From automation engineer to Web3 developer, here is the almost A-Z directory of tech jobs. It’s not exhaustive, but it might help clarify some titles.
Tech is always changing, so we can guarantee that this jobs list will more than likely look pretty dated in 10 years’ time, or even long before then. But we know, too, that because of its constantly evolving nature, tech is not the easiest field to go into as a young or inexperienced person. Go on any jobs website and search for tech roles and you will find a lot of corporate jargon in the job titles and descriptions. It’s difficult to know what any of these people actually do on a day-to-day basis. With that in mind, we want to de-mystify some of the terms and explain, in plain English, what kind of skills you need, what you can earn and what you will have to do for some of the most common tech jobs.
We have called it an ‘almost A-Z’ list because we couldn’t find roles for every single letter of the alphabet. In some cases, we thought it better to double up on letters rather than sacrificing a whole entry on a fairly self-explanatory role like XML developer, which is just a developer that uses XML.
Automation engineer
Automation engineers use tech tools to make processes more efficient. They can work across a lot of different industries from IT to manufacturing – any sector that requires technologists to streamline working processes and ease the burden on human employees. In Ireland, an automation engineer can earn anything from €55,000 per year and up, depending on the region and sector they are working in.
AI architect
Based on the idea of IT architecture, an AI architect must develop solutions to the challenges within their company using AI and machine learning applications. They need to know about the infrastructure and information they’re working with as well as the ever-evolving AI landscape and how the available tools and technologies can assist them to build and maintain architecture. Because of the senior nature of the role, tech architect jobs like this can command a salary of €80,000 to €90,000.
Business intelligence analyst
The role of a business intelligence analyst, also known as a BI analyst, is all about data. These professionals use data and other information to help organisations make the right business decision. Their day-to-day role might include gathering, cleaning and analysing data and they may also need to programme tools and data models to help visualise the data. This will then help them to interpret the information through patterns and signals and bring forward decisions based on this. According to the Economic Research Institute, an average salary for this role in Dublin is €81,970.
Blockchain engineer
They design and develop the blockchain technology used by various sectors, including but not limited to the financial sector, the content creation sector and the entertainment sector. Blockchain engineers need to thoroughly understand how blockchain tech works and what its potential is. They should also have a very good understanding of security protocols and how to safeguard blockchains against cyberattacks using cryptography. The average salary for a blockchain engineer here is around €89,000.
Cybersecurity analyst
It is the job of a cybersecurity analyst to identify problems or weaknesses in clients’ systems so they can be fixed. Knowing about trends in cybercrime is important to enable enterprises to stay one step ahead of the latest cybercriminal methods. Given the amount of cyberattacks in the news constantly, this is a full-time and pretty essential task. If you’re a cybersecurity analyst, expect to earn between €55,000 and €70,000 per year.
Cloud support engineer
Put simply, cloud support engineers are responsible for maintaining cloud computing systems. They are expected to have in-depth knowledge of cloud computing platforms such as AWS, Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. That’s why you often see the names of those platforms tacked on to job postings seeking cloud support engineers. The job requires both good communication skills and tech skills as cloud support engineers deal with external customers and internal colleagues to troubleshoot problems. In Ireland they can expect to earn upwards of €67,000 per year.
Data analyst
Data analysts have to be confident both in their technical skills and their soft skills as colleagues will often call on them to interpret data, and they have to be able to do so in a way that makes sense to people who aren’t as technologically or mathematically inclined as they are. Data analysts make between €45,000 and €55,000 a year in Ireland.
Data scientist
There is a difference between this role and the previous one. Whereas data analysts come on board when the data has been collected, data scientists are there for the whole life cycle. Their maths skills have to be extremely sharp because they are the ones that come up with new methods to parse through complex data and make sure it is as accurate and non-biased as possible. Data science is a much broader field than analysis. Data scientists can expect to make between €65,000 and €80,000 a year.
Database administrator
Also called a database architect, this profession is all about taking care of the often complex processes involved in data administration. Think storing and retrieving data and making sure that databases are running optimally. Often, database administrators work with developers to troubleshoot new database features, so their tech skills have to be fairly advanced. Attention to detail is another good skill to have. In Ireland, these roles could potentially see earners bring in up to €70,000 before tax.
DevOps engineer
DevOps is a methodology in the software development and IT industry that integrates and automates the work of software development and IT operations, hence the name. A DevOps engineer should have a wide-ranging knowledge of both development and operations, including coding, infrastructure management and system administration. You might need to be well-versed in tech skills such as CI/CD skills and Linux as well as soft skills around collaboration and organisation. The average salary for a DevOps engineer could range from €65,000 to €80,000 depending on location and experience.
Enterprise architect
It is the job of the enterprise architect to marry an organisation’s IT strategy to their wider business objectives. That means you need to be fairly experienced in both tech leadership and business leadership so you can effectively guide a company through their strategy as it works to meet their objectives. According to Morgan McKinley, enterprise architects can command salaries of up to €110,000 per year because of their seniority.
Front-end and back-end developer
Job sites often distinguish between front-end and back-end developers and engineers in their advertisements. This is because both are different types of web development. Front-end developers create websites and web applications as we see them when we are using them. Back-end developers work in the back-end, or the workings behind how the website or web application operates. In Ireland, front-end developers can earn approximately €65,000 and up, while back-end developer salaries are marginally higher.
Game developer
Gaming is a lucrative sub-sector of the tech industry and game developers are the ones that create and design the technology behind popular games. They have similar skills to a software developer, but they should also have UX and UI skills as well as creativity. Graphic design experience is also a huge plus because so much of the tech behind game creation is visual. However, graphic designers are separate from developers, although they often work together. Game developers earn, on average, around €45,000 but this varies quite a bit depending on the region.
Hardware engineer
Hardware engineers work with all the physical equipment associated with IT, such as motherboards, processors, memory devices and more. Over the past few decades there has been a shift from hardware engineering to software engineering, which is why you might not hear of as many hardware opportunities anymore – but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t out there. Industry still needs hardware specialists to take care of the literal nuts and bolts. Hardware engineers in Ireland can command salaries of up to €90,000 a year.
Infrastructure architect
Sometimes also called a solutions architect, infrastructure architects work to design and implement information systems into existing tech frameworks. They need good tech skills and a good understanding of how technology can be deployed in an agile manner to help businesses. Infrastructure architects can, in theory, progress to become enterprise architects. In Ireland, they can earn up to a six-digit salary.
Information security engineer
An information security engineer is responsible for integrating the various different tools and systems that organisations need to keep their infrastructure safe. They should also have cybersecurity skills, but the role is more about testing and implementation than development. Information security engineers could earn between €55,000 to €80,000 per year in Ireland.
Java developer
Lots of organisations use the Java programming language for their websites and applications. Java developers specialise in Java development and programming. In Dublin, they can earn between €55,000 and €70,000 a year, according to Morgan McKinley.
Logistics manager
These people tend to be masters at organisation. They are in charge of overseeing the supply chain and its various processes. Since a lot of supply chain management is tech-based nowadays, logistics managers and supply chain managers need a good grasp of technology. Logistics managers could potentially earn between €55,000 and €70,000 in Dublin, according to Morgan McKinley.
Machine learning engineer
A subset of AI, machine learning is all about ensuring that tech algorithms can function in a way that mimics human intelligence. The word ‘mimics’ is key here. Machine learning is used in things like surveillance cameras, facial recognition, marketing and targeting customers by advertising companies. To be a machine learning engineer, you will need to have a good grasp of data science, maths, AI and coding in general. In Ireland, a machine learning engineer can expect to earn between €75,000 and €85,000.
Network engineer
Network engineers oversee computer networks and all the processes involved in designing, deploying and troubleshooting them. Generally speaking, they work for an organisation but they can also travel around to provide technical support to other locations to work on their networks. Good maths, analytical and problem-solving skills are essential to be a network engineer. Average salaries for this role tend to be just under €60,000.
Operations manager
Just like it sounds, operations managers manage the multiple different strands involved in running a successful IT organisation. They have to have excellent organisation and communication skills as it is their job to ensure that all parts of a project run smoothly and every team knows what their duties are. In Ireland, the salary for an operations manager can range from €52,000 upwards depending on the region.
Penetration tester
Sometimes described as ethical hacking, penetration testers, or pen-testers for short, are employed by companies and sanctioned to hack into clients’ networks. They do this so they can figure out where security vulnerabilities lie and how they might be exploited by criminal hackers. The average salary for this role is around €60,000 in Ireland.
Platform engineer
Platform engineers have to build and maintain the platforms, or tech infrastructure, that software runs on. So, to be a platform engineer, you need to have a good knowledge of software development as you will need to take what software devs build and make sure it integrates into the platform it is supposed to run on. In Dublin, platform engineers can earn more than €76,000.
Quality assurance engineer and quality control engineer
We have decided to merge these two roles as they are quite similar. Quality assurance (QA) engineers oversee the quality of software projects across various stages of development to achieve the desired end result. Quality control (QC) engineers have pretty much the same job but their focus is more so on the end product, whereas the QA engineer’s is on the debugging and testing that comes beforehand. QC and QA engineers, on average, earn around €51,000 per year.
Robotic process automation developer
A good head for business is a bonus for this tech role since robotic process automation (RPA) developers use RPA technology to automate various business processes. Their work helps companies run more efficiently. RPA technology is actually not about physical robots. It is a type of software that can mimic and then automate things that human workers would otherwise have to do manually such as write emails or remember calendar events. The average salary for an RPA developer is around €58,000 in Ireland.
Reliability engineer
A part of systems engineering, reliability engineering focuses on ensuring that various systems keep running reliably. Technology can be pretty high-stakes and there is a lot riding on it. Reliability engineers are the people who make sure that nothing goes wrong or if something does go wrong, its cost to the organisation is as minimal as possible. Here in Ireland, reliability engineers’ salaries are between €50,000 and €70,000 usually.
Scrum master
A scrum master leads a team through a project using agile project management. Scrum is a popular framework used in software development that helps teams structure and manage their work through a set of values, principles and practices. It breaks work into goals to be completed within time-boxed iterations called sprints. The scrum master is there to facilitate communication and collaboration between leadership and team players to ensure a successful outcome. Scrum masters in Dublin can expect to earn between €65,000 and €85,000 per year.
Software developer
A very popular job in tech, but what do they actually do everyday? Software developers (also known as software engineers) have a lot of duties, such as writing the code behind web apps, documenting the code, testing and debugging issues. They can work on their own, but more often they work as part of a wider development team. To be a good software developer, you have to have a real passion for technology and continuous learning because it is a rapidly evolving field. In Ireland, software developer salaries could range from €50,000 to €70,000 according to Morgan McKinley.
Technology consultant
This is a consultant role where the person provides tech advice as a service in-house to fellow colleagues or externally to clients. Technology consultants have to be very confident communicators with excellent knowledge of the tech industry and how technology can improve business prospects. Irish-based technology consultants can expect to earn around €50,000 per year in Ireland, but this varies depending on experience and location.
UX designer
A UX designer follows the user-centred design process to make a product or service usable, enjoyable and accessible. They are the team members who are looking at the bigger picture and advocating for the end users’ needs. In terms of tech, this could be designing an app, platform of physical product. UX designers do not think of design and technological capabilities as two separate entities, but rather, marry the two for a better customer experience. According to Morgan McKinley, salaries for UX designers in Dublin range from €45,000 to €60,000.
Web3 developer
These developers work on some of the newest cutting-edge projects in tech. They build, maintain and troubleshoot decentralised applications on blockchain platforms. They have to have excellent understanding of blockchain technology, but they also need to have marketing, communication, finance, ops, security and analytical skills because they have to explain the tech and how it works to so many people. There are a lot of opportunities for Web3 developers in the finance sector as that world moves towards decentralised models. Web3 developers can earn very high salaries, sometimes in the six-figure range.
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