Do the small things right - The IT department has long suffered from a bad reputation, for which it has only itself to blame. In the years before the tech bubble burst, IT was king; a huge demand for technical prowess and a shortage of able bodies put IT professionals in an exalted state. Tech workers could pick their job and name their salary. They could wear jeans and T-shirts to meetings, and nobody would raise an eyebrow. They often rolled their eyes when an employee did not know where to put his or her Ethernet card. If they didn't feel like doing something, they often didn't. The dot-com bust and the ensuing IT job cuts largely killed off this "stupid users" attitude, but surprisingly enough, remnants of unprofessionalism remain.

Outsource-proof yourself - Outsourcing and off shoring, two economic realities that contributed to IT's reputation as a less-than-ideal place to work, show no signs of letting up. Technology company CEOs predicted that their use of offshore services will increase over the next several years, according to a 2007 CEO Survey released by Deloitte. 45 percent of the respondents stated that they were currently off shoring, and 55 percent said they planned to offshore jobs in the coming years, so much so that nearly one-third expected to have 10 percent of their work force offshore in five years. This has left IT professionals questioning what they can do to outsource-proof themselves. What most recruiters and analysts suggest they do is find ways to move up the proverbial career ladder.  

Globalization need not have universally negative consequences; it also creates opportunities for technology workers to position themselves as liaisons in outsourced relationships.  Moving beyond pure technical skills into the management arena creates a value proposition for an IT professional that cannot be easily commoditized and sent elsewhere.  Other experts encourage IT professionals to see certain inevitabilities in offshore outsourcing and do all they can to position themselves out of harm's way.

Be an asset - One of the clearest things, beyond bulking up business skills, IT professionals can do to ensure their future job security is to become assets to their organizations. Technology is as central to companies as ever, and its place in the business world will only increase over the next decade. Herein, analysts and recruiters said, exists the great opportunity for IT workers—to move beyond managing IT to becoming the go-to technology geniuses in their companies. Even the most technology-savvy employees can be inundated by their digital options within the workplace.

Much of this involves staying ahead of the curve of new technology. If users are overwhelmed by collaboration software, simplify it for them. Become aware of the pitfalls and perks of social software, moving beyond seeing it as the IT enemy. Organizations have questions about these technologies and need tech-savvy employees to answer them.

Be well rounded - It is difficult these days to discuss technology success stories without mentioning one of the biggest of all: Google.  The search giant doesn't just run its business in an unconventional manner—providing employees with free haircuts, on-site dry cleaning services and free transportation to work—it recruits differently, too. Unlike most organizations, Google makes a point to recruit not just for positions—such as a new systems administrator—but for a whole package: hybrid employees who can work in many roles. Other technology organizations are beginning to implement these practices as well.  

IT workers are increasingly expected to demonstrate a job capacity beyond IT and some business know-how. Organizations want to see how they fit in the big picture, and being able to show oneself as a multifaceted and valuable asset to a company is nearly a guarantee of job security.