Beyond the server room: Transform your IT career with AWS

Three data center technicians who knew every detail of server room operations–from the constant hum of machines to the daily rhythm of infrastructure maintenance–decided to level up their careers. Today, they’re no longer maintaining systems, they’re designing enterprise solutions that run on the very infrastructure they once supported.

This is our story–and it’s your potential future. In this post, we’ll share the steps we took to become AWS Solutions Architects, and you’ll discover how to build your own path using AWS Skill Builder and other resources.

But first, let us introduce ourselves:

Hi, I’m Omar Ahmed! I began my AWS journey as a Data Center Operations Technician, gaining hands-on experience troubleshooting servers and network systems. As I progressed to handling higher priority incidents in the data center environment, I expanded my understanding beyond basic operations. This foundation helped me explore more advanced AWS services and architectures.

Hi, I’m Paige Broderick! I’m a Solutions Architect at AWS working with enterprise customers across the semiconductor and software industries. I began my AWS career in the Data Center Engineering Operations organization, focusing on backup power systems that ensure continuous operations during power outages.

Hi, I’m Omar Mahmoud! I started my AWS journey as a Data Center Operations Technician, where I gained hands-on experience with the physical backbone of cloud computing. This infrastructure expertise now helps me in my current role as a Solutions Architect, where I help businesses design resilient, efficient, and scalable architectures tailored to their unique needs.

Although we all began our AWS careers as data center technicians with limited cloud experience, we each discovered that our hands-on infrastructure knowledge provided a strong foundation for growth. While AWS services may have unique names and features, many of them mirror technologies found in on-premises environments. This similarity allowed us to draw parallels between our data center infrastructure expertise and cloud computing concepts.

Through this blog, we will walk you through our three-phase journey:

1. Getting started with essential compute concepts
2. Deepening your cloud knowledge
3. Advancing your knowledge through hands-on experience

Getting started with essential compute concepts

On-premises experience creates a strong foundation for cloud computing. Working with physical servers, tracing network cables, and troubleshooting hardware issues yields a concrete understanding of what happens behind the scenes in the cloud. Physical networking concepts translate directly to cloud concepts—routers and switches map to virtual private clouds (VPCs), subnets, and routing tables in AWS. Diagnosing hardware failures and implementing redundancy in physical environments translates directly to building highly-available and fault-tolerant solutions in the cloud. This hands-on background provides a distinct advantage—when customers discuss migrating their on-premises workloads to AWS, we understand their concerns and challenges because we’ve managed those same systems. It’s equivalent to speaking both languages: traditional IT and cloud native.

Getting started with cloud computing can be intimidating. AWS Skill Builder makes it easier by providing over 600 free digital courses, learning plans, and official practice questions—helping learners at all levels prepare for AWS Certifications. To get started with cloud computing concepts, AWS Skill Builder offers a plethora of fundamental courses such as AWS Technical Essentials, Security Fundamentals 3.0.1, and Fundamentals of Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence.

When learning these fundamentals, it’s crucial to proceed at a comfortable pace. If you encounter unfamiliar terms while studying, pause to research and understand these concepts thoroughly. Building this strong foundation will accelerate your learning of more advanced concepts and make them easier to grasp.

While new learners may be eager to rush through training material, we recommend dedicating 3-6 months to mastering cloud basics. This approach ensures a strong foundation for understanding more complex concepts, advanced services, and building end-to-end solutions using cloud computing principles.

Deepening your cloud knowledge

After establishing a strong foundation, you can deepen your cloud knowledge through AWS Certifications. We each began our AWS Certification journey by earning AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, which validates foundational understanding of AWS Cloud, services, and terminology.

AWS Skill Builder supports this learning path by offering AWS Cloud Quest: Cloud Practitioner, a free gamified training program. Cloud Quest transforms learning into an interactive experience, awarding points for completing hands-on labs. We favor this resource for its engaging, practical approach to teaching cloud computing concepts.

After earning this first AWS Certification, we progressed to AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate. This advanced AWS Certification demands a deeper understanding of AWS service integrations and the ability to design cost-effective, performance-optimized solutions following AWS best practices. To prepare, we took the self-paced AWS Exam Prep Standard Course: AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) course. This course outlines the required competencies, walks through practice questions, and helps set exam expectations.

For access to additional preparation materials, including official practice exams and interactive exam prep courses, consider investing in an AWS Skill Builder Individual monthly subscription. This subscription unlocks over 100 intermediate and advanced courses, along with hands-on labs and sandbox environments to practice real-world scenarios.

Advancing your knowledge through hands-on experience

Once you’re comfortable with AWS terminology, core services, and integrations, you can advance your knowledge by building end-to-end solutions and pursuing professional and specialty AWS Certifications. We recommend choosing a focus area that interests you most, such as DevOps, security, networking, or machine learning. This approach will help you identify which services and concepts to explore in depth. There are even structured AWS Certification paths that you can choose to follow which map to top cloud job roles in these areas.

Once you’ve chosen your focus area, gain hands-on experience with relevant services by building solutions. AWS offers numerous practical learning opportunities—let’s explore them.

AWS Solutions-Focused Immersion Days

AWS Solutions-Focused Immersion Days (SFIDs) are free, live virtual events led by AWS Experts. These sessions focus on specific AWS services through technical presentations and hands-on labs. SFIDs are available at different skill levels, making them valuable for individuals with any level of cloud knowledge.

If your business is interested in learning about an AWS topic that is not listed on the SFID schedule, reach out to your dedicated Solutions Architect about an Immersion Day. An Immersion Day is similar to an SFID but it is customizable and tailored specifically to your business interests. Immersion Days are delivered in person, remote, or hybrid depending on your team’s preference. If you are unsure of who your dedicated Solutions Architect is, reach out to us via the Contact Us form.

AWS Workshops

AWS Workshops offer over 100 comprehensive, self-paced tutorials designed to help teams gain practical experience with AWS services. These experiences simulate real-world scenarios, with structured modules ranging from basic infrastructure setup to advanced topics like serverless architecture, security implementation, and machine learning.

Most workshops are designed with AWS Free Tier in mind, utilizing resources that minimize overall deployment costs. Before deployment, review the pricing guides for all planned services, as some AWS services are not included in AWS Free Tier.

AWS Getting Started Resource Center

You can check out the Getting Started Resource Center for helpful videos, documentation, and over 90 beginner tutorials to help you launch your first application. The content is organized by skill level and solution type, making it easy to find relevant materials as you progress in your learning journey. Whether you’re building your first cloud application or exploring advanced architectures, you’ll find detailed guides, sample code, and best practices to support your development.

Begin your cloud journey!

Learning new skills can be intimidating, and it can be challenging to know where to begin. Start by taking these four steps:

1. Complete a fundamental course, such as the AWS Technical Essentials course on AWS Skill Builder, to identify your knowledge strengths and gaps.
2. Focus on addressing these gaps while building a strong foundation.
3. Schedule dedicated time for learning cloud concepts.
4. Set a target date for the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam as your first milestone.

Remember, every AWS expert started exactly where you are today—the key is to stay persistent, embrace the learning process, and take that first step into your cloud journey.

Good luck and happy learning!