Rapid changes in tech processes, along with the pressure to cut costs and simplify operations, might make it a challenge to advance your career as a sysadmin. In this ebook, system administrator Scott Matteson shares his priorities and strategies for staying relevant in this role.

From the ebook:

The IT field looks bountiful for system administrators (sysadmins), with plenty of onsite and remote opportunities available on Glassdoor.com and Ziprecruiter.com. (It’s worth noting the ZipRecruiter says the average pay for Linux sysadmins is $102K versus $76K for Windows sysadmins—so Linux skills are clearly leading the charge in terms of offering value to organizations.)

Still, companies are always seeking ways to cut costs and simplify operations. And due to evolving technological processes such as machine learning and DevOps, system administrators may face an uphill climb to stay relevant.

But as long as priorities align between individual and organization, sysadmin jobs won’t be endangered.

Future priorities
Not every system admin role is the same, but as a sysadmin myself, I can share the 10 priorities I plan to focus on this year to hone my skills and maintain a forward-thinking mindset to help future-proof my career.

REST API calls
REST API (application programming interface) calls involve a command-line (scriptable) way to obtain or change information by accessing a remote set of resources or objects. This could mean firing off a command that will list virtual machines hosted on a resource, change user information, display or enact new parameter settings, and more.

In short, it’s a way to simplify operations via repeatable processes, which can quickly achieve desired results without a lot of clumsy pointing and clicking.