Future-Proofing Your Career: Top Tech Skills and Trends to Watch in 2025.

In this episode of the Thrive Careers Podcast, Olajumoke Fatoki teams up with tech strategist Pelumi Ogedengbe to unpack the future of work in a rapidly evolving tech landscape. Through relatable stories and actionable advice, they explore the essential ingredients for career success in 2025—self-awareness, adaptability, and continuous learning.

Key topics include the transformative impact of AI, the critical role of cybersecurity, and the growing demand for technical skills across all roles. They also highlight the power of soft skills like communication, problem-solving, and networking, with Pelumi sharing personal examples of how genuine connections and targeted certifications shaped his career.

The episode concludes with a roadmap for growth: embrace curiosity, leverage your strengths, and invest in meaningful certifications. Whether you’re a tech pro or just starting out, this conversation will inspire you to stay ahead of the curve and thrive in an ever-changing world.

Key Takeaways:

• Understand AI and cybersecurity to stay relevant.
• Build soft skills like communication and problem-solving.
• Network meaningfully and follow up intentionally.
• Prioritize continuous learning and align certifications with your goals.
• Create a personal roadmap for growth and adaptability.

Tune in for the insights you need to future-proof your career!

Transcript

Welcome back to another exciting episode of the Thrive Careers podcast, where we equip you with the tools and insights you need to build a thriving career. I am your host, Olaju Moke Fatoki.

And today's episode is all about future proving your career and tapping into the world of tech, one of the fastest growing industries right now.

Joining me today is someone who needs no introduction. Pelumi Ogedengbe, a tech career mentor, product manager, and a passionate.

advocate for career growth within the digital space. Pelumi has helped countless professionals pivot into tech, break into competitive roles.

and unlock exciting career opportunities.

His hands-on experience and deep understanding of tech makes him the perfect guest to share insights on the skills and strategies you would need to stay ahead in 2025.

Welcome to the Thrive Careers Podcast.

I also thank you obviously for having me on board. It's a true honor. I recognize the, the nations that people carry in them rather than just, your humble beginnings, So, definitely honored to be here and...

Again, within our community, enough more people need to be doing this, right? I think there's a ton of, sorry, I apologize. Let me use my other laptop. There is a ton of value that we need to be sharing to help those in our community, especially where a lot of people are now relocating abroad. They really need to see that they can get into roles that can help them live essentially their dream lives. So it's good that you're also joining the community of people that have started.

you know, in the game as well. And I'm just glad to be able to support in any way that I am able to.

 
Thank you. Thank you so much. think that's encouraging. Yeah.  So we just want to share with you and see how much information we're able to distill to people and we can take the conversation from there. So for starters, I have an icebreaker question that I like to ask my guests. It's a kind of fun one to help us ease into the conversation. So let me know if you're ready and I'll shoot.

Hahahaha


Me, I was born ready.

Olajumoke Fatoki 
All right. All

right. So if your career journey were to be a movie, what would the title be and why?


That's a good question.

I will call it...

A game of hoops and loops. The reason why is your career is what I've realized in my short period of time, because obviously I'm still young, Gen Z to the world. In my mind, actually.

Olajumoke Fatoki 
Yeah.

as the Gen Z as well.


What I've learned is your career is really not a ladder, it is a lattice. So the difference is a lot of people kind of view a career as you go from one step to another step to another step to another step to another step. But really, it's really more like a lattice. It's more zigzaggy, right? So again, for me earlier in my career, I wanted to be an investment banker.

I was on the verge of down the CPA and CFA routes When I caught myself I said if you go down this route, it will be the end of you so for me those were like the hopes and loops of like trying to really figure out what truly is the right fit for me and going through the hopes and loops to figure it out

because early days of working in spaces where I shouldn't have been working my performance was pretty poor not because I couldn't do the job but because I hated the job I felt miserable doing I was in financial audits you know analysis

where I was stuck on spreadsheets for long hours, minimal communication and honestly, that's not who I am, right? So I wasn't working in line with my strengths. I'd hit a couple of bass blows early on in my career. If you don't really get it, well, I can't help you, you know, bass blows early on and you know, those were the hopes that I had to go over to eventually identify what my right path was. And then that's when I saw that hockey

growth sort of in my career right so that's how open it


Wow.

That's a beautiful way to start. I love it. I love it. I love it. I love it. And I'm tempted to ask you a follow, you know, follow up question. I haven't gotten into the core of our conversation today, you know, just with this introduction that you gave, at what point did you realize, you know, that you were going down, you know, a route that you shouldn't be going down? What was that tipping point for you?

When did that light break forth, you know, for you?


So I'll give you the unfiltered truth. So I was working a job at that time. was doing a lot of, again, in finance. I was working in film finance. So what I was doing was a lot of auditing for films and helping them to recoup tax credits, right? So I was spending a lot of time really analyzing the expenses and where they could get tax breaks essentially, right?

for films in the US and films in Canada. And I hated it so much. Like it was so bad that some days I'll be looking at those spreadsheets and it will be as if I'm in a Matrix movie. If you've seen the Matrix before, you see the way the numbers will be showing up and a movie like this, was as if I was there. like, But let me, this one is going to be the end of you. So I remember that while I was working on that job,



Thank



Unfortunately, I was told that my services were no longer appreciated on that job. for me, I shed a tear, but I knew that I'm a believer, right? I knew personally that God was leading me somewhere, right? I knew because I got that confirmation right in that moment.

Right before then, I had taken a course, right? Because before then, I'd been doing some research about myself to identify sort of what my core strengths as a person was. You know, just taking that step back after speaking to a few mentors who helped me to see it that way, right? I took that step back to identify sort of what those core strengths were while I was on that job. So as I left that job,


care.


Right? I before then again, I completed that course six weeks after I got into the kind of role where I really should have been working. Right? So it was at that point, the last stroke of that job was when I was able to identify myself, identify my core strengths as a person. I mean, my three C's communication, curiosity and creativity for me. Those are my sort of core strengths. I was able to map that into roles where

it will allow those strengths to thrive. Once I was able to do that, was a complete difference in my own personal career. So that was when I realized.


Wow. So for me, self-awareness, you know, in the midst of everything you said, you came to that realization and you looked for help. What can you do, you know, to get to your desired destination? And here we are today having this conversation. You're influencing people all over the world. I'm so glad, you know, that you took that bold step and were able to move on.

Thank you so much for sharing that with us. think that's profound. That alone is going to bless someone. Yeah, yeah, yeah. All right, so now we're moving into our tech conversations for today. And our first question is designed to help our listeners stay ahead of emerging technologies. So.



question.

I hope so.


Belumi, what would you say are the top three tech trends that will shape the industry in 2025?

Great question. I am going to say I will really just

There are two hot trends, but they're also sort of intertwined in my view. AI, of course, right? Artificial intelligence is here. Like, you shouldn't think it is coming. No, it is here. That is one major trend, right? That I've noticed. And as a byproduct of that,



cyber security. Right? Why? Because with artificial intelligence, just think about your chat GPTs and all that. There is a need or a push for responsible AI and responsible use of AI because AI with AI and all these, you know, large language models and all these different models that are out there.

There is so much information now that is easier to get a hold of. Organizations are gonna need a way to make sure that their security is fail proof. Why? Because there's so much more information out there now with employees using AI tools, rightfully so, right? That there needs to be that protection.


Mm.


So I personally see AI, even in the products that I work on in my organization, like we have

product teams just dedicated to AI. There's one dedicated to machine learning. There's another product team dedicated to conversational AI. Within my suite of the product as well, I also have things down the pipeline that is going to large language models. So AI is a trend that is definitely here to stay. anyone who isn't learning about AI,

or who isn't pro-AI, there is a chance that honestly you will be left behind. You don't want to be that guy or that lady. Right? No one is saying you have to be an expert in it, but know enough to not be dumb in the room. When those conversations are going on in your organization, know enough to be able to ask good questions.

Olajumoke 
know enough to be able to contribute you know know enough to understand the conversation and probe right but curious right you don't lose anything so that's that's what i think personally


Amazing,

amazing stuff. two things, AI, and you said something really profound. So it's no longer that AI is coming, but that AI is here. And you know, the earlier we embraced it, the better for us. And cyber security, that's another dimension that you brought to it. I know that there's been a lot of buzz, you know, along those lines as well. But...

maybe because it's not my space, but I think that you touching on it now sort of expanded my mind so much information and there is a dead need for security. know, so people need, so that's another big thing, you know, that people can, can take advantage of because there's going to be a need for people in that space, right? There's going to be a need for people in that space. 
If I may touch on that a little bit, I don't

know. one of the things that I try to do is even on my socials, I follow a lot of like different social media channels that are constantly sharing things in the industry. Supercomputers are coming.



Jensen CEO of Nvidia they've created another You know Back end system that is going to power these things Super computers are coming You know in my service here it is I've worked You know, I can't measure company names, but I've worked with companies where there's already preparation for that How can they ensure that because the supercomputers? Essentially they can process things

over 10 times quicker than your regular computer. So now, let's extrapolate that into the hacker world, hackers, right? That means they can hack passwords 10 times quicker if they get a hold of it, right? So that's again where cybersecurity comes in to say, how can we manage the threats or the potential threats

of quantum computing, which is supercomputers are, right? In this near future that is coming, right? That's why I think that cybersecurity definitely is another space that is not going anywhere anytime soon.


Wow. That's really a big one. And as you were talking, I remember something that we like to say in HR. You know, trying to, and you also touched on that, being proactive, not waiting until the change happens, know, making plans ahead. We usually say that AI is not going to take your job. You know, when people come with the old, you said AI is going to take your job.

but someone who knows how to use AI, people who are proactive, who have taken courses, who have taken learnings on how to manage this. And I mean, look at this whole conversation around cyber security, very informative, very practical, things that people can take back and use. I'm really glad that the conversation is going in this direction. So.


Will.


you know, just to wrap it up for that question. is not going to take your job, but if you do not know how to use it, then your job is for a take-in. please, you know, take advantage and there are, I know, let me not get ahead of myself. We're going to get there to where we'll talk about costs, you know, that people can take all of that. So, I think we can rest it on the question number one. Thank you so much, for sharing that.

us. We'll move into the second question for today which is designed to provide clarity on what to prioritize for professional development in 2025 and beyond. what technical or soft skills


You're welcome.

is gone.


Okay, what technical or soft skills will be most in demand for tech professionals? Will be most in demand for tech professionals.
Great.

It's a fantastic question.

One, I do still think they will...

Again, you like, so one of the things that I also do is I'm keeping tabs a lot on emerging markets, right? So emerging tech industries. And if you look into a lot of companies right now, at least from my own small knowledge, one of the things that I see a lot of companies are going, are

Let me backtrack, I'm a product guy. I absolutely love products, I absolutely love just being curious about what different products do. And so the trend I'm noticing is a lot of products, either established products or new products are constantly leveraging AI in its ability to process information faster, in its ability to streamline

the workflow within a process that a system runs to get to a more accurate outcome and at a quicker time. So already that tells me AI, having some form of knowledge certifications

in AI so think about natural language processing NLP think about computer vision think about large language models you know think about actual machine learning and so on and so forth I'm not an AI guy I can't say that I am one um in case I've know fluffed anything there but you know keep in tab of those things and learning about

those different areas will be critical. So even I myself, I'm setting up courses that I want to take down in a year to even improve my knowledge in that area. I'm favored, I have that exposure in my organization. And I'm also married to someone who...


Yeah.

very well, she did a PhD in that line of work, AI related, right? So I've learned a lot from those experiences, but AI is something that folks need to be tending towards. Because again, these emerging products and startup organizations are the ones that are going to bring about job opportunities in the near future.


Wow.

Okay.


So because of that, if they are focusing on AI, it's better to set up yourself for success by also focusing on AI in some way, or form so that again, their job opportunities can meet you at a place of preparation. That's number one. Second thing that I'm noticing for, again,

by working with a Silicon Valley company. One of the choices that I'm noticing is the need for even non-technical talents to have some form of technicality. So I'll give you an example. One of the things that I'm noticing is, for my organization as an example, we have about, we have over,

In our core product, we have about 17 product teams

Do you want to know how many project managers we have? One.

That's because the project manager doesn't actually, we don't have project managers within our product teams. We just have a project manager that is helping to manage processes and, you know, at an execution level, right? Or kind of think about it as at a skilled, agile level.


Okay.

Bye.

Okay.

you

So there's

a framework we call safe, skilled agile framework. There's working to execute that so that we ensure that all product teams are working in line with similar processes. But within the teams, there isn't one project manager. The reason why is we have engineering managers instead who are more technical and fulfill the role of the project manager.

Okay.

Thank you.

Mm-hmm.


and as well are the people manager of the engineers on each of product teams
you


Right? So what are they selling me is project managers, for example, it will be wise to be technical enough that at least you can unblock developers at certain times when they're stuck, not necessarily by being able to write code, but be good enough to able to take a look at the database, but good enough to be able to understand logic. Be good enough to know whether


Yeah.


particular logic should be built on a front end versus the back end right so that you can ride and know why why front end why back end why does it matter right that kind of information


Yeah.


I know this is really granular stuff that maybe someone in tech might not really understand but I hope this is helpful for folks who are already in it. It's not to scare them. You don't need to. I'm not saying go learn how to code but be good enough to understand logic. Good enough to understand where the logic should sit. Front end versus back end and why. So that you can provide that little, that little nuance of technical guidance to engineers while they're feeling blocked.

their job. again to kind of wrap it up moving towards being a bit more technical I think will keep you more valuable in the near future is what I'm experiencing.


Yeah.

Amazing. So hold that thought and I'm going to come back because there's a second beat to that question, which is soft scales. I love the way you used examples to elaborate the technical beats, but I also want us to touch on the soft scales that would also be useful because the question is in two parts.


Mm-hmm.


But before you get to that, two things stood out from me, from what you just explained. Number one is curiosity. Like, because some of the things you said can only come when you're curious and when you're open to learn. So two things, you have to be curious and you have to be open to learning. It's not that time where you feel like, this is my job. I'm just an HR professional and that's all I'm going to do.

I don't care what anyone else is doing in that space. You can't take such chances anymore. The world has become, know, the world of work is where globalization, permit me to use that word, is now happening. You have to know a little bit about something that someone in your circle is doing. It doesn't have to be your core competence, but you have an idea. should be able, I love the way you put it, know enough to be able to make a contribution.

in the room or to add something, there's a way that makes you come across and that's exactly what you need to build a thriving career, which is what we are doing on the platform. So two things, curiosity and openness to learning. cannot just, you can't stand and move. You need to be aware of what's going on around you. Yeah. So do you want to?


Thanks.

100%.


get on the soft skill or I did not necessary in that space.


Yes.

they are 100 % necessary because...

Your influence on a room, or your influence in a room, will always be determined by your ability to communicate effectively.

You might know it all.


You


you might have everything in your head. But if you're not able to communicate and be a voice that


for us.


people are able to listen to, it would deem your ability to be as valuable as you need to be.


Right.

Hmm.


Even as a developer, if you need to grow in your career as a developer, one of the things that senior developers have is the ability to communicate. To communicate and work with other cross-functional teams like products and be able to be a voice of reason. They can


Okay


So I guess in essence what I'm saying is one of the key soft skills communication right communication will always be king That's where I see it think about when you go for an interview A lot of times


Mmm.


you might even know the things that they're asking for but if you're not able to communicate them effectively it really impacts your ability to sell yourself and sell your value and showcase your value to the people listening to you so communication I think that's key I always kind of


Yeah.

you

Bye.


you know, for me, that's a big deal because that ties, if you kind of think about it as especially my line of work, it requires a lot of stakeholder alignment, right? I'm working with VPs and C-level executives that have big voices, big, big voices. How do I ensure that I can negotiate their minds towards a school of thought?


Mm.


Right? Asides

having the technical skills to show them the data, I need to be able to communicate and negotiate with them effectively. That's number one. The second thing that I see is ability to problem solve. You know, is not enough for you to just be a task merchant on your job. Any role.


Well.

Mmm.

Mmm.


HR, operations

is not enough to be a task merchant I would like I recommend folks to think about be that guy who is able to identify problems or areas of opportunity in whatever role you're working in and be able to come to the table with proposed solutions

Hmm


Right? That way you would always be seen as valuable. Right? When they're thinking of, you know, headcount cuts and so on and so forth, there'll be something extra about you that you bring to the table that not everybody else does. Right? So think past your job in terms of delivering anybody can finish tasks. Right?


you

Hmm.

you


But what you bring is that uniqueness to identify problems within processes that you're engaged in, right? I'm not saying you should think about launching SpaceX to moon, no. But think about the processes you're working in. Identify ways that that can be streamlined, suggest that.


Ha ha!

Right.

speak, get buying and that gives you opportunities to champion initiatives that are critical to advancing your career I feel.

Olajumoke Fatoki (28:06)
Amazing, amazing, amazing. I loved your first statement when you started. Your influence in the room is going to be dependent on how much you able to communicate effectively. I think we need to put that in parentheses and just spread it everywhere because there's this thing about people who are highly skilled, especially

in the tech space, you feel like I know my stuff. I can deliver on the job. Like wake me up in the middle of the night and I know all the coding languages, you know, all of, and all of those things that goes on around there. But if you're not able to communicate that at a higher level, I mean, I love how you brought in the fact that the kind of people that you report to or that you work with, take all that management and all of that.

All of that comes with communication. Somebody else who doesn't even know the job but is able to communicate better is going to have their ears and you know, if you're not careful, you're just going to be pushed to the back. So yes, be good at your stuff, own it, but also pay attention to communication and also problem solving. You couldn't have said it any better. That was really so good. Thank you so much and I'm glad that.

Pelumi (29:27)
Thank you.

Olajumoke Fatoki (29:28)
people can really connect with this and be able to put them to use. So we've talked about two things in terms of the soft skills that you can imbibe or that you can learn. Communication skills, problem solving skills. Those would save you. All right. Thank you so much, Bellumi. So we'll move to the third question. And I think this

We've sort of touched on it. Of course, there is a relationship, there's a flow, you know, in the way the questions, you So we've sort of touched on it and I think it also ties into what we have just finished discussing and that is how professionals can, how can professionals future prove their careers against automation and AI disruption. Yeah.

Pelumi (30:21)
so.

Again, of like tagging on to all what we've been saying before. A lot is going to be...

Olajumoke Fatoki (30:25)
Yeah.

Pelumi (30:28)
about your ability to stay relevant. Relevance in terms of understanding,

What is coming with artificial intelligence and more So Again sort of what we spoke about before as someone who's looking to stay relevant, what would I recommend? Courses right take courses courses courses If you don't have the budget to spend a fortune

Udemy, Coursera, Google has some really cool courses. LinkedIn learning has some really, really great courses, So certifications, courses, what about training program that can help just advance your knowledge? I will be targeting that, number one. Second thing that I'll be going, I'll be, you know, to, to, feel-proof your future.

is really engaging with communities. It's still centered around learning, but you see when there is a conference in your industry that you're able to attend, attend those, right? One, you do learn from those sessions. Second of all, you network. You network, network, you network. And like,

Olajumoke Fatoki (31:43)
You

Pelumi (31:48)
That's so important and I'm going to use the cliche your network is your net worth It really is like it really really matters because it really helps in you know bringing about other opportunities for you in the future

Olajumoke Fatoki (31:54)
Mm-hmm.

Pelumi (32:07)
It really shouldn't be when you need something that you're just networking Your network at that point in time should be able to assist you when you need something So it's out of my mind Staying relevant by learning in whatever way you can Courses, programs, bootcamp courses Whatever the case may be

networking to understand what is going on in industries to build relationships that I think will be beneficial to you in the future are the two things that I'll be looking at you know personally to make sure that I'm staying relevant.

Olajumoke Fatoki (32:43)
Interesting, interesting. I want us to push a little bit further on that. Because I don't know. I feel like one of the words that has been pushed around a lot and people don't exactly know how to go about it is this word that you have just used, networking. We say people should attend industry events, connect with people.

But trust me, a lot of people still don't know how to make those connections happen. And it defeats the purpose of going into those gatherings in the first place. And this was my reality some years ago. I've heard so much about, oh, attend conferences. And I'll just go and I'll just be there. Some people, I'm just looking at them. I mean, I've seen them on LinkedIn, those big names. And I'm just wondering, how do I begin to speak to these people? So how do people break those barriers?

to ensure that networking works for them and you just don't see it as a buzzword that doesn't amount to anything. If you could help, yeah.

Pelumi (33:44)
Yeah, for sure. I feel like there's two different categories. If you're naturally a people person, some of these things might come naturally to you to build rapport easily with strangers. But for the vast majority of people, even when they're people persons, like

Networking can still feel awkward. So the first thing is preparation. Actually prepare. Don't expect it to just come naturally. So going into networking sessions, understanding one, who's gonna be there, or at least what kind of people are going to be there. Understanding

Okay, do I develop some early icebreaker questions? Right? Two. Three. How do I ask them about them? Allow them to speak. When you allow someone else to speak, they feel comfortable. Right? So knowing what those questions are, that you want to ask them about what they do,

is critical before you start to yap about yourself. So again, all of that comes into preparation, right? Prepare before you go to those networking events. Also, have it in mind that your first couple of chats might still be awkward. And that is fine. Networking is one of those things where you learn on the job. The more you do it,

Olajumoke Fatoki (35:02)
Hmm.

Pelumi (35:16)
the better you get at it. If you're waiting to the point where miraculously somehow you become great at networking, it's not really going to happen without actually trying it. It won't happen by talking to yourself in the room. You actually have to go out there and give it a try. But the key to

Olajumoke Fatoki (35:19)
Absolutely.

you

Pelumi (35:41)
The risk in the potential failure of networking is preparation. So preparing beforehand, is like kind of think about when you're going into a meeting. You prepare. Why do you prepare? So that the meeting can actually, you know, live with your planned outcomes, right? Let's prepare you are.

Olajumoke Fatoki (36:06)
Thank

Pelumi (36:08)
the less likely that you go into that you come out of it with the outcomes that you're hoping for. So prepare beforehand, have some handy questions that you've walked through, right? That you you wanna throw at them. And again, it's necessarily that you have to run through a list of questions. They can just be a guide. And as the conversation goes and starts to flow,

Olajumoke Fatoki (36:19)
Yeah.

Pelumi (36:33)
Other questions will start to flow that will be valuable and still reach you at that point of connection Now after you've networked you need to follow up Because again, this is people are like for me now if you've met me before Let's say at one event two years ago You did not follow up and you meet me two years after you expect that I will remember you. I will not Do you understand like if we haven't maintained

Communication in one way or the other even if it is by know send me a if I you know send me a what you call it like a Follow-up. Hey, it was really nice meeting you at this event today It was really interesting to learn about this this and this and this that you guys do at your organization That was very inspiring for me. I'll make sure to keep in touch. That's it now Especially if it's some things like LinkedIn, let's that person posts like it comments on it

you are gradually staying relevant in that person's mind and again you never know now in the future if that person is a director or senior director of something hiring for a role it becomes a little bit easier to pitch them and say Mr. X you know I saw this role that you said I think you know I could be a good fit and then that could really help that's the way I would go about networking effectively

Olajumoke Fatoki (37:45)
you

That was good. That was really, really good. I love how you brought that to light and very easy to understand. You touched on the critical aspects because, so for instance, you attend a networking event and one of the things that I used to do back then was to, if I meet people, then I'll go online, I'll go on LinkedIn to write about that event.

and you know, tag those people that I have met in that gathering and tag them in my.

sometimes it moves them to action. either like it and it improves what you were also trying to talk about top of mind awareness. It keeps you, you know, in their face so that when opportunities come or maybe when you see that they have opportunities, you can and it's easier that way. Unlike when you just met someone, when you just do a one-off and you just, you know, you just walk away. It becomes awkward to even though you've met this person before,

Pelumi (38:33)
Yes.

Olajumoke Fatoki (38:52)
You guys probably hit it off that first time, but you didn't do any watering, no nurturing whatsoever. Relationship management is a lot of work. Especially when you it to yield into something, when you want it to move into something, you don't just do a one-off and then disappear. You need to stay the course and like, let me write strategic commenting on LinkedIn.

Pelumi (39:02)
It is.

Yes. Yes.

Mm-hmm.

Olajumoke Fatoki (39:21)
Maybe those people that you're trying to keep such relationships with, they make some posts, kind of comments, you know, or like their posts. It keeps you, you know, as top of mind for them and you can make that into whatever it is that you're looking to do for yourself. So thank you so much. Yeah. And I also wanted to talk about the certifications that you had mentioned and

Pelumi (39:41)
100 %

Olajumoke Fatoki (39:46)
I feel like we're already getting into question four and it's okay. I love the flow. The certifications, know, maybe if you have some specifics, ones that you would like to talk about, it would be a good time. But just what I wanted to add on that is don't just acquire certifications for the purpose of acquiring them. You know, don't just acquire them for the purpose of acquiring them. In today's world, everything is about visibility.

Pelumi (39:52)
Mm-hmm.

Olajumoke Fatoki (40:13)
people need to know that you have those certifications because if they don't know, if it's just sitting down there in your portfolio, if, know, nobody would know that you have it enough to be able to call you to the table or to invite you to an interview. So it's good to have it on your resume, but there are platforms where you can also share those things, you know, today that make, especially LinkedIn, where a lot of recruiters go on to,

you know, search for job candidates. If you shared, I recently acquired this certification. I put it as a post. I put the certificates there. People used to do that. And you know, it's still a thing that you can do because that would make you searchable. It would make a recruiter to be able to see that you have that skill when they need, you know, that kind of skill. And you would come up as one of those that will be selected. So instead of just making it sit in your resume, you can shine a bit more.

light on the fact that you have that certification and you're ready to walk in that line. just thought to add that beat to the conversation. All right. So, so still speaking of certifications, it's 2025 and boy, as many certifications as you can because that's the only way to

Pelumi (41:22)
100%.

Mm-hmm.

Olajumoke Fatoki (41:38)
One of the ways in addition to all that we've said to stay relevant, you know, to be to be ahead of the industry so that you don't, you don't become forgotten. I'm looking for a particular word you don't. The word is not coming right now. All right. So other specifics, especially in your space that you would recommend for people, you know, to go for.

Pelumi (41:43)
Yes.

Thank

That's a great question. In the product space specifically, as you're taking certifications, like again, to your point earlier, it's not just about immersing any certification you can find. Make sure that certifications that are valuable to your learning as well. Right?

Olajumoke Fatoki (42:11)
you

Pelumi (42:28)
So one of the things that I always do every year is I try to identify where I have a skill gap between where I am and where I am going.

Olajumoke Fatoki (42:39)
Mm-hmm.

Pelumi (42:39)
How do I sometimes recognize it? One, through my work. Two, through others in the role I'm trying to get into, right, by analyzing what skills they possess that perhaps I'm lacking. Now I go look in that area of skill, what certifications are able to help me

Olajumoke Fatoki (42:55)
you

Pelumi (43:04)
with the level of knowledge that I need to be proficient in that area. So the way I always see it is...

For the most part, certifications won't get you the job. They make you visible to give you an opportunity to have an interview. But many jobs, somebody will just say, you have a PMP, take the project management role. It's not enough. You actually need to able to defend and...

Olajumoke Fatoki (43:15)
Hmm.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Pelumi (43:34)
speak to the value of someone who has a PMP during an interview. So specifically in the product space, I will be looking at certifications like if I'm recommending to people one take a professional Scrum product owner certification. There are three levels. There is level one, there level two and I believe level three now.

Olajumoke Fatoki (43:41)
Mm.

Pelumi (44:00)
In past, there used to be just two levels. Look at doing that. Also, I would like to recommend checking out Pragmatic Institute. Again, as Pragmatic Institute, they have a really robust product training that is very, very valuable.

Olajumoke Fatoki (44:12)
Okay.

Okay.

Pelumi (44:24)
in the product space.

Sorry, excuse me. Sorry.

Olajumoke Fatoki (44:27)
Sorry.

Pelumi (44:28)
So they have a very robust product certification that is very valuable and not just valuable but extremely impactful like it gives you so much knowledge about product strategy, design, implementation, definition that is so critical

to your product carrier. So that's for the product space. Again, that's professional scrum product owner, PSPO, right? One, two, three, go up the ladder as you see fit. And again, the product space, pragmatic institutes, they also have three levels. If you're looking at the project management space, PLP will always be relevant. So the...

Olajumoke Fatoki (44:59)
Okay.

Yeah.

Pelumi (45:17)
the PMP certification always relevant also Scrum things around Scrum so I will be looking at saying take certification courses in like the Certified Scrum Agile framework. There's a specific to that. I will look at doing that why because organizations have Multiple Scrum teams and now they need to scale their agile practices

across the Scrum teams hence the need for the safe certification and safe experts and obviously look at your certified Scrum Master certification of course

If you're in business analysis, I will be looking at doing like a CBAP or even some of those product certifications. CBAP, C-B-A-P. I think that as well will be valuable. And I think across all those roles, look at getting whatever certification or training in like data analysis.

Olajumoke Fatoki (46:07)
Thank

there.

Okay.

Pelumi (46:22)
because that's important for that makes you more valuable in three of those roles and again Depending on your industry right away or working in there might be other certifications that will be valuable So for example, you might be a BA working in cyber security space Are there certifications that you can look into maybe not a CISSP which is sort of a top certification But are there other certifications like a CompTIA plus and so on and so forth that you can look into that a little bit more, you know

on the easier side that you can look into but yet make you more valuable within that cybersecurity space even as a business analyst in that industry.

Olajumoke Fatoki (47:00)
Wow, wow, think that was, I was lost for a tiny bit because of course that is your space and I was just listening and I'm sure that people who are into this, you know, can connect with the certifications that you mentioned.

Pelumi (47:18)
I hope so.

Olajumoke Fatoki (47:20)
I know that they would be able to and it was good that you gave us their names and even some institutes that people can go to to find some of these things. So that was really helpful. Thank you. Thank you so much. All right. But generally, how is it going? Before we move to our final question for the day.

Pelumi (47:37)
Thank

Olajumoke Fatoki (47:43)
Apart from some three rapid fire questions that we have. How is it going? How are you finding this combination?

Pelumi (47:51)
It's going on very well. I'm a little bit tired because my son has drained my energy but I'll be okay.

Olajumoke Fatoki (47:53)
Okay.

I know.

All right. Thank you. Thank you so much. So how can professionals create a personal roadmap for growth within the tech industry?

Pelumi (48:12)
So.

If I can answer that question in ways First question is for who are already in it, who are already in tech I would always be looking at benchmarking Thinking about where you're at Identifying where you want to be in or where you want to grow to In that, within where you want to grow to

Olajumoke Fatoki (48:19)
Okay.

Mm-hmm.

Pelumi (48:38)
People who are there, what do they have that I don't have? What kind of skills do they possess that I don't possess? I would target that specifically and my learning and growth specifically in that. So for example, let's get into more senior leadership. What do senior leaders possess?

Olajumoke Fatoki (48:42)
Okay.

Pelumi (49:03)
that you don't possess, right? And how can I gain those skills to make sure

Olajumoke Fatoki (49:11)
Sorry.

Pelumi (49:12)
How can

I gain those skills to make sure that I'm up to par with the industry standard? Right? In that space. That's what I personally would recommend for people who are already within the space. People who are trying to get into the space. My first recommendation. Make sure you do that research of what are the rights

Olajumoke Fatoki (49:27)
me.

Good.

Pelumi (49:41)
roles for me based on my areas of strength right i know there's this

While I know that you are smart, while I know that you can achieve most things, right? If you put your mind into it. It is a longer journey to be trying to convert something that is a weakness or not an area of strength into an area of strength. The friction is a lot more. If you're walking in line with your area of strength,

the journey is much smoother, right? If you get what I mean. So that's why I encourage folks to, before you gonna start taking AWS, it's DevOps now. no, they said it's cyber security. Before all of that, spend some time to truly identify, to really reflect on yourself and identify where your strengths are. Then do that exercise of mapping those strengths.

to roles that allow those strengths to shine or to roles that leverage those strengths. Once you identify those roles, then you can create your learning path based on what is needed to achieve those roles. Of course, you can reach out to

career coaches like myself, like Jumoke and other people to help you with some of that handholding. This is what you need or network with people who work in this space already Identify, okay Mr. X you work in this space I'm trying to get into this space because I've done this mapping What are the things that what are the top three key things that I need to unblock myself and set myself up for success too

get a foot into the door. I will be looking at doing that to then help you create that learning path. Because once you have that, that's your learning path. To then help you break into the right role. And what that does for you is it increases the chances that one, you will enjoy the job, and two, it increases the chances that you will keep the job.

Olajumoke Fatoki (51:55)
Mmm, retention.

Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you so much. I was still breathing on one of the points, you that you made about playing to your strengths. You know, it cannot be overemphasized. You can't be overemphasized. Like, it's a big game changer.

I don't know how long it will take you to master an area of weakness. And I think I stumbled on that in one of Joyce Meyers books that I read some time ago, where she talked about what you just said now. I just casted my mind back to the first time that I came across that concept and it was in Joyce Meyers book about focusing on your area of strength and getting help in your area of weakness. See, you can't, you can't.

Some people claim to be all around that, yes, but there are areas that you are sharper, you know that it's your thing, you get. And of course, getting to that point also is another process entirely, being able to identify your strengths. And there are people that you can also use to be able to identify what your key strengths are. You can leverage people.

around you there are online tools that can also help you to uncover that but basically you know knowing where your area of strength is because that's where you would shine like you believe me rightly said and focusing that building on it you know and shining from there instead of trying to

you know, is our trying to do what you really do not have strength for just because people said that is the thing that is now, you know, what is trending. You would, you would be more effective. You, your chances of blowing in the, in the, in the Gen Z Ligua, you know, higher if you're operating from a place of strength. Unlike when you're

Pelumi (54:02)
100%.

Olajumoke Fatoki (54:04)
you know, doing something that you do not really have, you know, the makeup or a fit for. The reason why I organized it was even do, you know, culture fitness, want to see if you can, you know, fit into a role and all that. So I think that's a really, that's a really good point and a great place to tie this conversation. Thank you so much, Bellamy. But before we go,

Pelumi (54:20)
Yes.

Olajumoke Fatoki (54:30)
This last three rapid questions. Are you ready? Rapid fire, one word, You know, just give us as it comes. So if you had to learn one new tech skill this year, what would it be?

Pelumi (54:34)
What's that?

crap.

Olajumoke Fatoki (54:44)
Rapid fire. Nah y'all, y'all over analyzing it.

Pelumi (54:48)
Yeah, yeah,

Wow, it's very difficult for me to narrow it down. Yes, for sure. Because I have so much in my head.

Olajumoke Fatoki (54:50)
Difficult snark

So it's going to be quick.

Pelumi (55:00)
I

know, I know, I know, I know, I If I had to learn one tech skill.

Olajumoke Fatoki (55:03)
He

one tick.

Pelumi (55:10)
it will be prompt engineering

Olajumoke Fatoki (55:14)
Mmm. Mmm. Related to A.

Pelumi (55:18)
Yeah, and for me, I see a future where while, because again, there are AI models now that are building that will be able to build entire systems, right? But the way I see it is to build the system is still heavily gonna be reliant on the requirements for the system.

Prompt engineering is what is going to define those requirements. Whenever again, it might not necessarily be as close because not all organizations have the kind of budgets for that. But that would always be valuable with this feature of AI. So that's what I'll say.

Olajumoke Fatoki (56:03)
Now I appreciate the fact that you took your time to bring that out because that was profound. You went for big fish for lack of a better word. I hope our listeners can hear that. All right, so what's the most underrated skill that every tech professional should have? What would that be?

Pelumi (56:12)
Yeah.

ability to communicate effectively

Olajumoke Fatoki (56:28)
Right, we talked about it.

Pelumi (56:30)
Yep. That's... Simple as. Yep.

Olajumoke Fatoki (56:32)
Pretty much.

Cannot be overemphasized. Communication. Alright. So name it friend you believe is overhyped right now. Is there any? What would it be?

Pelumi (56:45)
Personally, some of my friends are like this, but crypto.

Olajumoke Fatoki (56:49)
Crystal.

Pelumi (56:50)
Yeah, personally just not And again, I have friends that are deep into crypto and I apologize if they're watching this but personally, I just think crypto is overhyped I mean, maybe that might just be me that I haven't looked enough into it, but i'm not a firm believer at this point in time in crypto again when facts change opinions change

Olajumoke Fatoki (56:50)
Thanks.

Apologies to them,

Bye.

Pelumi (57:12)
but at this point in time, I'm more different than I I am in crypto and that's one of the health strengths that I feel.

Olajumoke Fatoki (57:18)
I

love the fluidity. That's the beauty of life. fact that things evolve and things can change. But right now, right this minute at 7 18 p.m. EST, you believe that the overhyped trend is cryptocurrency. All right. Thank you. Thank you so much, Bedumi. So what

Pelumi (57:24)
Yep.

cryptocurrency.

Olajumoke Fatoki (57:45)
your key takeaways be as we round off this session? actually rounded off and apologies we got beyond our schedule. So what would be your key takeaways and your final advice for our audience?

Pelumi (57:54)
No worries.

Sorry for people who like because the advice like and key takeaway will differ depending on the people, right? So yes, as put in the bucket.

Olajumoke Fatoki (58:04)
I'm

Alright, put it in buckets.

Pelumi (58:12)
First things first, AI is here, right? You're not required, I don't think you should need to be an expert in AI but know enough to be able to contribute in the room. Number two is the industry has been tough, job market generally, in the past one year but again, there are signs that that is going to change in 2025.

So if your look is getting to tech or you know so that you can be working in a job that perhaps you're happier in, you're better paid in and so on and so forth, don't give up on it. It can still happen for you. Be persistent and be strategic, right? Strategic, understanding your strengths, you know, and walking the path to finding the right role for yourself and taking the right

learning to ensure that you know bridge this skill gap that might exist um you know definitely stay out there and also i recognize that there have been a lot of folks that haven't that have been out of job in the past one year don't give up please don't give up don't feel like you need to settle right of course if you need if you have bills to pay you know i was really like figure that out

Don't give up, don't settle, even if you have to do something in the meantime But don't give up on that dream or you want to be a business analyst, want to be a project manager, you want to be in product management Don't give up on it It might be a little bit more challenging but Those that stick it out will still rip the biggest fruit of it So don't give up, keep pushing

keep learning it will happen. I sound like the multi-millionaire you got but...

Olajumoke Fatoki (1:00:00)
Wow. I was

getting hyped myself. Do not give up. mean, that can be over-emphasized and also be strategic. Be strategic. I mean, let me not over-flog that. That's just it. Be strategic and do not give up on your dream. If you have to, you know, do something on the side, survive out.

especially for those that are here. There are bills to pay, there are things to do. Please do, but be strategic. Know how to walk your way back to your desired place because it is possible and Bulemihi has been able to prove that to us and we can't wait to hear your success story.

Pelumi (1:00:26)
you

Olajumoke Fatoki (1:00:44)
All right, well, let me see what listeners find you, where can they connect with you? LinkedIn, do you have a website? Please, share with us.

Pelumi (1:00:45)
office.

Yes,

connect with me on LinkedIn, Instagram, same. are sort of the two, my current two most active platforms at the moment. Yeah, I mean, once you connect, I also did recently start a newsletter where I am helping folks with just resources, templates, networking templates like we spoke about today.

I'm just giving a lot of free resources away to support people as much as possible. So once you connect to me on LinkedIn, know, if check the link in my bio, you'd always see a link there or in my, on my Instagram, on my link tree, link to resources that will connect you to my newsletter, which I use as an avenue to share a lot of free resources, free advice, things to keep you going, right? Tips, tricks here and there.

to help you ensure that we can bring to realization this future tech career that obviously you're gunning for, which is sort my own focus.

Olajumoke Fatoki (1:01:52)
Amazing, amazing, amazing stuff. I'm so excited about this edition. I mean, I have learned a lot myself, you know, just listening to you. And I'm glad that our listeners would have take home practical strategies, things that they can begin to implement, you know, almost immediately and, you know, see results. And we appreciate you for taking time out to join us, you know, this conversation, despite the state of your health, you know, the tired,

You still showed up and you showed out and we are grateful for that. And I hope that when we call on you next time, you would oblige us.

Pelumi (1:02:28)
Thank you very much for having me as well. really appreciate it. Thank you.

Olajumoke Fatoki (1:02:30)
All right,

thank you. Thank you so much and do enjoy the rest of the evening. Please go and rest well. All right. I'll connect with you. Yeah, thank you. Take care.

Pelumi (1:02:37)
Thank you very much. Thanks.

Thank you. Take care.

Bye.