essential technology shift that’s taking place all over the world.