Certifications abound in the IT industry, but they are not all equal. To help
you find the ones that will result in the most financial gain, twice a year we
look at which certifications are poised for the biggest growth.
2015's Hottest IT Certification
Ever wonder how much that certification is worth? While it's hard to put a
dollar sign on certifications, CompTIA offers some insight in the results from a
recent survey.
65 percent of employers use IT certifications to differentiate between equally
qualified candidates
72 percent of employers use IT certifications as a requirement for certain job
roles
60 percent of organizations often use IT certifications to confirm a candidate's
subject matter knowledge or expertise
66 percent of employers consider IT certifications to be very valuable -- a
dramatic increase from the 30 percent in 2011
Numbers like these make it hard to discount the validity of certifications. That
said, all certifications are not equal, which is why twice a year we look at
which certifications are poised for growth over the next six to 12 months. And
with 2015 upon us, we turn to Foote Partners and its recently released "IT
Skills Demand and Pay Trends Report" to find out which certifications will carry
the most weight throughout 2015 in terms of pay and demand.
Methodology:
"The hot list is put together by looking at 3-6-12 month value growth
vectors then vetting it via interviews with about 400 CIOs and other decision
makers on their skills investment plans for 2015," says David Foote, chief
analyst and research officer with Foote Partners.
"Historical pay premium performance is only one of many factors we consider in
forecasting. It is normal in our forecasting that 50 percent or more of the
skills showing the most growth in the prior three months and six months do not
make our Hot List of skills that we are certain will increase in value in next 6
months," says Foote.
Citrix Certified Enterprise Engineer for Virtualization
Citrix Systems, a leader in the software virtualization niche, owned 56
percent of the virtualization market as of January 2014. That number highlights
why demand and pay premiums for this certification is so strong and expected to
grow. However, this certification has been retired as of November 2014, replaced
by Citrix Certified Professional - Virtualization (CCP-V).
"The value of this certification is in the confirmed ability of the owner to be
able to implement and validate varied Citrix implementations. Strongly recommend
for experienced engineers looking to validate their skills and ability to design
and support complex implementations," says Elaine Cheng, CIO at the CFA
Institute.
CompTIA Security+
Security should be at the forefront of every CIO's mind. In fact, pay value
for this certification based on Foote Partners data has grown 40 percent over
the last 12 months and is expected to continue to rise. "A solid certification
that shows an understanding of best practice security approaches across several
areas. This is a great second-level certification for the individual wanting to
expand into the security aspect of IT," says Cheng.
GIAC Certified Windows Security Administrator
Although Windows is behind in the mobile game, it still dominates the
desktop and the enterprise and Microsoft is making strides towards being more
mobile-centric. Combine that with mounting security risks and it's easy to see
why the GIAC Certified Windows Security Administrator should continue to be in
demand.
"This is a broad and complex certification that a successful Windows engineer
should have. It is in no way an easy exam and truly validates a strong engineer
skill set across all aspects of Windows security. Our own engineers have tried
for this exam several times. It is challenging and a high bar to meet," says
Cheng.
Certified Computer Examiner
Cybercrime, privacy and data security have been in he headlines over the
past couple of years. Many analysts believe that 2015 is the year where
organizations are going to spend more of their IT budgets on security. This
vendor-neutral certification, open to both law enforcement and non-law
enforcement personnel, created by the International Society of Forensic Computer
Examiners, is yet another in the field of forensics that is rapidly growing in
industry recognition.
AWS Certified SysOps Administrator-Associate (Cloud)
According to a recent ComputerWorld cloud computing is second only to
security on the list of areas where CIOs plan to spend their money. Most
organizations have deployed or are researching some cloud infrastructure, making
it a great area in which to specialize. "This is a great entry-level
certification for individuals looking to show an understanding of the Amazon
Cloud solution for the IaaS solutions. It should be a recommended certification
for any engineer supporting AWS," says Cheng.
EC-Council Certified Security Analyst
Another security certification makes the list. This is one of the
certifications that Foote says will pay off particularly well in 2015.
"In the case of security-related certifications such as CyberSecurity Forensic
Analyst and Certified Ethical Hacker, [EC-Council Certified Security Analyst] is
a requirement for companies because of the specific nature of the
training/knowledge provided throughout the curriculum of the certification
itself. Most of the requirements that ask for specific certifications are
originated from organizations that must follow Security Compliance guidelines
mandated by the government: HIPPA, SOX and PCI-DSS to name a few examples. It
definitely makes it tougher for both the company and the recruiting firms from a
supply standpoint because there is a higher demand than supply of these
certified individuals across the industry," says Katie Powers, national delivery
manager of Network Infrastructure Services with TEKsystems.
Mongo DB Certified DBA
A recent Capegemini survey of 225 companies found that most organizations
struggle to get actionable results from their big data initiatives. In fact,
only 27 percent of those organizations described their big data initiatives as
successful. Don't be discouraged, however, if a career in big data is what you
want. Big data is still growing and an additional fact to come out of the survey
is that 60 percent of executives interviewed expect big data will disrupt their
business within the next three years.
"With the continued need for security trained resources, explosion of the data
and the need for tools and applications to manage and make this valuable for the
business, increased consumption of the cloud - the need for structured avenues
to train existing resources in new technologies as it relates to these areas has
become critical," says Bhavani Amirthalingam, vice president, NAM Region at
Schneider Electric.
Microsoft Certified Solution Developer: Applications Lifecycle Management
MSCDs or Microsoft Certified Solution Developers have passed exams to prove
their ability to design and develop business applications using Microsoft's
suite of development tools that are within Microsoft platforms but also extends
beyond what would be considered traditional platforms. IT pros who specialize in
application lifecycle management help to increase overall efficiency and produce
better overall products.
"At Schneider, Oracle and Microsoft technology would be key areas of interest,"
says Amirthalingam.
Cisco Certified Design Associate
The CCDA is a vendor-specific certification that teaches students Cisco
network design fundamentals. The main focus is on designing basic campus, data
center, security, voice and wireless networks. Value/Demand has risen 16.7
percent in the last six months and, according to Foote Partners data, demand
will continue to increase throughout 2015.
Certified in the Governance of Enterprise IT
A recent Capegemini survey of 225 companies found that most organizations
struggle to get actionable results from their big data initiatives. In fact,
only 27 percent of those organizations described their big data initiatives as
successful. Don't be discouraged, however, if a career in big data is what you
want. Big data is still growing and an additional fact to come out of the survey
is that 60 percent of executives interviewed expect big data will disrupt their
business within the next three years.
"With the continued need for security trained resources, explosion of the data
and the need for tools and applications to manage and make this valuable for the
business, increased consumption of the cloud - the need for structured avenues
to train existing resources in new technologies as it relates to these areas has
become critical," says Bhavani Amirthalingam, vice president, NAM Region at
Schneider Electric.
Most Recent Additions to Foote Partner's Hot List
In our most recent conversation with Foote, shortly before publishing this
report, he said he was digging deeper into his data and interviewing process and
called out these certifications as well, predicting them to be growth areas in
2015.
Below is the most recent data on certifications that just became available.
Lean Six Sigma 0% 7.1% 15.4%
