After joining China Mobile as an Internet of Things （IoT） engineer in 2010， Chen Fang found that the Machine-to-Machine Center where he worked had only about a dozen employees. Now， the number stands at over 200.
　　“At that time， I worked to develop modems and sensors for smart home appliances，” said Chen， who received his master’s degree in communication engineering from Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. “The IoT had just begun to develop in China back then.”
　　It was not until April this year that IoT engineer was officially incorporated into China’s inventory of occupations.
　　Chen has witnessed the rapid growth of the IoT， which aims to create a network of physical objects equipped with sensors， software and other connectivity measures so that they can collect and exchange data.
　　“By following new trends in the IoT industry， I have gradually developed product research， project management and market development skills，” he said.
　　In addition， the focus of his work has expanded to the Internet of Vehicles （IoV）， which aids driving by providing real-time information. As product director of the Smart Connection Department of Chongqingbased China Mobile IoT Co. Ltd.， he leads a team developing and promoting IoT services and products for millions of users.
　　“The rise of mobile payments around 2013 triggered a great change in the IoT mode，” Chen said， referring to the largescale application of the quick response code which， on being scanned by smartphones， enables people to make payments and get access to products or services they want.
　　According to a recent report by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology， China’s IoT business saw its revenue increase by around 73 percent in 2018 from the previous year. At the end of last year， China Telecom， China Mobile and China Unicom—the three major Chinese telecom service operators—saw their IoT users totaling 671 million， increasing by 400 million from a year earlier.
　　China Mobile has developed OneNET， its open IoT platform that can be used for a variety of functions like environmental monitoring， smart agriculture， intelligent home devices and logistics tracing.
　　The company is also reaching out to the global market. “Given China’s thriving trade ties with other countries， we are working with foreign telecom operators to provide users with IoT SIM cards that can be used both at home and abroad，” Chen said. 　　Technological and Internet giants such as Huawei and Alibaba have also entered the industry. Along with the development of new technologies such as artificial intelligence， the IoT industry has entered a golden era， the report said.
　　The fast growth of the IoT market in China can be attributed to a rise in the use of smartphones， wide usage of the Internet， cost reduction， infrastructure improvement as well as demand.
　　Smart cities， the industrial IoT， the IoV and smart homes have become new industries. Data from the National Development and Reform Commission show that around 500 cities in China had launched smart city projects by the end of August 2018.
　　According to Qianzhan， a Beijing-based industry consultant， China’s IoT industry is predicted to exceed 1.5 trillion yuan（$217.2 billion） in 2020.
　　The IoT industry boom has generated a greater demand for talent. Vocational schools across China have added Internet-related courses to produce more personnel. Universities have also developed courses on the IoT and even established departments.
　　In the next few years， the demand for IoT professionals will exceed 200，000 whereas the actual number of IoT graduates produced annually is fewer than 100，000， Zhao Fu， a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Sciences， said.
　　Also， as Chen pointed out， many new employees in Internet-based industries have only theoretical knowledge， but little hands-on experience. Therefore， the gap between the market demand for employees with practical abilities and the actual supply needs to be narrowed.
　　The rapidly changing IoT industry poses higher requirements for its personnel to keep pace with the times. They need to specialize to meet specific needs in the IoT-related industries， Chen said.
　　“Graduates need to identify their preferences while seeking jobs， since the IoT is a mega concept，” he added.