Tools and Techniques for the IT Professional ...certmag.com/digitalPDF/CM0209.pdf · February 2009. Demand for ... AGAThA GIlMORE As the excitement of the holidays . dies down and

Tools and Techniques for the IT Professional www.certmag.com February 2009

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February 2009 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE �

EdITOR’s lETTER

Be Back-to-school smartAGAThA GIlMORE

As the excitement of the holidays dies down and we settle in to the new year, it’s business as usual again. Or in many of our cases, school as usual. However, the floundering economy and its impli-

cations for both the job market and wallets every-where has changed the way IT professionals must approach education today — whether it be under-graduate education, graduate education, certifica-tion or recertification.

As layoffs continue and unemployment rises, the job market becomes increasingly competitive. In these tight conditions, having the right credentials becomes even more important. Keeping these credentials cur-rent through recertification is at the crux of this issue. But with less time and money to work with, IT profes-sionals have to be cautious — and choosier — when it comes to recertifying, as this month’s cover story shows. For example, not only must recert candidates select the right, most cost-effective programs, but in some cases they must pick and choose which certs to renew and which to let expire.

Further, the prospect of financing an education might have students and would-be students scratching their heads — or, perhaps, tearing their hair out. Yet, student loans are still a viable option, and there are ways to reorganize or bundle payments to make them more manageable. In this time of crisis, students also should take full advantage of scholarship and federal grant opportunities, as this month’s Academic Con-nection shows.

The bottom line is, even in the face of the dreaded “R” word — or as I like to call it, the receshhhhhion — stu-dents can take heart. Education is arguably always a good investment, and now more than ever, it’s a good time to be in school.

Agatha Gilmore Senior Editor [email protected]

Tools and Techniques for the IT Professional

VOlUME 11 IssUE 2 FEBRUARY 2009

GROUP PUBlIshER John R. Taggart | [email protected]

EdITOR IN ChIEF Norman B. Kamikow | [email protected]

VICE PREsIdENT, EdITORIAl dIRECTOR Mike Prokopeak | [email protected]

sENIOR EdITORs Agatha Gilmore | [email protected] Kellye Whitney | [email protected]

COPY EdITOR Meagan Polakowski | [email protected]

AssOCIATE EdITORs Deanna Hartley | [email protected] Lindsay Edmonds Wickman | [email protected]

EdITORIAl INTERN Elizabeth Lisican

VICE PREsIdENT, CREATIVE sERVICEs Kendra Chaplin | [email protected]

ART dIRECTOR Kasey Doshier | [email protected]

PROdUCTION MANAGER Linda Dziwak | [email protected]

TRAFFIC COORdINATOR Ishea Brown | [email protected]

dEsIGNER, sPECIAl PROJECTs Spencer Thayer | [email protected]

WEB MANAGER Michael Elmore | [email protected]

E-MEdIA dEsIGNER Rahel Haile | [email protected]

sENIOR VICE PREsIdENT, OPERATIONs Gwen Connelly | [email protected]

EVENTs MANAGER Trey Smith | [email protected]

EVENTs COORdINATOR Kara Shively | [email protected]

EVENTs sAlEs MANAGER Brian Klunk | [email protected]

MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONs MANAGER Laura Cibuls | [email protected]

BUsINEss MANAGER Vince Czarnowski | [email protected]

CIRCUlATION dIRECTOR Cindy Cardinal | [email protected]

lIsT MANAGER Jay Schwedelson | [email protected]

VICE PREsIdENT, AssOCIATE PUBlIshER James R. Yeakel | [email protected]

AdVERTIsING ACCOUNT MANAGER Dave Lienemann | [email protected]

E-MEdIA & AdVERTIsING ACCOUNT MANAGER Lisa Newton | [email protected]

CONTRIBUTING WRITERs Wayne Anderson Agatha GilmoreDeanna HartleyAvner Izhar

Katherine Spencer Lee

Carmi LevyElizabeth LisicanPeter Manijak

Meagan PolakowskiJulieann ScalisiKen WagnerLindsay Edmonds

Wickman

Norman B. Kamikow John R. Taggart PREsIdENT EXECUTIVE VICE PREsIdENT

Philip S. Wolin Patricia Pierce GENERAl COUNsEl ChIEF FINANCIAl OFFICER

Certification Magazine (ISSN 1529-6903) is published monthly by MediaTec Publishing Inc., 318 Harrison St., Suite 301, Oakland, CA 94607. Subscriptions are free to qualified IT professionals and are issued in a digital-only format.

Certification Magazine, CertMag and CertMag.com are the trademarks of MediaTec Publishing Inc. Copyright © 2009, MediaTec Publishing Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Reproduction of material published in Certification Magazine is forbidden without permission.

Printed by: RR Donnelley Inc., Mendota, IL

� CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

FEBRUARY 2009

columnists

Recertification: Retain Your ValuePETER MANIJAK

In a tight job market, it is more important than ever for IT professionals to keep their credentials current. But today, professionals must weigh their recertification options to make the most effective and cost-efficient decision.

22

CERTIFICATION

28 The state of IT EducationlINdsAY EdMONds WICKMAN

Integrating technology into K-12 schools not only helps prepare students for the 21st century, but it encourages interest in technology. If schools fail to give students this access and provide the opportunity to learn, the U.S. may not be able to meet the demand for IT professionals.

IT CUlTURE

�� The ABCs of school district ITAGAThA GIlMORE

To succeed today, public school technology gurus need a combination of tech know-how, understanding of the classroom and business savvy.

JOB ROlEs

10 TECh CAREERs Bright spots in the

IT Job Market KAThERINE sPENCER lEE

12 dEAR TEChIE Try Contract Work, Other Certs

as Alternatives to Oracle 8i WAYNE ANdERsON

ANd KEN WAGNER

16 TROUBlEshOOTING determining the source

of ‘self’ spam AVNER IZhAR

20 lOOK AhEAd The Perils and Promises

of Mobility CARMI lEVY

�2 ENdTAG Technology in the

Political Arena dEANNA hARTlEY


CERTIFICATIONJOB ROlEs

CERTMAG.COM COMMUNITIEs

CAREER dEVElOPMENTwww.certmag.com/careers Elizabeth Lisican

dATABAsEwww.certmag.com/database

Kelly Shermach

dEVElOPERs & dEsIGNwww.certmag.com/development Kelly Shermach

sECURITYwww.certmag.com/security Carmi Levy

sTORAGE www.certmag.com/storage Deanna Hartley

sYsTEMs & NETWORKs www.certmag.com/networking Brian Summerfield

TRAINERs www.certmag.com/trainers Lindsay Edmonds Wickman

Michael Brannick, President and CEO, Prometric

Peter Childers, Vice President, Global Learning Services, Red Hat Inc.

David Foster, Ph.D., President, Caveon

Neill Hopkins, Vice President, Skills Development, CompTIA

Bee Ng, Ph.D., Senior Director, Autodesk Learning

Shawn Rogers, Worldwide Certification Project Manager, Hewlett-Packard Education

Erik Ullanderson, Manager, Certifications, Cisco Systems Inc.

Daniel L. Veitkus, Vice President, Training Services, Novell Inc.

Bob Whelan, Vice President and General Manager, Pearson VUE

Lutz L. Ziob, General Manager, Training and Certification, Microsoft

editorial advisory board

� EdITOR’s lETTER Be Back-to-School Smart

6 dATA sTREAM

8 VIRTUAl VIllAGE Connect With IT Professionals

18 WhAT WE lIKE

�1 Ad INdEX

departments1� ACAdEMIC CONNECTION

student loans: An Overview AGAThA GIlMORE

Students today might be hard-pressed to pay back existing loans — or even get financing in the first place. But all is not lost. They simply need to do their homework.

�2 INTERFACECapital Techsearch: looking for the Right Fit

lINdsAY EdMONds WICKMAN

Capital TechSearch works with clients to find IT professionals who have not only the appropriate skills, but also the goals and aspirations that match the client’s environment.

�8 INsIdE CERTIFICATIONCitrix: Collaborating With Constituents for a New Cert Program

JUlIEANN sCAlIsI

When Citrix Education decided to give its certification program an overhaul, the company solicited input from its customers and partners. The result is a new suite of options that takes real-world trends and economic and market factors into account.

resources

6 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

dATA sTREAM News & Notes for Certified Professionals

drip, drip, drop: Is Your data leaking?A data leak occurs almost every day in the U.S., and citizen and corporate informa-tion is stolen. Some leaks result from hack-ers gaining illegal access to restricted sys-tems, but others occur because of human error at organizations such as hospitals, insurance companies and universities. These data leaks range from the small — affecting just a few people — to the colossal — affecting mil-lions, according to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse’s list of data breaches. Data breaches on the personal level can have devastating consequences, such as identity theft. But on the enterprise side, data breaches cannot only damage a company’s reputation but also result in the loss of future business, according to Mary Clarke, CEO of Cognisco, a knowl-edge assessment and learning solutions provider.

Read more at http://certmag.com/read.php?in=3650.

Cost-Effective staffing on IT Projects The economic downturn is forcing numerous companies to cut costs, and as a result, many are looking to stream-line their investments in IT. For this reason, staffing services provider Veri-tude recently published a report titled “Staffing An IT Project? Five Steps for Savvy Sourcing and Recruiting” that outlines a few key steps to create and build an IT team cost-effectively. IT spending typically is divided into two categories: tactical and strategic. Employers rarely alter or skimp on tacti-cal spending. By default, that means the strategic spending is at risk during this period of recession.


does the Western World lag Behind in Technical skills?The United States may be known as the “land of opportunity,” but a recent competi-tion revealed American professionals have

not capitalized on the opportunity to show-case their technical skills on a global scale. The 2008 Worldwide Competition — conducted from October 2007 to May 2008 by Certiport Inc., a provider of digital literacy and desktop produc-tivity training, assessment and certification solu-tions — challenged participants from around the world to demonstrate their skill sets pertaining to the Microsoft Office suite.


IT spending typically is divided into two categories: tactical

and strategic. Employers rarely alter or skimp on tactical spending. By default, that

means the strategic spending is at risk

during this period of recession.


home health Care Robots: help for the disabledMove over Wall-E, there’s a new robot in town. El-E (pronounced “Ellie”) is designed to perform com-mon household tasks, such as fetching medication or remote controls and pushing buttons, according to a CNN.com article.

El-E is being programmed by Charles Kemp, Georgia Tech professor and director of the Center for Health-care Robotics, and his colleagues. Kemp said a health care robot like El-E could promote independence for individuals with motor impairments that make everyday tasks difficult. The robot currently is being tested by patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Kemp said he hopes the robots will become available for home use within 10 years.

Britney spears, Barack Obama Are Top Yahoo search TermsThe year’s biggest newsmakers were reflected in Yahoo’s 2008 “Year In Review” list of top search terms. Among the five most frequent search terms were Britney Spears (first), World Wrestling Enter-tainment (second) and Barack Obama (third). Spears has appeared as the No. 1 Yahoo search term seven out of the past eight years.

Yahoo’s “Year in Review” list was organized into fur-ther categories including News (top search: hurri-canes), Olympians (top search: Michael Phelps) and Economy (top search: IRS stimulus checks).

IBM Expands Managed security servicesA significant increase in security incidents among IBM’s 3,700 corporate clients prompted the company to introduce new identity and access management services, according to an Information-Week article.

IBM said in the article that “rising cybercrime activ-ity, corporate budget cutting and lingering legacy security systems” created a “perfect storm of secu-rity threats.”

Like other security providers, IBM links the rise in cybercrime to the economic downturn. Along with the new managed security services and a free sav-ings assessment that allows companies to compare their current security infrastructure management costs with IBM’s offerings, the tech giant also launched a program allowing partners to resell man-aged security services.

Amazon Introduces ‘Amazon Remembers’ shopping ApplicationA new mobile application from Amazon allows customers to blend traditional brick-and-mortar shopping with online shopping. According to an InformationWeek article, Amazon Remembers is an experimental iPhone application available through the Apple App Store that allows customers to take pictures of products they want and then matches the photographs with items from its own inventory.

Once users receive their generated results, they can purchase right away or store the lists of items.

silicon Valley start-Up Unveils Plans for hawaii Electronic Car Network Silicon Valley start-up Better Place announced plans to build an electric-car-charging network throughout the Hawaiian Islands, according to a Fortune.com article.

The company struck a deal with Hawaiian Electric and Hawaii’s governor, Linda Lingle. The plan is con-sistent with the state’s goal to end oil dependence and obtain 70 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2030. Better Place aims for project com-pletion by 2012.

Behavioral screening May detect TerroristsThe future of airport security might rely no longer on what you carry with you, but how you carry yourself.

According to a CNN.com article, new security-detection systems are being developed in Israel to pick up signals emitted by individuals under notable psychological strain. That is, they rely on stimu-lus and biometric response: body temperature and heart rate, for example. Sensors could be placed so passengers would not know they were present.

Firms say these might be the key to more efficient and effective airport security.

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Trans-portation Security Administration has given WeCU Technologies grants in the hopes of developing a system that identifies internal threats.

One Israeli-based firm is exploring technologies that rely on information detected from a person’s voice. 8

– Elizabeth Lisican, [email protected], Deanna Hartley, [email protected], and Meagan Polakowski, [email protected]


VIRTUAl VIllAGE

Connect With IT ProfessionalsJoin the discussion now

FEATUREd MEMBER

Mark StevensCertMag Editor asked: “Do you think companies have the right to regulate what content their current employees post on their Facebook pages?”

Mark Stevens responded: “I do — for work-related items, but not for personal content. Companies are beginning to write policies for their employees’ participation in social networking sites when commenting on company-related items. Policies focus on intellectual property, disclaimers to separate your own opinion from that of the corporation’s, and representing the company poorly. I think a company can take action against an employee who speaks negatively about their own employer in a public space. If you cannot represent your company positively (while maintaining personal integ-rity), why should you be allowed to stay there?”

Join the discussion.

Name:Mark Stevens

Age: 38

location: Raleigh, N.C.

Title: Business Development Manager, Nortel Professional Certification

Certifications: Nortel Certified Technical Specialist (NCTS) - Unified Communications, Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)

Fun Fact: Prior to joining Nortel, I worked inside coal-powered industrial boilers as a field engineer — a very dirty job!

hobbies: I like to play poker and basketball, ride bikes and hang out with my family. I especially enjoy coaching my kids’ soccer teams.

Entry Into IT:I joined Nortel during the telecom boom of the late ’90s. I’ve held a series of technical positions — including network engineer and technical instructor — that have allowed me to work on a wide range of Nortel products, including voice switches, optical transport gear and enterprise data products. Leveraging my experience with social media, industry certifications and networking infrastructure, I recently took a new position with our certification team to increase the number of Nortel certified professionals in the IT industry.

Would you like to be next month’s featured member? sign up for the CertMag Network and we just may select you.

February 2009 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE 9

EdITOR’s BlOG

Road to the White House: A Two-Way Street?According to a recent CNN article, the U.S. president and the public might soon enjoy unprecedented interactivity, thanks in part to the Internet. Read more

Start a CertMag blog.

Here’s your chance to share your ideas with the CertMag community.

Are you interested in discussing issues around IT security? Join the Security group on the CertMag Network and get access to a host of members with simi-lar interests. The group was created by CertMag Editor and is populated by IT professionals like you.

Steve asked: “I’m about to graduate with a bach-elor’s degree in professional studies in network and communications management, and I’m interested in IT Security. Which industry offers the best hands-on exposure to IT Security for entry-level [workers]?”

Greg Lang replied: “I can tell you from experi-ence that your best bet for hands-on security experience right off the bat is to work in gov-ernment. Federal jobs in general tend to offer more in-depth training because they want to train their employees for life. They use con-stant training and great benefits as a reten-tion strategy for keeping their employees from going to the ‘Microsofts’ and ‘Intels’ of the world. And honestly, a lot of managers like the people fresh out of school because they haven’t picked up too many bad habits!”


depth or Breadth?Mark Stevens asked: “So, you are looking for a job and you need to get some certifications on your resume. You’ve achieved your primary, No. 1 entry-level certification. Now what? What is your next step for certification? Do you pursue a broad range of entry-level certifications from various vendors or do you pursue an expert -level certification that builds on your primary certification? Which is a better return on your investment in time and money?”


server 2008 Exam Choices (Which order to take them in)Charles Putnam asked: “For career development purposes, I’m pur-suing the MCITP Server Administrator and eventually the Enterprise Administrator. Which of the Server 2008 exams [should I] pursue first? In reviewing the certification descriptions, it appears that 70-642 Net-work Infrastructure may provide more of a foundational understanding of Server 2008, [whereas] 70-640 Active Directory and 70-643 Applica-tions Infrastructure are more advanced topics. Would I be correct in this summation?”


FEATUREd GROUP

Security

FEATUREd dIsCUssIONs

Wanting to pursue IT Security upon graduation...


TECh CAREERs

Bright spots in the IT Job MarketKAThERINE sPENCER lEE

Despite bad news in the labor market, there is rea-son for experienced IT workers to stay positive. A smaller pool of highly skilled candidates, the increasing complexity of the IT field and reluctant-to-leave senior professionals are keeping unem-ployment levels lower for this group relative to many other occupations.

Positions in Greatest demandOverall, IT starting salaries in the United States are expected to increase an average of 3.7 percent for the year, according to the “Robert Half Technology 2009 Salary Guide.” The following are three posi-tions for which jobs are being created:

1. Web developer: The rise of social media and the expansion of companies’ online presences, Web 2.0 initiatives and interactive Web functionality have fueled further growth in Web technologies, creating a strong demand for Web developers. The average starting-salary increase for Web developers in the U.S. is expected to be 4.4 per-cent, to the range of $60,000 to $89,750, in the coming year.

2. Developer/programmer analyst: IT profession-als with skills such as .NET, SharePoint, Java and PHP are at a premium across companies in all industries, including health care, finance and manufacturing. These workers are needed to write code, test and debug software applications, and analyze business application requirements for functional areas across the organization. The estimated increase in U.S. starting salary is 4.2 percent, bringing the average range for a devel-oper/programmer analyst to between $60,000 and $100,750.

3. Help desk: Companies are implementing a wider range of technologies, migrating from older oper-ating systems and launching Web 2.0 initiatives, all of which contribute to the demand for pro-fessionals who can troubleshoot software and hardware problems. For example, the increase in average starting salary for Tier 2 help-desk pro-fessionals — which is projected to range from $36,750 to $48,250 — is 3.7 percent higher than projections for 2008.

Industries to WatchWhile many industries are eliminating jobs, some sectors are generating new ones. Those expected to add IT positions in 2009 include:

1. Health care: The growing need for health care among older age groups, coupled with constant upgrades to technology and information, ensure the health care industry will continue to grow.

2. Nonprofits: The nonprofit sector continues to expand, largely because it consists of other growth industries, including education, social services and health sciences. Nonprofit organi-zations can benefit from IT applications in areas such as donor database management, Web site and blog creation and network security.

3. Education: Rising student enrollment at all levels of education is creating demand for educational services. The e-learning market in particular is expected to grow at a rapid pace in coming years.

4. Government: There likely will be a need for IT expertise within the U.S. government itself or as a result of federal effort to ease the financial crisis. During his campaign, President Barack Obama proposed an ambitious IT agenda that many believe would require significant investment in skilled IT employees.

skills in demandWhen 1,400 chief information officers (CIOs) polled for the Robert Half Technology “IT Hiring Index and Skills Report” were asked which tech-nical skill set is needed most in their IT depart-ments, 70 percent cited network administration (LAN, WAN). This was followed closely by desk-top support and Windows administration (Server 2000/2003).

Demand for professionals with skills in areas such as .NET, SharePoint, Java and SQL Server devel-opment remains strong, particularly for those with several years of work experience and IT certifica-tions. In addition, as companies expand their online presence, they are placing a premium on Web 2.0 development skills.

IT managers also seek well-rounded candidates. Soft skills such as interpersonal and leadership abili-ties are viewed as key competencies. 8

Katherine Spencer Lee is executive director of Robert Half Technology, a leading provider of IT professionals on a project and full-time basis. She can be reached at [email protected].

CREATIVE ASSOCIATES

JOB #: 9105-08TITLE/HEADLINE: Built to Scale or Built to Fail?SPACE: Trim - 8.0" x 10.875"

Live - 7.375" x 10.375"Bleed - 8.25" x 11.125"

COLOR: CMYKCA CONTACT: Aimee Ridgway (919) 877-9020 x 232PUBLICATION: Certifi cation Magazine

9105-08Data_ERS-Built2Scale.indd 1 11/13/08 10:12:20 AM


dEAR TEChIE

Try Contract Work, Other Certs as Alternatives to Oracle 8i

I have a master’s degree in information technology. However, I have no experience. During my time in school I took a class on Oracle 8i, but I never earned the certifications. Is 8i still a valid certification?

– Michael

Ken Wagner:

This is another form of the classic question facing many college graduates as they enter the informa-tion technology industry: “I have a great set of class-room credentials, but without experience it’s hard to get that first job.” To that, I think you are adding the question of technical currency with Oracle 8i.

To answer the second piece, yes, Oracle 8i still is in use in some companies, particularly large firms that have a slower cycle rate of moving to new software platforms. Is it the latest product version and cer-tification? No. But depending on the employer or customer, it is still a possible credential to approach your employer with in order to assist in establishing your knowledge of the platform.

You may want to consider more recent releases such as Oracle 9i (released in 2001), Oracle 10g (released in 2003) or Oracle 11g (released in 2007). The key dif-ference here is that the “g” versions use grid com-puting, in which the application-hosting infrastruc-ture takes a more multi-server-aware, parallelized approach to processing, storage and indexing. The significant architectural and design improvements since the 8i version may necessitate extended study on your part to ensure you can adequately address the administration needs of a modern enterprise.

Looping back to the first piece of your question, you also should bolster your practical experience in any way you can to make yourself a more competitive candidate. Your best opportunity may be to consider contract work related to the Oracle platform, as the hiring bar for contract positions often is lower than for long-term positions. You can move into contract positions on the strength of your master’s degree and prior Oracle classwork.

These contract positions may not afford you the long-term job security you are seeking. However, they can be parlayed into a resume of brief experi-ences that reinforce your updated platform study and position you to enter the industry at a level more commensurate with your education.

Wayne Anderson:

Oracle’s 8i was released almost 10 years ago. The latest version, 11g, was released in July 2007. The jump from 8i to 9i brought 400 new features — the jump from 8i to 11g brought even more.

While Oracle 8i extended support ended in Decem-ber 2006, it is still covered by Oracle’s sustaining sup-port, so there may be a few companies still running that version. However, that version of support does not include any new updates, fixes, security alerts or critical patch updates, nor does it include any new tax, legal or regulatory updates or new upgrade scripts. For this reason, most companies are thinking of — if not already in the process of — migrating to a newer version.

If you are considering Oracle certification, version 9 is the earliest available, but I would strongly recom-mend looking at either version 10 or 11.

As not everyone uses Oracle, there are other DBA certifications to consider, as well. These include:

• Microsoft Certified Database Administrator (MCDBA) for SQL 2000. The exams for this creden-tial get discontinued at the end of March, but the credential remains valid.

• Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) for SQL 2005 and 2008.

• Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) for SQL 2005 and 2008. This would be the replacement for the MCDBA.

• MySQL certifications. These range from entry level to developer and administrator level. 8

Wayne Anderson is the global manager of technical training development and certification for Avanade, a global Microsoft-focused consultancy. Ken Wagner is an IT network manager and part-time IT lecturer in the United Kingdom. He has lived in the United States, Asia and Europe. To pose a question to Ken and Wayne, send an e-mail to [email protected].

Demonstrate Expertise and MaximizeOpportunities for Career GrowthIntroducing AHIMA’s Certified Health Data Analyst(CHDA) DesignationKeep pace with the demands of the data-driven healthcarefield with AHIMA’s CHDA designation.

• Achieve recognition of expertise in health data analysis• Validate mastery and specialized competence• Differentiate knowledge and skills• Leverage the strength of AHIMA credentials

The CHDA examination can be taken at any of the 150-plustest centers across the United States. A special offer isavailable to the first 100 applicants, who will enjoy significantlyreduced exam fees and a framed certificate upon passing.

AHIMA’s Certification in Healthcare Privacy and Security (CHPS)

Be on the leading edge with AHIMA’s CHPS, the onlycombined privacy and security credential available in thehealthcare industry.• Expands professional opportunities for attorneys, privacyofficers, IT professionals, and healthcare professionals

• Broadens capabilities in key areas• Ensures advanced competency in designing, implementing,and administering comprehensive privacy protection programs

All AHIMA certification exams are available on demand.For more information, visit www.ahima.org/certification.

Your Certification Destination

MX2555

AHIMA

1� CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

ACAdEMIC CONNECTION

student loans: An OverviewAGAThA GIlMORE

If you’ve read the news lately, you know money is tight. The economy’s not looking good, a lot of people have lost their savings and, not surprisingly, debt is rising. Further, banks are reluctant to loan out money. If you’re currently in school or looking to matriculate, you may be at a loss as to how to pay for your education.

But fear not: You still have many resources at your fingertips. Read on for details about everything from what kinds of loans are available to what you should do if you have existing payments.

If You Need a loanAccording to FinAid.org, a public service site, there are three main types of academic loans: federal stu-dent loans, parent loans and private student loans.

Federal student loans typically have low interest rates and don’t involve credit checks. There are two types of federal loans: Stafford and Perkins. Stafford Loans can be either subsidized, meaning the government pays the interest while the student is in school, or unsubsidized, meaning the student

pays the interest, which may or may not be defer-rable. Interest in 2008-09 is set at 6 percent, but it gets progressively lower through 2012. (For exam-ple, rates for 2009-2010 are set at 5.6 percent.)

According to FinAid.org, about two-thirds of subsi-dized Stafford Loans are given to students from fam-ilies with household incomes of less than $50,000. You can read more about them here.

Perkins Loans are similar to Stafford Loans but are awarded to undergraduate and graduate students with “exceptional financial need,” according to FinAid.org. All Perkins Loans are subsidized with an interest rate of 5 percent.

Next, parents can request funds either from the federal government or via a private source such as a bank. These are officially known as Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students (PLUS). PLUS Loans from the government — referred to as Direct PLUS — offer an interest rate of 7.9 percent, while loans from private sources (FFEL PLUS) have a fixed rate of 8.5 percent. Interest is not subsidized, and PLUS

loans carry an origination fee of 4 percent. Learn more about PLUS loans here.

The final option is for the student to take out a loan from a private lender. These are known as private education loans, or alternative education loans. Families typically turn to these loans when the fed-eral variety do not provide enough funding. Private loans cost more, however. The interest rates and fees depend on the student’s credit score, and if your score is less than 650 — using the FICO (Fair Isaac Corp.) standard — you’re unlikely to be approved. However, you can boost your chances by including a co-signer, as this person’s credit score is factored into the decision, as well.

Finally, if you need funding, don’t forget to look at scholarships and federal grants. Scholarships typically are based on academic prowess, athletic achievement or financial need. Grants typically come from the government and can be based on a variety of factors, similar to scholarships. Relevant grants include the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Sup-plemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) and the National SMART Grant.

Private loan giant Sallie Mae includes more informa-tion about grants and scholarships, including how to apply, here on its Web site. And don’t hesitate to try, even if you think your chances are slim. Since schol-arships and grants are basically free money — they don’t have to be repaid — it’s worth a shot.

If You have an Existing loan If you’re struggling to repay an existing loan, the first step is to understand your options. There are different kinds of repayment plans, such as standard, graduated or income based. You also can look into loan consoli-dation to lump any and all existing payments together. Or you might want to prepay some of the loan to avoid extended interest. Study up on your rights and respon-sibilities as a borrower. You can check out this page on the Sallie Mae Web site to get started.

If you have additional questions, the Student Loan Bor-rower Assistance Project offers advice and gives step-by-step instructions on how to solve loan problems.

Now is the time to take a cold, hard look at your student loans. If you apply the same dedication and attention to detail to researching your funding as you do to your schoolwork, you can really maximize your savings. 8

– Agatha Gilmore, [email protected]

You may be at a loss as to how to pay for your education.

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TROUBlEshOOTING

determining the source of ‘self’ spamAVNER IZhAR

A: This problem can be caused by two major sources. The first is spammers who fake the “from” field in the e-mails they send. The second is a malware applica-tion running on your computers and sending e-mails without you being aware of it.

How can you tell which one is causing the e-mail mes-sages in your inbox? If the message is coming from “yourself,” it is more likely that it is from spammers faking the “from” field. If the message appears to come from someone else in the organization, it’s prob-ably being caused by malware running on his or her computer.

Of the two, malware is much more dangerous. For example, in 1999, the Melissa worm, which was a Microsoft Word macro that sent itself to the first 50 contacts in a user’s Outlook address book, quickly spread across the Internet and caused overloaded mail servers to fail. That attack kept us IT profession-als very busy for two weeks. Some companies even had to bring down their mail servers to stop the infec-tion cycle until a patch was released.

The way to protect against such threats is to make sure you are using a reliable personal security appli-cation that combines anti-virus and personal firewall. AVG, Symantec, McAfee, ZoneAlarm and others will be able to prevent malicious applications from infect-ing your computer and spreading themselves to other users in your organization. Make sure you keep your signatures and policies updated, and you should be safe. It also is important to keep your operating sys-tem updated with the latest security patches.

The other type of e-mail spam is more common. If the mail server does not check the “from” field, a spam-mer can set it to anything, including having it mirror the “to” field, so that it looks like a message is coming from you and going to you.

To determine the real sender of an e-mail message, you will need to look at the message headers contain-ing the sending server, the IP address from which it came and additional information. In most mail clients, there is a way to reveal these headers. In Microsoft

Outlook, you can open the spam message and click on the downward-facing arrow in the lower right-hand corner of the “Options” tab; the opened window will display “Internet headers” at the bottom. In Google’s Web interface, you can click on “Show Original.”

Once you gain access to the message headers, there will be a line that starts with the word “Received:” and will be followed by the real domain name and IP address of the sending server. Resist the temptation to e-mail this address, even if just to ask for your removal; it will only cause the spammer to send more messages and sell your e-mail address to other spammers.

Instead, there are two major approaches to dealing with spammers. One is to install an integrated anti-spam application on your mail server. The other is to install an anti-spam appliance that stands between your mail server and the external world. The inte-grated solution is simpler to implement and would not require additional hardware, but it does not scale very well. Depending on your mail server, Symantec, GFI, XWall and many others have solutions for it.

The appliance-based solution is what enterprises and commercial mail providers typically use because it can scale to millions of messages per day, freeing your server from the dual task of providing mail ser-vices while preventing spam. IronPort, Brightmail and Barracuda are products that fall into this category.

Also, as a good Internet citizen, you should report spam to the service provider of the spammer so that he or she can be blocked. Depending on your country of residence, this type of spam also might be illegal and can result in penalties to the originator. In the U.S., the Federal Trade Commission has been enforc-ing the CAN-SPAM Act (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act) since 2003; any spam message should be forwarded with full headers to [email protected]. 8

Avner Izhar, CCIE, CCVP, CCSI, is a consulting system engineer at World Wide Technology, Inc., a leading technology and supply chain solutions provider. He can be reached at [email protected].

Q: My employer is getting a ton of spam delivered to work e‑mail accounts. The messages appear to come from inside the organization, but we have not sent them. What’s causing this, and how do I correct it?


The iPhone: Making developers of Us AllIt’s as ubiquitous these days as any cell phone, MP3 player or PDA. Perhaps

that’s because the Apple iPhone is all three in one. But that’s not the only rea-son the popular gadget caught on like wildfire. Its sleek, black touch-screen has made it a convenient little video-game device, and you’d have a hard time finding someone who doesn’t have at least one gaming application on his or her iPhone.

But perhaps the most interesting part of the iPhone game frenzy is that it has provided an unprecedented opportunity for talented, entrepreneurial develop-ers to share their creativity with the world. Take Steve Demeter, for instance. According to a CNN.com article, Demeter is a former ATM software designer who, in his spare time, created Trism, a colorful digital puzzle game specifically designed for the iPhone. Demeter pitched Trism to Apple in spring 2008, and it was made available for download in the App Store just a few months later.

In the first two months of availability, Trism brought in $250,000 in profits, accord-ing to the article. Anybody with an iPod or iPhone can get the game.

Demeter told CNN: “Apple has made it so easy to put [game publishing] in the palms of developers. If you have a relevant, fun game or application, I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be approved.”

Apple seems to have taken that to heart — there are currently more than 1,500 iPhone games available. But although the App Store is getting increasingly crowded, it nonetheless represents a new forum for would-be developers to get their start. Game on!

WhAT WE lIKEiPhone Apps, Blogging and Instant Careers


The Appeal of a distinct Online Presence Right now, everyone seems to have a blog or a Web site or both. People are relating financial advice, talking smack about politics or sharing health tips. And some of these peo-ple are even making a living on it.

Enter TheSuperficial.com, a celebrity gossip blog that launched in May 2004. A self-described “brutally honest look at society and its obsession with the superficial,” the blogger explains that his efforts are “not satire. It is not social commentary. It is the voice of our society at its worst… Just kidding. Our goal is to make fun of as many people as possible.”

In addition to poking risqué fun at all manner of celebri-ties at their best and worst moments, the site advertises products, movies and TV shows. The Superficial blogger only writes a few sentences or paragraphs per entry, accompanied by photos — sometimes submitted from readers — but he has attracted a significant fan base.

The bottom line is that TheSuperficial.com has shown us that you can start your own site or blog without spending a lot of money — as evidenced by its bare-bones format — and can make a career out of it, as long as the content speaks for itself.

Instant Career?It’s not uncommon for an aspiring actor or singer’s career to take off in a matter of days. After all, it’s what makes reality TV possible (or what reality TV makes possible). But what about a legitimate company — in the information technology industry, no less — launch-ing in the mere span of a weekend?

Enter Startup Weekend. The international competition is intended to spur innovation, launch careers and mate-rialize dreams in the technology realm, according to a CNN.com article.

The regular event — held in cities across North America and Europe — has resulted in the creation of companies such as Skribit, a site that connects bloggers with readers who suggest topics to write about; Market Monitor, a search engine optimization tool; and more recently, Twitpay, a method through which users can settle minor debts on Twitter, thereby eliminating the awkward task of splitting a lunch tab on the spot.

Two thumbs up for this springboard of ingenuity! 8

– [email protected]


For all their promise, wireless devices and services demand more forethought than simply distributing gadgets to employees. Companies that focus on the hardware without also considering the related workflow, operational management and integration implications are in for a rude awakening.

In the past, organizations often coped with massive change such as this by ignoring the problem. More risk-averse firms typically banned the use of disrup-tive new technologies while leadership figured out how to implement them effectively. It’s an attitude that continues to this day. In some organizations, for example, employees aren’t allowed to install instant messaging applications or visit social networking sites such as LinkedIn or Facebook. Road warriors at companies such as these either do without mobile devices or use their own equipment and accounts outside the corporate infrastructure.

lOOK AhEAd

The Perils and Promises of Mobility

CARMI lEVY

If 2008 will be remembered as the year when mobile technologies finally hit critical mass for most mainstream businesses, then 2009 could be the year when many of these same businesses learn some painful lessons about how not to implement mobility.


It’s a strategy as quaint — and obsolete — as using typewriters in the Internet age. Companies wor-ried about the implications of mobility can’t afford to sit on the sidelines; the world is already cutting the cord. Worldwide mobile handset sales blew through 1 billion in 2007 and continued to grow at double-digit rates through 2008. A new report from Portio Research confirms global mobile penetration exceeded the 50 percent milestone in 2008, while total mobile industry revenues are set to top $1 tril-lion — all within an industry that didn’t exist a gen-eration ago.

Yet, despite the unstoppable wave of mobility sweeping the planet, the risks can be significant. Security tops them all. Whether employees are losing data-laden devices in taxis, getting them stolen in airports or having their unencrypted traffic picked up at public hotspots, the privacy implications of using these devices for sensitive tasks have never been greater.

Growing regulatory oversight raises the stakes even higher for organizations that have suffered losses of confidential data. It’s a lesson that the makers of the iPhone game “Aurora Feint” learned all too well. They included a feature that copied the contact data-bases of unwitting users — unencrypted, of course — to the developer’s own servers. The goal? To build a community feature that let players know when their friends were online. Although the intent was far from malicious, the resulting outcry prompted Apple to pull the application from its online store.

The incident serves as a warning to IT decision mak-ers considering mobile deployments of their own: Never assume your platform is secure, and never assume every developer plays by the same rules.

Support costs also are a large gray area. A mobile device isn’t just a fancy phone. It’s a new plat-form that, like PCs and laptops, demands a certain degree of care if it’s going to get the job done. You wouldn’t dream of upgrading the operating system on your laptop fleet without properly training your end users and help-desk staff. But few shops invest

in similar rigidity when deploying new or replace-ment wireless devices and services. They should.

This gap also extends to business goals. Most com-panies fail to identify the business outcomes they hope to achieve by implementing mobile technol-ogy. Or they identify these goals but fail to monitor whether they are being met. This is unfortunate because, as the economy continues to spin down-ward, mobile tools have the potential to reduce costs, improve efficiencies and drive agility. For example, employees in post-layoff companies can increase productivity by getting more done outside the office. Additionally, companies with mobile-enabled employees can hold the line on real estate and fixed infrastructure costs.

Operationally, mobile-enabled applications drive automation by eliminating the need for labor-inten-sive manual processes. For example, a location-enabled device and service might obviate the need for human dispatchers to call service technicians on the road. Similarly, workflow applications such as sales-force automation tools reduce the need for double entry of data and allow more work to get done on-site.

Next-generation mobile services such as these can reduce friction by encouraging more frequent and deeper collaboration — both internally and with external stakeholders — and by removing low-value activities and resources from the loop. While wor-ries about security, cost and complexity are as valid now as they’ve ever been, mobile technologies have become mainstream, and companies that freeze mobile deployments out of fear risk being left behind by more agile competitors.

The bottom line: It’s OK to worry, but the answers to these concerns are already out there. 8

Carmi Levy is a technology journalist and analyst with experience launching help desks and managing projects for major financial services institutions. He offers consulting advice on enterprise infrastructure, mobility and emerging social media. He can be reached at [email protected].


CERTIFICATION

PETER MANIJAK

February 2009 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE 2�

In a tight job market, it is more important than ever for IT professionals to keep their credentials current. But today, professionals must weigh their recertification options to make the most effective and cost-efficient decision.

It seems as if every business article or report you see lately starts with a mention of the economic downturn. As a result, not only is having a creden-tial of value increasingly beneficial for an IT professional, but keeping that certification current is paramount.

Yet, as purse strings tighten and head counts shrink, IT professionals must weigh the benefits of recertification with the time and money investment involved. Those considering recertification also should be aware of several key trends in the industry before taking the plunge.

To help the decision along, let’s take a look at some of the critical factors involved, including the standard preparation time, durability of the creden-tial, date stamping, cost and requirements.

What to look for Up-FrontWhen first considering a certification program, you should carefully con-sider the following:

Is it easy to figure out how to get certified? A Web site that is easy find, easy to understand and easy to navigate is a plus. A program that is transparent — meaning it doesn’t hide behind a firewall — is another plus. Companies should want to ensure customers and partners easily understand what skills and knowledge are being validated. This also will be useful when you return for recertification.

Check to see whether there is an up‑to‑date frequently asked questions (FAQ) file and an e‑mail contact. Then, find out how long it takes for a pro-gram spokesperson to respond. Response time is an indicator of the quality of customer service and a 24- to 48-hour turnaround is the maximum amount of time it should take.

Does the program clearly spell out recertification rules? Usually a vendor channel partner program will require recertification every two years. If the program has a newsletter, it should spell out recertification rules yearly and notify you of any special training event or program changes.

2� CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

Does date stamping apply? If you’ve been certified in the current year rather than five years ago, it cer-tainly looks better to your employer or customer. If a credential does not have a date, there should be an easy way to verify it.

Is it easy to figure out where you can take the exams? There are testing centers available through-

out the world, but if there isn’t one near you, that may be a problem. The program should at least point you to the test-delivery vendor, and from there you can find the nearest testing center.

Ultimately, certification and recertification programs should provide the following benefits to participants:

• Validated knowledge and skills.

• Peer recognition.

• Increased value to employers.

• Increased marketability.

Training and PrepMany certification programs these days offer vir-tual instructor-led training (vILT) — online courses taught by experienced practitioners. vILT course-ware appeals to those who have to watch their travel budgets. Several recertification courses come in this format, as well. For example, Hitachi Data Systems offers past students a reunion vILT session to extend their learning experience and have the opportunity to put into practice what they learned.

Not only does using vILT courseware translate into less time away — which means more available bill-able hours for you and often less expense associ-ated with backfilling your job — but it could lead to better peer relationships, as co-workers won’t have to cover for each other as frequently.

Just keep in mind that some programs may require course attendance to gain or keep a credential, and

typically that involves validation of a demonstrated activity, such as an installation or other lab work.

Also, don’t hesitate to contact the training provider to learn about available discounts. Sometimes, com-panies will offer deals to students who bring friends to a training course. Or they might negotiate prices for enrollment in multiple courses. Further, manag-

ers might be more inclined to let employ-ees sign up for a program that lets them take unlimited training for one set price, like a buffet as opposed to a la carte.

Recertification RequirementsEach year, the rules for recertification should be evaluated. If a program is role-based and the credentialed individual has been performing that role, he or she should be able to test out fairly easily. But if a program has a combination of basic

product-level certs and role-based certs, what is the recertification strategy? Are test-takers required to take one exam or a series of exams?

It’s important to know what you’re getting into. Let’s use Hitachi Data Systems as an example. The requirement for 2007 credentialed participants to obtain the equivalent 2009 credential via recer-tification is passing one of the Foundations exams. For example, if an individual obtained a Hitachi Data Systems Implementer cert in 2007, he or she will need to pass only the Foundations exam to gain the 2009 Hitachi Data Systems Implementer credential.

The principle reason for this is that the skills required for advanced positions in the field have not changed, but the base products have. The Founda-tion exams focus on those base products and tech-nologies. According to feedback from test-takers, passing one test every two years to stay current is reasonable; the Foundation exams are updated yearly at the very least.

Another trend is for exams and credentials to be shared between programs. If you can leverage an exam across more than one program or even get credit for a certification in another program, it is a major bonus. For example, the Hitachi Data Systems Certified Professional Program leverages credentials earned from the SNIA (Storage Networking Industry Association) vendor-neutral certification program. In the case of Hitachi Data Systems, an SNIA creden-tial is required to obtain expert status in the Storage

If you can leverage an exam across more than one program or even get credit for a certification in another program, it is a major bonus.

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Project Management Six Sigma and Lean Business Analysis

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Advance Your Career With a Master Certificate From Top-Ranked VillanovaWith network security, software quality and other business-critical projects at stake, employers require their IT teams to possess the most current and comprehensive knowledge possible. Gain the skills you need to survive and thrive in this fast-paced field with 100% online master certificate programs from nationally acclaimed Villanova University.

Today’s Most In-Demand DisciplinesVillanova’s multi-course programs enable you to expand your expertise in a wide range of critical areas:

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Increase Your Expertise – and Your EarningsYour new credentials from Villanova and industry certification will not only help you garner greater respect, but increased earnings as well:

Trained and certified project managers earn an average salary of $101,505 – PMI Project Management Salary Survey, Fourth Edition

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Manager and Architect tracks. At the same time, SNIA offers an expert-level cert that involves a ven-dor-specific credential as a prerequisite.

Recertification Road showsTest-prep road shows typically are designed for those who were already familiar with the products and technology and need some refresher training before testing. Often, an on-site testing center is available. Some companies also will provide counseling and chalk-talk sessions for students so they can break out into study groups after the initial training class.

Since everyday work is full of distractions, an oppor-tunity to focus solely on certification often is a great help. To be able to prep for a test and then take the proctored exam immediately following also is a great time saver.

Trends in Certification: storage The results of Certification Magazine’s 2008 Salary Survey found strong interest in the area of data storage.

If you’re in IT and have not looked into storage cer-tifications, now may be the time to do so. Or if you have several certifications all set to expire and you have to choose just one to renew, you might want to make it your storage credential.

From a storage perspective, while backing up data is one important function, it’s not the only one. Using data to make the business succeed is even more critical. With the demands placed on IT to support data growth, business continuity and compliance, storage is an area in which IT professionals with the right credentials can be successful.

That said, the field of IT storage also involves plan-ning and architecting IT solutions. This requires that an IT professional take into account such areas as data access, security, environment optimization, vir-tualization, performance, business continuity, repli-cation and capacity planning. An IT professional who understands these concerns exponentially increases in value to the company and customers.

Further, even a base-level storage certification such as the Hitachi Data Systems Certified Professional raked in a high average salary in the Salary Survey results.

large vs. Boutique ProgramsA boutique certification draws between 500 and 3,000 test takers per year. For this reason, a boutique certification has to focus on quality, not volume. Value is the key ingredient. The companies offering boutique programs aim to be in the game for the long term, creating lifelong advocates and learners.

Large programs, such as those from big names such as Microsoft and Cisco, have more training oppor-tunities and, of course, many more participants. It may be that a certification from one of the larger programs is a base-level requirement for certain job opportunities, but a boutique certification, such as a storage credential, could be a key differentiator in the marketplace. After all, there certainly are advan-tages to having more than one credential. 8

1� days of TrainingIf you’re like most folks in the high-tech industry, your employer offers you 17 training days to use as you wish. Typically that means any type of training, so you need to choose wisely. Here are some considerations:

• Keeping up on technology is a nonstop effort, so first you must get up to speed on your company’s products. But then, you might want to supplement it with courses on new technology or concepts that can save your com-pany money, such as reducing carbon footprints or cut-ting energy costs.

• If you frequently draft proposals and often work to get budgets approved, a class that focuses on business-writing skills can be helpful. A good writing class will teach you how to make your case in a way that decision makers can understand, such as including an executive summary and making your key points on the first page. Further, visually appealing documents are more likely to be read. Try to find a class that includes a design ele-ment so you can learn how to use space and graphics to help get your proposal noticed.

• Microsoft Excel expertise is a great to have, especially if you have to track and report on finances and projects. The bean counters always love a well-put-together spreadsheet and are likely to look upon your work more favorably. 8

Peter Manijak is a director in the Hitachi Data Systems Academy. He can be reached at [email protected].

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IT CUlTURE

The state of IT Education


Chalkboard lessons and teacher monologues are the mainstay of many of the nation’s classrooms. But can this environment really foster interest in information technology and develop the skills that are increas-ingly necessary in today’s workplace?

“In the 21st century, we’re still teaching the way we were in the 20th century,” said Isa Zimmerman, who was an educator for 40 years in K-12 schools and is a senior fellow at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute, the research and entrepreneurial arm of the President’s Office. “We’re not preparing kids for the world they’re going to work in, live in and communicate in. We [just] aren’t doing the job.”

The first problem is the technology itself. It is fairly outdated and at capacity in terms of what it can handle, said Robert Fenstermacher, head of global education marketing for Aruba Networks, a provider of secure enterprise mobility solutions. Also, the majority of schools still tuck computers away from the classroom in specialized computer labs.

But schools are looking to change this, Fensterm-acher said.

“What we’re starting to see is [schools and dis-tricts] requesting funds either through bonds or E-Rate, so you have devices like laptops in the hands of the students,” he said. “Fortunately, there are funds that are coming available to help in [this] transition. [But] most districts would like to roll out technology more pervasively than they are right

Integrating technology into K-12 schools not only helps prepare students for the 21st century, but it encourages interest in technology. If schools fail to give students this access and to provide the opportunity to learn, the U.s. may not be able to meet the demand for IT professionals.


now. It’s just a vision of how to support that, so they have to take small initial steps.”

In Zimmerman’s opinion, the first step in integrat-ing technology into the schools is to invest in the equipment.

“When I was a young administrator, I had an argu-ment with a colleague because he kept saying, ‘Let’s have a plan and teach people how to use technol-ogy.’ I said, ‘We can’t teach them to use the tech-nology unless they have it every day because they’ll forget what we taught them,’” she said.

“You can’t move to the next level without some sig-nificant infusion of money,” she continued. “Money buys infrastructure, money buys the time for people to learn, money buys the programs for people to use — and those are [all] big pieces of the puzzle.”

Keith Krueger, CEO of the Consortium for School Networking, believes that with respect to the first wave of technology — which deals with infrastruc-ture, bandwidth and equipment — schools have made considerable progress. In 1997, only one-third of schools had Internet access, he said. Today, vir-tually all schools and 97 percent of classrooms are connected to the Internet.

But simply having the technology is not enough.

“It’s typically politically expedient to buy computers and call it a day,” said Charles Fadel, the global lead for education at Cisco Systems. “But it’s not peda-gogically sound in most cases, and it doesn’t nec-essarily get very large returns on the investment. It sounds good because it gives the perception of a quick win, but it’s not.”

Once the technology is in place, teachers need to understand it and then integrate it into the class-room — and that’s where a lot of schools fail.

Fadel said information and communications technol-ogy can be incorporated into education in three lay-ers. First, teachers must instruct students on how to use the technology to perform basic tasks such as word processing, e-mail and online browsing. Next, teachers must incorporate technology into their lessons; for example, they might use GPS technol-ogy during a geography class. And third, educators must teach students through technology — such as immersing them in virtual-world simulations — to create personalized learning experiences.

“By and large, in the best schools, we’ve only met the first two layers,” Fadel said. “Even the second layer is not systematically met across the board in all topics, in all classrooms, with all teachers.”

Fadel feels that schools are implementing the latter phases little by little.

“I’m not necessarily sure we’re doing it at the right speed, but we’re definitely on the right track,” he said.

Is Education Engaging?Students are texting on their iPhones, networking with one another over the Internet and even blogging on their laptops. They’ve grown up with technology and are rarely disconnected from it. But their class-rooms don’t reflect the world around them. In fact, many schools ban the use of Web 2.0 technologies.

“If we take a student perspective and you ask kids how they use technology in school versus how they use it outside of school, the evidence is very clear that the one-word answer would be ‘lame,’” Krueger said.

As a result, students might see little relevance in their education and become disengaged. Not sur-prisingly, this disconnection affects motivation, per-formance and dropout rates.

Further, without a firm grounding in the use of tech-nology in a professional setting, students are gradu-ating from high school unprepared for the real world and employer expectations.

“Colleges are telling us we’re not preparing our high school kids well enough, and the businesses are telling us we’re not preparing our college kids well enough,” Zimmerman said.

For these reasons, organizations in Massachusetts are trying to make competence in technology part of the licensure requirements for educators.

“Everybody — shoemakers, snow-plow drivers, the physicist who gets the Nobel Prize, the manager who runs a Fortune 500 company — has to know how to use technology,” Zimmerman said. “It isn’t just the scientists or the technicians.

“That’s exactly why the state of technology in schools is so distressing because every youngster needs to have easy access and competence in these new instruments. [And] we need the people in our schools, our educators, to find it just as easy as the kids so that they can use the technology with the kids.”

The IT shortageThe lack of access to technology in schools also is impacting the number of professionals who enter IT fields. If students don’t have access to it, how can they ever consider it as a career?

“If you’re in a very poor district and you don’t have access to these things, then it will automatically

�0 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

limit your ability to even think of them as a potential career,” Fadel said. “But it’s hard to judge how large [the impact] is and to quantify it.”

Zimmerman believes it has a big impact because students start dreaming about their careers when they’re young, and access to technology can plant a seed for the future.

“The state of technology in some public schools is woeful, and that’s where it starts. It starts with the little kids,” Zimmerman said. “Somebody once said, ‘A Ph.D. starts with kindergarten.’ It’s true. If we don’t

get kids interested early on in all the STEM subjects [science, technology, engineering and mathemat-ics], then we lose a lot of potential employees and researchers who will produce for the greater good.”

To illustrate her point, Zimmerman shared an anec-dote about when she was a superintendent at one particular school.

“[There] were kids who were way ahead of their teachers [in terms of technology],” she said. “They would help teachers find things on the Internet that they could use in their classes. They would help teachers troubleshoot a problem.”

This group of students came to be known as the “Internet Scouts.”

“Most of those kids went on to become profession-als in this field because they were exposed to it, they had access to it, they became competent at it,” she said. “[And] they liked it.”

In the United States, however, information technol-ogy is not as glorified a career as, say, professional basketball, so students are more likely to dream about being the next Michael Jordan than the next Steve Jobs. Fadel believes this societal perception has a significant impact on the number of people going into IT-related jobs.

“There’s the scorn of the geek, which is society-dependent,” he said. “Obviously, you’re not going to have a technologically advanced society if you have all of [these] factors play against you.”

Additionally, many students and par-ents might assume that IT is a dead-end, given the dot-com bust and, more recently, news of offshoring. It’s these misperceptions that affect the number of students entering these fields, said Chris Stephenson, executive direc-tor of the Association for Computing Machinery’s Computer Science Teach-ers Association (CSTA).

“We still hear from a lot of students and their parents that they really believe the myth that there are no jobs in com-puter science,” Stephenson said. “In the meantime, we hear from companies that [they] are absolutely desperate for people to fill jobs they already have.

The truth of the matter is, one of the primary reasons many companies are offshoring is because they sim-ply cannot find the people they need here — and that goes back to our pipeline issue.”

While the U.S. is not the only country that’s expe-riencing a shortage of IT professionals, it’s hard to compare the U.S. with other countries because it’s not homogenous. There are some U.S. school dis-tricts that are incredible in their use of technology, and there are others that are not.

“In countries like Singapore, it’s much easier,” Fadel said. “Singapore has a very large city and that’s about it. So there are things that you can do [there] that you cannot do in a very large country with a highly decentralized system. That said, Singapore is ahead of most of our districts, but [it is] not neces-sarily better than our most advanced ones.”

Computer science in schoolsThere’s a difference between having access to tech-nology in schools and learning about it.

“Everybody — shoemakers, snow-plow drivers, the physicist who gets the Nobel Prize, the manager who runs a Fortune �00 company — has to know how to use technology.”

– Isa Zimmerman, senior Fellow, University of Massachusetts donahue Institute

February 2009 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE �1

“We have to make a really important distinction between using technology as a tool to learn in other disciplines and actually learning computer science itself,” Stephenson said. “What often happens is these two become very much confused in the view of administrators and the public. What we see is a misconception that as long as there are computers in the schools, students are learning skills that are appropriate to meet the future needs of the high-tech industry. Unfortunately, that just isn’t the case.”

Computer science courses are one way high school students can get interested in and learn about tech-nology and the industry, but many computer science programs are in poor shape.

“We’re not getting enough students into the com-puter science pipeline early on because there aren’t teachers who can teach it, or there aren’t courses that students can take,” Stephenson said. “As a result, there are not enough students going into com-puter science or informatics [in] college or university. The end result is we’re simply not graduating enough people to keep up with the needs of industry.”

The problem lies in the certification process for computer science teachers. The systems for certi-fication that are in place are completely out of touch with the needs of students and the discipline itself, Stephenson said.

“In the vast majority of cases, the current state cer-tification requirements for CS teachers are either incomplete or completely irrelevant,” he said. “You have situations where teachers who teach com-puter science cannot be certified as computer sci-ence teachers.”

As a result, students are not getting the best com-puter science education. Stephenson has heard of instances in which schools ask teachers from other disciplines to teach the computer science course, even though the two subjects may have little or nothing in common.

“They spend the whole year just keeping one step ahead of their students, trying to learn faster than [them] so they can teach it,” she explained. “When you’re talking about a discipline like computer sci-ence where the technology is changing constantly, it’s really hard for teachers without a background to teach it appropriately.”

Additionally, because computer science is not a core subject outlined in the No Child Left Behind Act, former President George W. Bush’s education initia-tive, students are not required to take it.

According to CSTA’s National Secondary Computer Science Survey, 78 percent of the 14,000 people sur-veyed said their school offered introductory com-puter science courses in 2005. In 2007, 73 percent of the 13,000 people surveyed said their school offered introductory computer science courses. Similarly, in 2005, 40 percent of respondents said their school offered Advanced Placement (AP) computer science classes. In 2007, only 32 percent said their school offered AP computer science classes.

“With No Child Left Behind, schools are only con-centrating on core courses, so they’re offering fewer and fewer electives,” Stephenson said. “As long as computer science is considered an elective rather than a core course, it’s going to be harder and harder for schools to offer it. Computer science is kind of like the canary in the coal mine: When things get tough, it’s the first to disappear.”

Yet, if high schools and colleges don’t produce enough people interested in these fields, there won’t be enough people to meet the demand. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of computer software engineers is projected to increase by 38 percent from 2006 to 2016; employ-ment of computer scientists and database adminis-trators is expected to grow 37 percent; employment of computer systems analysts is expected to grow by 29 percent; and employment of computer support specialists and systems administrators is expected to increase by 18 percent.

And this IT shortage may affect the United States’ competitiveness, as the Googles and Microsofts of the world will relocate or sprout up elsewhere.

“If the situation continues as it is, we will continue to see the industry [struggle] to find the people they need to fill the jobs they have,” Stephenson said. “We will see North America diminish in terms of its competitiveness in all of the fields that technology [and] computing touches. [And] countries that are making an effort to get more people into and through the pipeline are going to gain the edge.” 8

– Lindsay Edmonds Wickman, [email protected]


The right mix of soft skills and technical expertise typically gets you the job, but at Capital TechSearch Inc., an IT staffing and executive search firm, it’s not just about your personality or your knowledge. You need to fit with a client’s culture.

“Our job is to understand the technical require-ments, as well as the environment and the company culture,” said David Ingram, president and CEO of Capital TechSearch. “Some people are a good fit in a large organization with standards and processes in place, and some people are a better fit for an organi-zation where they have to wear a lot of hats. It’s our job to determine during our conversations [with the candidate] what type of organization or environment is best for them.”

Capital TechSearch, which has a presence in Rich-mond, Va., Raleigh, N.C., and Washington, serves approximately 100 clients and potential clients primarily in the health care, financial services and government industries. Some of these organizations look for industry-specific skills, while others prefer to bring in candidates from any background.

The staffing firm recruits IT professionals for a wide variety of positions, but it has carved out a niche around application development in the .NET and Java skill sets. When a client reaches out for help, Capital TechSearch will work with that client to develop a requirement sheet that not only outlines the needed technical skills but describes the client’s corporate culture. Recruiters will then search for individuals who fit the bill.

“We may have a position open today for someone with three years of experience in C# .NET; tomorrow I might have a position for an Oracle database admin-istrator,” Ingram said. “In both those scenarios, we have to evaluate the technical skills, as well as the fit within the client’s environment.”

To assess how an individual will fit into an organi-zation, Capital TechSearch will question candidates about their professional goals and aspirations. Ingram or one of his employees might ask: “Have you had to work under a deadline in the past? Did it invigorate you, or is it something you would prefer to stay away from?” or “Have you worked in an envi-ronment where you’ve had to follow strict guidelines and procedures? Are you comfortable in that envi-ronment, or would you prefer to work in an environ-ment [that’s] less controlled?” Answers to these questions help reveal the best environment for that individual.

“We don’t believe in the commoditization of the indi-vidual. We want to understand more than what’s on paper about that particular individual,” Ingram said. “Of course it has to be a technical fit, but how [does] a certain position allow that candidate to meet their career objectives [and] their work-life balance? I don’t want to put someone in an environment that requires frequent overtime if the person can’t work overtime. We have to evaluate [that].”

At the nonprofit Guidestar, which uses Capital Tech-Search’s services, all IT employees must have a breadth of knowledge and be relatively independent. It’s not enough for a database administrator to know just SQL, for example, because the company works with a number of different software and technologies.

“Everybody has to pull their own weight, so to have somebody fit with the rest of the group is very impor-tant,” said Jim Dobrzeniecki, vice president of infor-mation technology at Guidestar.

Despite the emphasis on cultural fit, soft skills and technical skills are still important in the hiring pro-cess. Most of Ingram’s clients require a combination of both soft skills and technical expertise. It’s very rare that a client will request an individual who only has the technical capabilities, he said.

INTERFACE

Capital Techsearch: looking for the Right Fit


Capital Techsearch works with clients to find IT professionals who not only have the appropriate skills, but also have goals and aspirations that match the client’s environment.

February 2009 CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE ��

One soft skill that is requested frequently is good communication.

“In a lot of cases, whoever owns the business initia-tive will ask the IT department to create a certain solution, and it’s important that they’re able to com-municate,” Ingram said.

Guidestar, which has about 20 IT employees, is no different.

“Almost all of our positions require access to either our internal or external customers, so [employees have] got to be able to not only speak and under-stand the technical [side], but they also have to take that and translate [it] into something that a customer can understand,” Dobrzeniecki said.

Because of the recent financial meltdown, Ingram said a number of his clients have put projects on hold. At Guidestar, Dobrzeniecki said they’ve started evaluating new positions more closely to determine whether they really need to hire some-one. But Ingram believes there is a bright spot in this dismal picture, as IT “is typically used in downtimes as a strategic tool to create efficien-cies in organizations.”

“We’ve definitely seen decisions slow down right now,” he said. “Having said that, we’ve staffed up because we believe there’s a big opportunity on the horizon. A number of our clients have projects on hold that they’re going to have to accomplish for [one] reason or another, whether it’s compliance

INTERFACE continued on page 37

�� CERTIFICATION MAGAZINE February 2009

JOB ROlEs

The ABCs of school district ITAGAThA GIlMORE

If you’d asked Bev White 30 years ago what she’d be doing today, she probably would’ve told you she’d be teaching high school math. That’s because 30 years ago, she was doing just that.

Like many IT professionals in K-12 school districts, White has an extensive background in education. With a bachelor’s degree in math education, a mas-ter’s degree in education and postgraduate work in computer technology at a variety of institutions including Harvard University, Columbia University and Binghamton University, she also has more than two decades of teaching experience under her belt.

“I consider myself a lifelong learner,” White said. “When I stop taking courses or going to confer-ences and learning things, it’s probably the day that I’m just going to fold it up, you know?”

It was during her postgraduate work that White shifted her focus from math to IT, and soon after, she parlayed her background in education into her first role as an administrator of technology at the colle-giate level. And then, when an opportunity opened up in the public school system, White jumped at it, eventually working her way up to her current posi-tion as chief information officer for Wake County Public schools in Raleigh, N.C.

“That was really where my love is,” she said. “For the last 10 years I’ve been working as the district tech-nology decision maker in K-12 districts, first in South Carolina for five years and [now] here in Raleigh.”

While many school district IT pros break into the industry through the education or teaching side, there are two other standard career paths, White said.

“One of them is the technology background — some-one who’s been employed by a technology company [such as] IBM or Cisco, someone who has experi-ence at a medium to high management level in those

companies,” she said. “And the [other] one is the business arena.”

In fact, White said the trend is shifting away from the education and technology backgrounds and toward the business side, as decision-making and communi-cation skills become increasingly important.

“The path has almost always been: You have a teacher, the teacher’s good with technology, people recognize this [and the teacher progresses on the tech side]. The challenge is that as this person becomes the technology guru for the district, they don’t get in the decision-making strata,” she explained. “I think that in K-12, you’re going to continue to [need] some understanding of what the classroom is like, but I’m not sure that having a long history in the classroom is going to continue to be a requirement.

“[Additionally], we have people that are very strong technically and can make the technical decisions, but they’re not in the role to be able to influence the decision making,” White continued. “I think those folks [with business backgrounds] that come in and learn about [education] and learn how to do the leading and the management piece — that will be the career path.”

That’s because good soft skills — the nontechnical, more tactical leadership and management capabili-ties — are perhaps the most important requirement for the job.

“No. 1 is leadership skills,” White said. “The man-agement skills, like project management — how to interpret grant charts, the metrics that you get — [are important] because you have to make some decisions based on them. And then the third thing [is] being able to communicate the technical arena in language that Joe on the street can understand. We call that the Harris Teeter conversation because Harris Teeter is a grocery store chain in this area. So when you’re standing at the produce counter at Har-

To succeed today, public-school technology gurus need a combination of tech know-how, understanding of the classroom and business savvy.


ris Teeter and someone comes up to you and says, ‘Why did you really need $8 million for PC refresh?’ [you] need the ‘elevator speech.’”

A technical background is important insofar as it establishes credibility. But that’s about it, White said. She said her own experiences working on servers and doing programming simply allow her to relate better to her staff and give her staff a reason to listen.

The same is true for certifications, she added. White earned credentials as the need arose in her career — an A+ credential when she was running labs and troubleshooting, a Novell cert when she began doing networking — but none of them are current now because she’s moved on to a different skill level, she said.

“At the moment, there is no certification for a dis-trict-level CTO [or] CIO,” White said. “Were there, yes, I would go for it, because I believe it’s important to have authentication.”

However, it’s important for school district IT profes-sionals to keep current in terms of their knowledge of concepts and processes within IT.

“You need to understand things like cloud comput-ing, and you need to understand how data security works hypothetically,” White said.

A typical day for White involves three relatively con-stant variables: waking up in the morning and hitting the gym, going to work in the Wake County Public School System and spending quality time at home with her family. While the events remain the same, the time allotted for each can vary greatly, depend-ing on the day. White said she could break down the nature of her work into the following steady ratio, however: She spends 40 percent of her time in oper-ational management, 30 percent in overseeing her division and 30 percent in leadership of her district.

Operational management includes looking at what projects are going on and what work is being done, she said. Division leadership involves working with people and managing “everything that has to do with technology in the district — if you can plug it into the wall and it rings or beeps, it’s probably mine,” she said.

District leadership, arguably her highest priority, involves collaborating with decision makers in other


districts, including school principals, business lead-ers and industry experts.

“What I tried to do was distinguish between what I do that is truly operational and what I do that is more strategic,” White said. “It’s about 40 percent management of the operational, and then the other 60 percent is strategic, with about an even division between the strategic in my division and the strate-gic for the district.”

Little to no time is spent engaging in technical issues or troubleshooting problems. A typical day for White involves a lot of brain-storming and strategizing via meetings.

“Some of these are formal meetings, like board meetings or a meeting with all principals in our district,” she explained. “There are also meetings with my staff — my senior staff or my entire staff — and meetings that have to do with projects. The bulk of what I do is man-age technology through people.

“The other part of my day is going to be involved in planning and prepara-tion,” White continued. “That might have to do with looking at metrics out of my division, looking at comparatives that come from [research firm] Gartner, looking at educa-tional publications, trying to do some thinking about where we need to go, planning for our next summit meeting. Our superintendent is extremely interested that we keep our focus in the right areas because we know that one of the biggest downfalls is to do the wrong thing really well. We need to do the right thing really well.”

There is a lot of opportunity for those interested in becoming IT administrators in school districts. White’s position was created less than 10 years ago, when the superintendent of the district rec-ognized a need to bring the business and technol-ogy sides of education together. White has held the position for about five years and has had only one predecessor, who, she noted, came from a business background. Other areas still don’t have people in similar roles.

“If we’re going to maximize these folks and if we’re really going to move into 21st-century skills for staff and for teachers and for students, we’ve got to change this,” White said. “So instead of just hav-

ing a person who’s in a niche doing technology and saying, ‘Oh, this is my district technology leader,’ we need to have someone who is a district leader who specializes in technology.”

To that end, White said the Consortium for School Networking (CoSN) is working to boost awareness and develop a certification process for school dis-trict IT leaders.

Further, aspiring professionals in this area might find that opportunities are even more prevalent in cer-

tain geographical locations. Those areas known for their high-tech presence — the Silicon Valleys of the nation — likely expect a lot from their school dis-tricts with regard to technology, White said.

“When your community knows more about technol-ogy than you do, you’re at a disadvantage. But they can be a wonderful partner,” she said. “I thought it would be interesting to look at areas where you have these enclaves of technology and see if that makes a big difference.”

She added that larger districts tend to recognize the need for a district-level technology leader more rap-idly than smaller ones, but this may have to do with the money and space available.

Ultimately, the future is bright for those willing to apply their tech knowledge and leadership skills in the education arena.

“There are a lot of economies and a lot of advantages to putting those two sides of the shop together,” White said. “That’s what you get when you get a decision maker in that role.” 8

– Agatha Gilmore, [email protected]

While many school district IT pros break into the industry

through the education or teaching side, there are two other standard career paths.


INTERFACE continued from page 33

or [a] business objective. The funding may have stopped for a time period, but at some point in the near future it’s going to turn [back] on very quickly.”

For those IT professionals currently looking for work, Ingram said the objective is to set yourself apart from other candidates. One way to do this is by walking into the interview room with a firm knowledge of the organization, as well as prepared questions. Another way is to obtain relevant certifications.

“Certifications are a plus in terms of being able to differentiate yourself from the competition, [and] they’re a wonderful endorsement of a candidate’s skills,” Ingram said.

However, he was quick to add that, “In most cases, the client’s going to look for where [a candidate has] applied those skills [by looking] at their work experi-ence and how they’ve used [those] skills in different types of environments.”

Dobrzeniecki said Guidestar prefers candidates who have certifications, since it’s a way to whittle down a stack of 1,000 resumes into a more manageable pile.

“For our database administrators, we may require an MCSE [Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer], so we know they’ve at least been exposed to [it],” Dobrzeniecki explained. “[But] having certifications [also shows] a level of discipline. Somebody wanted to accomplish a goal, they stuck to it and they accom-plished something. That [says] something about their character and how they do business.”

Dobrzeniecki feels the same way about IT degrees.

“I like having people who have that organic knowl-edge besides the skills, having the education to think outside the box and do the things that a good educa-tion provides,” he said.

As far as training goes, Ingram said many of the organizations he works with provide some level of training after a hire.

“The majority of the training we’ve seen is specific to that company’s product or service,” he said. “How-ever, there are several companies that put people through a certain type of technical training.”

In terms of experience, Ingram said there’s no cut-and-dry requirement: There are benefits to hiring someone new to the industry, and there are benefits to hiring a more seasoned professional, he said.

“Someone who’s new to an industry comes, in a lot of cases, without preconceived notions, and they

could be trained the way the company wants,” he explained. “[And] in some cases, people will want to hire [professionals] who have expertise in the indus-try so that they can leverage experience to help the company grow.”

Dobrzeniecki said Guidestar seeks mid-level candi-dates. When asked why his company doesn’t typi-cally go for the seasoned professional, he said the company “would rather grow those experiences.”

“We’ve got a complement of software and technolo-gies that we employ, and everybody needs to have a breadth of understanding of everything,” Dobrze-niecki explained. “We’d rather bring in people in the middle and then train and educate folks in the skills that we need outside of that base.”

Clients take all of this into account when it comes to the interviewing process, Ingram said.

“They’re looking at the technical skills as it relates to doing the job day-to-day. They’re looking at the person’s desires as they relate to the company’s objectives. They look at work history [and] experience, as well as what’s important to the individual from a career-growth and environment standpoint,” he said. 8

– Lindsay Edmonds Wickman, [email protected]

“having certifications [shows] a level of discipline. somebody wanted to accomplish a goal, they stuck to it and they accomplished something.”

– Jim dobrzeniecki, Vice President, Information

Technology, Guidestar


INsIdE CERTIFICATION

Citrix: Collaborating With Constituents for a New Cert Program

JUlIEANN sCAlIsI

In early 2007, Citrix Education decided to revamp its certification program. Not only did changes to the program need to reflect and support the growth of the Citrix product portfolio — as well as evolving technologies and industry trends — but the new curriculum also had to address the needs of Citrix customers and partners.

For this reason, Citrix Education tapped into its con-stituents to collect in-depth feedback on the existing program and solicit ideas for improvements. The fol-lowing findings emerged:

• Customers wanted more certification options that would address a broader range of job roles and multiple technology specializations, especially in the “red hot” virtualization market.

• Individuals who are already Citrix certi-fied needed an easier way to advance and update their certifications.

• It was important to ensure that the value of Citrix certification was upheld and not com-promised with any changes to the program.

Based on this feedback, the Citrix certification program was reorganized into three levels of certification, which are based on job roles:

• Administrator Series, which consists of the Citrix Certified Administrator (CCA), the new Platinum Edition CCA and the new Citrix Certified Advanced Administrator (CCAA).

• Engineer Series, which comprises the Citrix Certified Enterprise Engineer (CCEE).

• Architect Series, which comprises the Citrix Certified Integration Architect (CCIA).

The tracks under each certification align with four distinct solution paths, enabling IT professionals to achieve specific credentials for application virtual-ization, server virtualization, application networking and desktop virtualization. This allows customers and partners to fine-tune their Citrix credentials to more closely represent their current skill level and technology focus.

Overall, the new structure incorporates expanded offerings and options for deeper product specializa-tion; more efficient paths to allow IT professionals to advance to the next certification level; update paths;

and alternative requirements for advanced certifi-cations. The changes to the program and strategy were announced in October and are being executed throughout this year and into 2010.

Administrator series: More Options for a Changing landscape Given the current state of the economy, customers and partners agree it is more important than ever for IT professionals to stay on top of changing tech-nologies. Further, virtualization is proving to be more than a trend with its cost-saving potential, and it is expected to continue to create opportunities for IT professionals in the years to come.

For Citrix, all of this translated into a need for more certification options across a broad range of job

roles to support specialized knowledge in key server, desktop and application virtualization technologies.

The Administrator Series includes certification tracks that support the entire range of Citrix virtual-ization products, from application virtualization with Citrix XenApp, to desktop virtualization with Citrix XenDesktop, as well as server virtualization with Citrix XenServer. In addition, application networking is supported through a Citrix NetScaler certifica-tion.

Previously, administrator-level certifications were limited to the entry-level CCA. The CCA tracks focus on validating basic implementation skills such as

When Citrix Education decided to give its certification program an overhaul, the company solicited input from its customers and partners. The result is a new

suite of options thats takes real-world trends and economic and market factors into account.


installing, configuring and managing Citrix products. Under the new certification structure, fresh options have been introduced to allow those with a CCA to take an intermediate step without necessarily pursu-ing Engineer or Architect-level certifications. Once an entry-level CCA is achieved, IT pros may choose to demonstrate breadth of knowledge across an end-to-end Citrix solution with a Platinum Edition CCA or validate in-depth knowledge and skills with a CCAA.

To achieve the Platinum Edition CCA designation, a core CCA exam, plus up to two additional CCA exams in related technologies, must be passed. Plat-

inum Edition CCAs are available now for each of the four solution paths: application virtualization (CCA for Citrix XenApp 5 Platinum); server virtualization (CCA for Citrix XenServer 5 Platinum); application networking (CCA for Citrix NetScaler 8 Platinum); and desktop virtualization (CCA for Citrix XenDesk-top 2 Platinum).

A CCAA is unique in that an advanced technical training course is required in addition to passing an advanced exam. The decision to make techni-cal training a requirement stemmed from customer and hiring-manager feedback that training experi-ence was the most valuable part of attaining a cer-


tification. Currently, the CCAA for Citrix XenApp 5, supporting application virtualization, is available. A CCAA for application networking is in development.

Engineer and Architect series: streamlined Requirements and higher ValueThe changes made to the two advanced tiers of Citrix certification were more subtle than those made to the Administrator Series, but nonetheless very stra-tegic. For example, both customers and partners expressed a need for streamlined update paths, and the ability for professionals to leverage their real-world experience in the pursuit of an advanced cer-tification was noted as a desirable feature.

The engineer-level CCEE effectively replaces the Citrix Certified Enterprise Administrator (CCEA) certification and has been named to more accu-rately describe its association to the engineer-level job role. Those who earn a CCEE have successfully demonstrated their ability to plan, design, scale and enhance an existing infrastructure. Because CCEEs are expected to be generalists, as well as specialists, in at least one Citrix product, prereq-uisites for a CCEE include both a Platinum Edition CCA and a CCAA.

The CCIA allows architect-level IT professionals to prove they have the real-world skills necessary to gather business and technical requirements to devise techniques, recommendations and detailed designs. In evaluating the CCIA program, customer feedback and trends indicated that hiring managers value the combination of certifications and experience. With the introduction of an experience requirement, truly qualified candidates with proven experience will be

able to obtain the credential while taking a reduced number of exams. Not only does this ensure the right candidates pursue the certification, but the experi-ence requirement also helps maintain the value and integrity of the program.

The new certification structure was designed so that within each solution path, the three levels of certifi-cation build upon one another. The prerequisite for a CCEE is a Platinum Edition CCA and a CCAA; the prerequisite for a CCIA is a CCEE.

For seasoned IT professionals who are already cer-tified and want to update their advanced credentials, streamlined requirements are available in the form of update paths. These shortened paths reduce requirements significantly, allowing candidates to demonstrate skills relevant to the features and tech-nologies that are most critical in order to keep their designations current.

More information on update opportunities and experience requirements for CCEE and CCIA will be available closer to their respective announcements, expected during the first half of this year.

Although the rollout of the new certification struc-ture continues, many options are available today, so professionals can get started toward their Citrix certification goals. For the latest updates on Citrix certification information, please visit www.citrix-education.com. 8

Julieann Scalisi is managing director of education for Citrix Systems and has more than 20 years of experience in the training and certification industry. She can be reached at [email protected].

Virtualization is proving to be more than a trend with its cost-saving potential, and it is expected to continue to create opportunities for IT professionals in the years to come.


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Technology in the Political ArenadEANNA hARTlEY

A few weeks ago, Barack Obama was sworn in as president of the United States. But that’s not the only news that has tongues wagging. People are talking about the crucial medium that helped put him there.

In today’s increasingly interconnected world, in which geographic boundaries are obviated by the ubiquitous nature of the World Wide Web, even some of the most highly ranked government officials turn to familiar, regular-people technology to get their messages across.

Take, for instance, the president himself. While he was running for office, President Obama had about 3 million Facebook supporters and managed to muster

up four times as many MySpace “friends” as former Republican nominee John McCain, according to a CNN article.

Further, the president revealed the identity of his running mate, Joe Biden, to his loyal and tech-savvy supporters via text message.

After his election in November, Obama wasted no time going live with a Web site that would give the American people — or anyone in the world, for that matter — important news and updates, including a detailed agenda for the Obama administration.

The new millennium appears to have ushered in a technology platform that allows candidates to get increasingly competitive, not to mention creative.

Are the days of the Roosevelt fireside chats officially over? It seems so, as Obama appears to want to move beyond one-way communication and spur interac-tivity between the government and its people.

For instance, Change.gov urges visitors to share their visions for the Obama presidency. A few months ago, CNN reported that prior to signing any nonemergency legislation, the president would wait a period of five days to allow the general public to post their thoughts online.

Technology and the Internet may have made an indel-ible mark on the 2008 U.S. presidential campaign — and, undoubtedly, many campaigns to come — but the newly elected president isn’t the only political figure going online as a means of communicating with his constituency. Toward the end of December, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom used the ever-popular YouTube site to publicly broadcast his entire State of the City speech.

In his online message, Newsom said he expects to inform the public on matters such as universal health care, education and the budget without the running commentary of various media outlets.

Even British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has applauded the Internet as a practical way to communicate directly with the pub-lic. Almost a year ago, Brown created an online version of “Questions to the Prime Minister,” a constitutional convention in the U.K. in which members of Parliament are given half an hour to ask the prime min-ister questions.

According to a Telegraph article, the new version would allow any member of

the general public to post video questions on the YouTube-hosted site, and Brown would pick the most popular questions to respond to via video messages.

Opening up this avenue of communication via tech-nology leads to greater transparency in the govern-ment, which certainly is a good thing. However, it also allows for more prodding on the part of the people, so even the slightest misstep or faux pas can be magnified.

In my estimation, even politicians with the best intentions who choose to leverage technology to their advantage must brace themselves, as they could be viewed and criticized more harshly than those who don’t.

Nonetheless, it seems to me that the Internet — and indeed technology in general — will continue to play a fundamental role in the political arena for decades to come. Just looking at the technology-related strides made by the Obama campaign, the future of elections and campaign races is ripe for even more creative and innovative tactics. 8

– Deanna Hartley, [email protected]

The new millennium appears to have ushered in a technology platform that allows candidates to get increasingly competitive, not to mention creative.

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