Cryptocurrency careers are jobs that work with cryptocurrency, often in the computer science and programming fields. Tracking, trading, constructing and monitoring cryptocurrencies and the corresponding blockchains decentralized digital ledgers that track these transactions require many kinds of hard technical skills like programming, cryptography, financial analysis and engineering.
Things To Do Before Applying for Crypto Jobs:
1. Evaluate Your Skills:
Many of the most apparent opportunities in this field are STEM positions, like computer engineering, programming, software development and electrical engineering. But there are also cryptocurrency career opportunities in fields like marketing, business and communications. Once you’re familiar with cryptocurrencies and their function, evaluate your skill set and determine what kind of job you want.
2. Network with industry experts:
When you’ve chosen the career path you want to pursue, connect with experienced professionals in that role. You can use professional networking sites, internet forums or even things like career fairs and conferences to meet people and build your network. Finding a mentor and having a network of people to get advice from and share ideas with is helpful when starting a career
3. Update Your Resume:
When you feel ready to start actively searching for a job in cryptocurrency, review your resume. You may have gained new experiences or skills that you can add, or you might focus on tailoring your resume specifically for this new field. You may have other documents, like a portfolio or a CV, that you can review and add or remove irrelevant things.
Where To Find Crypto Jobs
Networking:
Since crypto trends are much on Twitter, this is your best bet to be hired. Create a track record by writing tweets and/or posts that demonstrate your knowledge or at least the learning process. While you are learning, you can reach out to projects on Twitter and offer to volunteer. Smaller startups will be especially happy about any helping hand. Discord servers are a fantastic learning tool and a way to connect with people in the space and learn a lot along the way. Joining a few Discord servers of projects you like is a strong suggestion. In general, anything that draws attention to you or creates a track record will be invaluable later on, no matter how small.
Crypto Job Boards:
There are a couple of excellent crypto job boards that will help you find a job and understand what kind of skills are required:
https://cryptojobslist.com/ — Personal favourite thanks to daily updates and amount of info.
https://cryptocurrencyjobs.co/ — As good as the previous one.
https://crypto.jobs/ — Updated regularly but poor user experience.
https://www.crypto-careers.com/ — Regular-ish updates, are not as good as the others.
https://pompcryptojobs.com/ — Semi-regular updates.
https://angel.co/company/crypto/jobs — Good, but US-only and an account are needed.
https://www.cryptojobsdaily.com/ — Semi-regular updates.
https://laborx.com/ — Freelance board for crypto work.
https://jobs.defialliance.co/jobs — Jobs in decentralized finance.
Other Means:
You can also try looking for freelance work on Upwork but be prepared for low rates initially. A much better alternative is Braintrust, a sort of decentralized Upwork for freelancers. Another resourceful way is going to CoinmarketCap, just going coin by coin and checking which projects are hiring (quite a few will be).
What Are The Best Crypto Companies To Work For?:
Depends on what you want since there is no such thing as “the best.” Expect to work hard at startups and bigger companies. The culture at small projects will be highly informal, almost as if you were working with friends. They’re also more likely to be open and even reliant on guerilla marketing and non-traditional methods. Working for a blockchain-related “trading company” will be quite different from that. It comes down to whether you want the full crypto/Web3 experience (small startup) or just be around that sector (bigger company).
Companies don’t train you explicitly but implicitly. Unless you’re a crypto OG, and not that many have been around since 2017, let alone earlier, you have a lot to learn, and you will learn on the job regardless of your field and experience.
Hard skills:
Hard skills depend on the position you are interested in. Want to be a developer? Coding, ideally coding in Solidity. Product manager? Product design (transferable from non-blockchain work). Marketer? Designing and executing marketing campaigns. Most hard skills have their own “crypto spin,” but few are completely new to this space. You also need a general understanding of how blockchains work and ideally also the sub-niche you are in (NFTs, DeFi, exchanges etc.). Again, only crypto vets have been long enough in space. Everyone else will inevitably learn on the job. Still, some hands-on crypto user knowledge is highly advised.
Soft Skills:
Has “learning quickly and being adaptable” already been mentioned? If not, this is your number one soft skill that you’ll need every day. Crypto moves insanely fast, and it’s impossible to keep up with every new development. Be humble about what you don’t know since you are going to learn a ton of new things anyway.
You should be passionate about space. Crypto is almost a way of life and, in parts, even a cult at this point, so be ready to meet some passionate people. The upside is that it exceeds any other sector when it comes to camaraderie and bonding. You’ll have many “only in crypto” moments.
Being self-motivated and independent is also a must since so much of the sector is built in a decentralized and remote way. Asynchronous and remote work is the norm for startups and features a great deal for bigger companies as well. On the one hand, you can work any time you want. But on the other hand, you can work anytime. Keep that in mind before you declare remote work the best thing since sliced bread.
What Makes A Good Candidate?:
Specific skills would be knowing the sub-niche you are in and having hands-on knowledge of your hard skills like coding or marketing. Say you want to work for a DeFi protocol, the founder(s) will likely prefer someone that already has DeFi experience or is at least a heavy user. Demonstrable knowledge of the niche goes a long way, and if you can combine knowledge with your skill, maybe through a coded application or experience promoting projects, you are golden. Also, expect a trial exercise during the hiring process to check your knowledge.
Soft skills include being a good communicator, critical thinker, and collaborative. There are no specific tips here. Most companies will screen for this during the interview. Of course, being comfortable with remote work is especially important.
A cultural fit means being aligned with the company’s mission and work culture. Each company is individual, so you’ll simply have to see how you get along with the founders in your interviews.
The Recruitment Process:
From the candidate’s perspective, getting hired in crypto is not too dissimilar from regular companies. You can be more creative and relaxed in your cover letter. The entire industry is very informal, so demonstrating you “speak crypto” is not a disadvantage at all. That doesn’t go for bigger companies, though. They’re very much like regular financial companies in that regard. Apart from that, expect a couple of interview rounds, with maybe exercises along the way. You won’t get questions like “how does Bitcoin work,” but you can expect to be asked about your experience in the sector. If you have little experience, best to be honest about that. Recruitment usually happens within a few weeks.
Conclusion:
Cryptocurrency is a decentralized financial system that’s become increasingly popular with investors, businesses and people interested in finance. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin allow people outside of the finance industry to pursue new investment opportunities. These currencies are entirely digital, and as more people and businesses use them, the demand for jobs in cryptocurrency development, support and trading is rising.
