With a little over a dozen Novell CLEs (Certified Linux Engineers) qualified in the last three months of 2004, Novell and SmartSource Corporate Training are gearing up for a bumper year in the training space.
"So far we`ve been very encouraged to see the interest from Novell business partners in the CLE programme, with the first five CLEs being trained for Ubusha Technologies and Epi-Use, two of Novell`s platinum business partners," says Matthew Costello, managing director of SmartSource Training.
"Since then we`ve doubled that number and look forward to a bumper year during 2005. We see the CLE certification as the best way for business partners to bolster their integration expertise in the Novell camp," Costello continues, "and if things go according to plan this year, by December we together with Novell will have increased the number of certified CLEs in the local market fourfold."
"The CLE programme is one of our premiere certifications at the moment," adds Trish Barwick, channel and marketing manager at Novell South Africa. "Qualified CLEs is what the South African market needs, since these candidates ideally have the experience required to conduct complex administration and roll-out tasks in both the Linux and Novell environments, with the added benefit of being able to combine the two, using Linux as an underlying platform for Novell services that are today adding real value to the corporate IT environment."
As a prerequisite for the CLE certification, students require a strong background in both the Novell and Linux worlds. "This is not a skills set that is readily available in the local market at the moment, so with the help of the Novell CLP (Certified Linux Professional) qualification we are planning to bridge this gap substantially in the coming months," Costello explains. "We are currently in the process of taking numerous Novell CNEs (Certified Novell Engineer) through the CLP certification, something we believe will even further bolster interest in the CLE certification."
In terms of volume targets for 2005, Costello says SmartSource aims to produce in the region of 50 CLEs and between 400 and 500 CLPs before year-end. "We believe this is both a realistic and achievable target for the coming year," says Barwick.
"With the growing interest in Linux and open source from both government and the corporate market, building a strong skills base specialising in these two areas will be critical to the success of any cost-reducing efforts that take place in the local market," Barwick concludes.
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