Who is a Cloud Engineer? Skills, Responsibilities, Salary

Cloud computing platforms have become increasingly popular as businesses worldwide have stopped employing onsite data centers and server rooms. Around two-thirds of large firms are shifting business apps and data storage to Cloud services. More than half of businesses consider the adoption of cloud services as the IT department's primary strategic focus. Businesses require highly trained engineers to manage their cloud usage, including application creation, resource allocation and maintenance, and optimal use of the capabilities provided by the industry's leading cloud providers. Because of the growing popularity of Cloud Computing, AWS cloud engineers are in great demand.

Who is a Cloud Engineer?

Cloud engineers assist enterprises in transferring their data to a cloud-based architecture so that it may be accessed remotely. They collaborate with clients to fully grasp their needs before developing unique solutions to help their business operations. Strong technical aptitude, project management expertise, and customer service experience are all requirements for IT cloud engineers. In today's rapidly evolving technological landscape, pursuing a Cloud Computing course can equip aspiring IT cloud engineers with the necessary technical skills and knowledge to plan, build, and maintain effective cloud-based solutions for businesses.

What Does a Cloud Engineer Do?

Cloud engineers work together to evaluate and select the best cloud solutions with the engineering and development teams.

Cloud engineer work on existing systems must be modified and improved. 

Cloud engineers educate the team on integrating new cloud technologies and activities. 

Cloud Engineer Job Roles

Cloud engineers typically do the following tasks daily: 

• collaborate with stakeholders to ascertain the changes they wish to make to their present systems.
• examine current systems for weaknesses that could endanger cloud security.
• Transfer corporate data to a cloud computing platform and establish simple data retrieval techniques.
• Keep up to date on cloud computing innovations to advise organizations and clients on industry best practices.
• expand cloud storage to accommodate more files and essential corporate data.
• collaborate with cybersecurity and IT personnel to ensure the safety of data in computer systems.
• Handle problems with cloud applications or security flaws 
• Develop and implement cloud computing solutions in compliance with client or employer specifications.
• Design testing to identify and correct flaws and make system enhancements.

Cloud Engineer Responsibilities [Based on Experience]

A cloud engineer is responsible for various duties and responsibilities related to cloud data storage. Cloud engineers' roles and responsibilities are heavily differentiated based on their experience. Based on their experiences, below are a few roles and responsibilities of a Strategic cloud engineer.  

1. Entry-Level

Roles: 

For an entry-level cloud engineer, the roles and responsibilities may vary depending on their specific job profile: 

Responsibilities: 

• Cloud Administrator: Managing cloud resources, including virtual computers, storage, and networks, is a practical aspect of this position. These specialists oversee ensuring that the systems they manage remain operational. A cloud administrator's primary responsibility is collaborating with the IT division to deploy, configure, and monitor compute storage and networking services running on the Cloud.
• Cloud Developer: This position primarily focuses on creating cloud computing solutions. A cloud developer will collaborate with other IT department personnel to design, build, and maintain applications utilized by end users for specific objectives. Develop and keep numerous apps using programming languages such as Java, Python, and others. These specialists must be able to combine data sources and recognize the issues that can occur due to incompatibility or security concerns—creating and configuring virtual machines to meet business requirements, including installing networking resources such as load balancers for scalability. If problems arise during deployment, cloud developers typically collaborate with DevOps people to debug code/programs. Management of cloud infrastructure resources such as networks, storage, and compute services, among others, in collaboration with others.
• Junior Cloud Engineer: At this level, you need a solid understanding of additional topics like virtualization, networking, and storage systems. Cloud engineers must also be able to utilize the many infrastructure services cloud computing firms provide fully. They are designing disaster recovery strategies based on understanding the performance needs of client's business needs, assisting them in more easily achieving their objectives. When problems develop during the deployment phases, cloud engineers must be able to solve them quickly. They must also collaborate with other team members from various IT departments throughout an organization's structure.
• Cloud Security Professional: This role is primarily concerned with cloud security management. As a professional, you must understand how to monitor, detect, and respond to an assault. By comprehending the industry's best practices concerning cloud computing and your clients' compliance standards, you must be able to manage their security requirements. To excel in this role of cloud security management, you can benefit from specialized training such as the Azure Security Engineer Certification Training.
• Cloud sales executives: A cloud sales executive needs to communicate well to demonstrate how the features provided by various cloud providers benefit enterprises. Also, to swiftly and effectively close deals, this expert should be able to bargain with vendors on behalf of their clients.

2. Mid-Level

Mid-level cloud Engineer roles and responsibilities

Mid-level cloud engineers collect requirements, design, code, integrate, and put into practice cloud solutions. These solutions must be productive while also being error-free. Additionally, they support business functions and the fundamental infrastructure required for cloud solution deployment. Mid-level Cloud Engineers typically have three to four years of experience and are required to hold an Associate cloud engineer certification.

3. Senior-Level

Senior-level Cloud Engineer roles and responsibilities

These engineers are in charge of several things. They support and contribute to the enterprise cloud strategy of the company as well as the standards, DevOps methodology, Agile project management, and best practices related to all facets of cloud solutions. Also, they are in charge of providing engineering support and expert-level designs to achieve deadlines. Senior Cloud Engineers establish and implement internal systems, procedures, and best practices that other teams can apply to increase productivity. They ensure the solutions are built for success in cloud deployment, security, cost-effectiveness, and high availability.

They also create, put into practice, and test business continuity and disaster recovery architecture. Additionally, they develop and put into practice automation in the form of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) for cloud platform solutions and guarantee that all infrastructure parts fulfil compliance, capacity, and performance standards.

Cloud Engineer Skills and Qualifications

1. Cloud service knowledge

As a cloud engineer, you must be familiar with the three primary public cloud computing platforms. Your employer will determine which platform you use, but if you are familiar with all three, hiring managers and recruiters will find you more appealing. Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud Platform (GCP) are the leading platforms. Each cloud service provider provides a training course to assist you in understanding their platform and obtaining the skills necessary to work for a firm that uses their system.

 2. Development and Operational Skills

DevOps is a popular framework for Cloud Engineers; thus, understanding DevOps best practices and some of the technologies utilized is essential. For instance, it's critical to comprehend Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery (CI/CD), which automates software development and deployment to reduce the likelihood of errors and programming failures. Various tools can aid this procedure, including Jenkins, Azure, and Docker.

3. Networking

The transition of internal company networks to public, private, or hybrid cloud platforms is assisted by several cloud engineers. You must be familiar with cloud network implementation, configuration, upkeep, and support to help with this. As a Cloud Engineer, you may also be required to assist in identifying and resolving network issues.

4. Programming Language

As a Cloud Engineer, you must be familiar with various programming languages, including SQL, Python, and Java. Programming languages allow you to create, deploy, and manage programs by writing code.

5. Knowledge of containers

In cloud computing, containers bundle all the components required to run software in any environment, so you don't have to worry about platform compatibility. The migration to the Cloud is more straightforward after the software has been containerized. Cloud Engineers employ specific tools to aid the process, such as Docker or Kubernetes. As a result, understanding these tools will set you apart from competitors.

6. Operating System Knowledge

Every Cloud needs an operating system; Linux is the most widely used. Linux is free to use, open-sourced, and regarded as one of the safest operating systems.

7. Cloud Security

All cloud engineers should be familiar with cloud security since organizations must safeguard their and customers' data in the Cloud to prevent data leaks and cyberattacks. Each platform has distinct cloud security procedures, just as numerous cloud service providers do. Thus, it is best to research cloud security courses based on the service provider you are concentrating on.

8. Communication Skill

While becoming a Cloud Engineer remote or onshore requires various important technical abilities, success in your career also requires soft skills. You will need to be able to convey ideas to a group of individuals who may not be familiar with the technical vocabulary; therefore, communication is crucial. Strong communicators can also diagnose issues and collaborate on projects with other engineers.

9. Critical Thinking

You may encounter issues as a cloud engineer daily and need to develop the best solution. You must use creativity to assist your employer in making financial, time, and labor-saving and effective decisions. Your ability to use critical thought will be tested daily as you troubleshoot problems, test and debug cloud integrations, comprehend risk mitigation with cloud security, and develop ongoing strategies through network optimization in the Cloud.

How Do You Become a Cloud Engineer?

The role of cloud engineer is often not entry-level, and most cloud engineers began their careers as software engineers or IT managers. To become a cloud engineer, you must first obtain the necessary skills and expertise through college, graduate credentials, certifications, and work experience.

1. Education

A bachelor's degree in information technology is often required to work as a cloud engineer. With its broad reach and concentration on theory, a computer science degree can further enhance your résumé. Cloud engineers commonly hold the following majors, which are typically offered both online and offline.

• Software development 
• Engineering of networks 
• Database Administration 

Most often, having a working knowledge of at least one programming language is necessary for a career in cloud engineering. Cloud engineers should think about learning: Java, Python, R, PHP, C++ 

2. Certification

Professional certifications are necessary for a cloud engineering profession because they demonstrate your proficiency with regularly utilized vendors. The Common certificates that can be beneficial include: 

• Amazon certificates: at various levels include Cloud Practitioner, Solutions Architect, Developer, SAP on AWS, and SysOps Administrator. 
• Google Cloud Certification: Professional Cloud Architect, Professional Cloud Developer, and Professional Cloud Security Engineer.
• Microsoft certification: Azure Developer Associate and Microsoft Certification, Azure Developer Associate and Basics of Azure

3. Experience

A career in cloud engineering can also be advanced through experience. There are several talents that a successful cloud engineer needs that cannot be taught in a classroom, especially managerial skills. People need to grow in the workplace, and a tech internship can help you gain experience. 

Cloud Engineer Salary

In the United States, the average annual salary for a cloud engineer is $117,760. The cloud engineer's salary depends on the experience and job roles.  

Job Roles	Average Salary/year
Cloud Application Architect	$140,000
Cloud Engineer	$187,000
Senior Cloud Engineer	$210,000
Cloud Developer	$200,000
Cloud Solution Professional	$183,000

Cloud Engineer Career Path

Cloud engineers organize, create, and maintain businesses' constantly expanding cloud computing solutions. Let's look at various job alternatives. The most common title for a position in cloud computing is "cloud engineer”. Still, this term is a catch-all for a group of positions, including cloud architect, cloud support associate, and cloud developer. 

Cloud engineers often have one or more of the following skills: 

1. Cloud Architecture: Cloud architects design the cloud's infrastructure and distributed applications. They use their strong business acumen and technical skills to create and optimize a company's cloud computing strategy. 
2. Cloud Development: To make the architect's idea a reality, cloud developers code and engineer software. To design, deploy, and optimize cloud-based apps, they combine traditional programming skills with expertise in the development environments of one or more of the top cloud platforms. 
3. Cloud Support: Cloud support engineers oversee onboarding, troubleshooting, and supporting cloud computing solutions. They typically work for the actual cloud services providers, such as various positions at market giants Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, and Google. 

What Makes a Good Cloud Engineer?

Cloud computing has skyrocketed in popularity, and forecasters have also given it their approval, indicating that Cloud Computing is here to stay. Unsurprisingly, the number of people interested in working in this field is increasing. If you share this desire, you should have good cloud engineer program skills to become a sound cloud engineer.  

Cloud Engineer Job Requirements

As a cloud engineer, you must be able to find the finest cloud-based solutions for our customers and manage cloud infrastructures following industry best practices and business security guidelines. A great cloud engineer should be able to troubleshoot well, be up to date on industry developments, and work well in a team. The cloud engineer job requirements are given below: 

• A bachelor's degree in computer science or a related discipline is required to be precise cloud engineering degree. 
• At least three years of experience in cloud computing. 
• Knowledge of CI/CD systems. 
• SysOps experience is required. 
• Certifications in Azure, AWS, and GCP are desired. 
• Analytical and troubleshooting abilities are required. 
• Excellent communication and teamwork abilities. 
• Client management abilities. 
• Communicate with customers, give cloud support, and make recommendations depending on their needs. 
• Create and maintain cloud systems that adhere to best practices.

Conclusion

Cloud computing is an attractive, dynamic topic currently in high IT demand. Learning to work with the Cloud can help you discover an intriguing profession by assisting firms at the forefront of technological innovation. Cloud computing is rapidly transforming how businesses operate, and this isn't going to change. As a result, approximately 80% of companies now serve a portion of their operations through cloud computing services like Amazon and Azure. If you want to become an Azure cloud engineer or start a career in cloud computing, now is the time to do it. You can also become a successful part-time cloud engineer if you develop the skills and obtain the necessary Cloud Computing certifications from KnowledgeHut. Refer associate cloud engineer study guide for the same to become a cloud engineer.