I frequently get asked about certifications. Do they matter? Do people still want them? The answer is an unequivocal yes. Let’s state two very important facts:
- Certification training programs are a 3 billion dollar a year business
- Certification training programs have been less impacted by COVID-19 as traditional desktop application training programs
72% of employers require IT certifications for certain job openings. Additionally, 91% of employers believe IT certifications play a key role in the hiring process and that IT certifications are a reliable predictor of a successful employee. This means that organizations value IT certifications for their employees, and those employees need to seek out training to help them achieve those certifications. If you’re not offering IT certification training, you’re missing out on a 3 billion dollar a year pool of candidates for seats in your classes.
Organizations like IBM, Google, and Apple are also moving the benchmark for what they consider to be successful job candidates. In 2017, IBM’s Vice President of Talent Joanna Daley told CNBC Make It that about 15 percent of her company’s U.S. hires don’t have a four-year degree. She said that instead of looking exclusively at candidates who went to college, IBM now looks at candidates who have hands-on experience via a coding boot camp or an industry-related certification program.
As for the COVID-19 effect, Training Industry has surveyed thousands of L&D leaders and found that while some are struggling to create effective training programs for their employees, 55% of organizations have been able to retool their training efforts to focus on higher stakes training, like IT certifications.
Now is the perfect time to introduce IT certification training programs to your customers. Organizations are still training and looking to extract maximum value out of their training programs, which certifications certainly do. Job seekers are hungry to put their resumes at the top of the pile, which has an industry-recognized IT certification absolutely does. There is a 3-billion-dollar market out there, and if you’re not offering IT certification training, you’re missing out on a huge piece of that pie. Contact me at jedijon@logicaloperations.com to start offering certifications today.
