Do you really need certifications to get an IT job?

Ah, the never-ending question.

Should I spend hours and hours studying for an exam on both technical information and marketing materials? If not, which certification will help my IT career most?

It’s confusing, but the answer to both questions is “it depends.”

Certifications may have minimal or no value for some people in technology fields.

This includes people who work in the same organization for a long period and who, on a daily basis, demonstrate their skills and value to that organization. This also includes people who have completed projects for which valuable, up-to-date skills were obviously required.

People who have strong interpersonal skills may also be able to leverage these soft skills with decision-makers to enhance their position, or find new ones without certifications.

But constantly changing technologies means that completing complicated projects like deploying Windows 95 workstations back in 1997, or being the best dial-networking professional in 1995, were valuable when they were performed. But that was then, and employers want to know what you can do for them NOW.

So there are two groups who really do need certifications: Job seekers, and people who sell their technical skills as a service.

Sites like Dice.com report that most technical positions require or “prefer” some certifications. They can get you an interview and, in this job market, that’s half the battle.

The next big question: Are you changing careers, or do you want to specialize, to increase your value?

For job seekers changing careers, a certification says you can work effectively with certain technologies, even if your previous job experience doesn’t clearly illustrate this. So certifications like Cisco’s CCNA and/or Microsoft’s MCP/MCSE/MCITP are highly desirable.

If you are currently working in a technical position, and have a good knowledge base in networking and/or basic Windows support, you’ll eventually want to concentrate on one or two technologies.

Gartner Group’s “Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2010” illustrates the importance of virtualization technologies, including client computing and virtualization for availability technologies, as well as cloud computing, green IT, and data center design, in which virtualization often plays a significant role.

VMware’s VCP and similar certifications are already in great demand and, if Gartner Group’s forecast is correct, will not slow down anytime soon.

Security is another hot certification specialization. Banking, financial services and other regulated industries usually require certifications.

According to Foote Partners, the top five certifications, taking pay growth into consideration, include Certified Information Security Manager (CISM), and InfoSys Security Architecture Professional (ISSAP/CISSP).

Then there’s project management certification.

You can improve project management value in two significant ways: With an MBA and/or PMI’s Project Management Professional (PMP) certification.

If you want to remain in your current or a similar industry, but want to enhance your project management credentials, consider the PMP first, then work towards your MBA.

PMP certification education applies to many industries.
It’s a significant value-added skill when you use it in an industry in which you already have a solid footing.

If, on the other hand, you want to change industries or are new to the workforce, an MBA allows you to explore a wide variety of options, thought processes and business functions.

Generally, an MBA doesn’t focus on attaining one specific job, but enhances your understanding of finance, marketing, operations and more. Use it to build an experience base, and then obtain PMP certification after you spend some time working in your chosen industry.

Bottom line: Most IT workers must obtain new certifications every few years to stay current with changing technology. It’s the cost of doing business, because technology moves ahead with or without us.