Anyone can walk into an average corporate IT department and spot a number of familiar titles: software engineer, programmer, systems administrator, and the like. However, the world of IT is much vaster than most people expect, and many of the broad, recognizable IT positions are falling to the wayside while highly specialized IT professionals step in to provide more enhanced aid and faster progress in a variety of exciting and growing positions.

1. Internetworking Engineer

With so many syllables in the name of this IT job, it should come as no surprise that internetworking engineers are crucial for the survival of modern businesses. Usually, these professionals are tasked with maintaining the connectivity of the entirety of a company’s employees through interaction with staff and advancement to the networking architecture. As most modern companies cannot survive without constant digital communication among workers, the internetworking engineer’s job is vital.

2. Director of Digital Innovation

When people think of IT, they usually imagine the dull, trivial work of restarting computers, tinkering with servers, and encouraging the installation of updates. However, more and more companies expect their IT departments to be creative and pioneering, enhancing business with exceptional digital ideas. Thus, the director of digital innovation is in charge of encouraging ideas and overseeing new designs for technological advancement.

3. Director of Intrusion Detection

One part spy, one part investigator, and two parts IT professional, the director of intrusion detection is in charge of virtual security, protecting a company’s precious data from prying eyes. Armed with any number of cybersecurity degrees, a trained IT worker is much more proficient at keeping intellectual property and personal information safe than autonomous systems, as evidenced by the significant breaches at major retailers like Target and Home Depot.

4. Hacker in Residence

While intrusion detectors work tirelessly to keep threats out, many companies are welcoming hackers into their midst to benefit even more. Hackers are usually underutilized geniuses of tech, and employing one in the office can lead to creative insight and unexpected breakthroughs in the IT department. Often, the position of hacker-in-residence allows for abundant freedom, which seems like the idyllic situation for most IT professionals.

5. Digital Prophet

The world of tech moves far and fast; not 10 years ago, smartphones were uncommon and odd, but today nearly everyone carries a tiny computer in their pocket. At a handful of companies, a digital prophet works to foresee the future of technology, analyzing trends and making predictions. Ideally, accurate projections pay off big for companies with advanced notice, but so far many prophets are waiting with bated breath to see if their prophecies are correct.

6. Mask Designer

Few IT professionals expect to have a job title akin to one found on a horror movie set, but this IT worker rarely interacts with paints and latex. Instead, mask designers are devoted to semiconductors, producing templates and stencils for the creation of electronic components on microprocessors. Unfortunately, make-up artists need not apply to this highly technical IT position.

7. Business Analyst

Any position that includes “business” in the name automatically sounds far removed from IT, but actually the business analyst is a valuable IT professional who functions as an intermediary between the IT world and the outside. Communicating with business leaders and tech workers, analysts collect data to discover client needs and create project plans; later, they work to maintain developed tech with continual updates and upgrades.

8. IT Evangelist

To many, IT seems like a religion; after all, it boasts an insular confederacy that employs byzantine vernacular and eccentric iconography. Plus, IT has its own missionaries, spreading the gospel of tech literacy around the business world. IT evangelists — most commonly at Microsoft but also found at other major tech companies — work to share the good word of technology with the common man by explaining products, services, and other exciting digital developments.

9. Director of Storytelling

Directors of storytelling certainly do not read picture books to eager toddlers all day but rather work hard to engage clients, customers, coworkers, and confederates with their companies’ brands. Using technology, to include blogs, social media, and more, these IT professionals build meaning behind the brand to develop strong emotional loyalty within the community.

10. Ruby on Rails Web Developer

“Ruby on Rails” sounds like a fanciful children’s story, but in actuality the term refers to an open-source Web framework that makes the often difficult task of coding and programming dramatically easier. Thus, IT professionals with this title have the slightly whimsical task of generating online databases and Web pages for their company or clients. Anyone can take advantage of Ruby on Rails with the proper training.