Oct. 1, 2007 – Certification equals assured quality

If you know what to look for, certifications can play a valuable role in deciding who to hire and attaining quality results.

By Justin St. Clair
Published in the St. Louis Small Business Monthly

Start looking for an IT consultant, and potential candidates are bound to start presenting you with a dizzying array of certifications.

Taken at face value, IT certifications can be misleading. But if a business owner has a clear idea of their needs and makes sure the consultants aren’t misrepresenting themselves, certifications can play a valuable role in deciding who to hire and attaining quality results.

“You have to be sure the certifications are relevant to what your needs are and what your requirements are,” says Steve Kelly, Director of the Engineering Process and Quality Assurance Group at The Newberry Group, a global IT consultancy based in St. Charles.

“If you’ve got someone who’s certified in a certain technology, naturally they may push that technology because they’re certified in it and possibly have a close tie with the vendor. That doesn’t necessarily mean that technology is the best fit for the requirements of the customer. They have to make sure it’s relevant to their requirements.”

Those looking to hire an IT consultant also need to ask for proof of any certifications they claim to have. Some consultants will tout certifications that are actually held by another person in their company or the company as a whole, but not by the individual, Kelly says, so it’s important to check the certifications of the individual who will be working for you.

Once you’ve taken those precautions, certifications can be a valuable tool as you search for an IT consultant who can deliver high-quality services and products. Aside from showing a specific capability and an IT engineer’s continued commitment to learning new skills, various IT-related companies like Microsoft have made their certifications more meaningful in recent years by evaluating on-the-job experience through test questions and requiring regular updates as technology advances.

“Technology changes daily, and new techniques, new methodologies, new processes are always being developed and delivered,” Kelly says. “Consultants need to keep up with the certifications, keep up with the processes, and keep up with the new technology. In other words, remain teachable.”

Newberry is committed to keeping up with the very latest technology and high-quality practices and Newberry’s consultants have a wide-ranging array of certifications. That’s why hiring Newberry’s team of highly-skilled, highly-certified consultants for your IT work can give your business a clear advantage.

“Because we are a consulting company, we are always on the forefront of new technologies, new process models, and new deliverables that will help small organizations become current. We’re also a Microsoft certified gold partner, which means we see and test new technologies and tools before they’re put on the open market,” Kelly says.

“Having the latest technology can have a big impact on a company’s productivity and quality. We have the experience, the certifications, the credentials and the commitment to quality to help small and mid-sized companies meet their IT goals.”