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Qualifications vs experience

You need to find the best of both worlds to succeed in today's competitive workplace.


Johannesburg, 13 Jul 2017

It's the age old quandary - you need skills and experience to get a job, but until you get a job, you can't get the experience. Then there's always the gap between so-called 'book learning' and the skills that you actually need in your workplace.

Also, how do you, as an employer, ensure your staff keeps pace with evolving demands and technology within the business? We're living in an age in which the ability to cope with change is as invaluable as any other skill set in the workplace. The speed at which IT alone evolves is mind-boggling.

Louis Geldenhuys, a Senior Technical Specialist Consultant at CTU, says: "Training is particularly crucial to IT professionals owing to the fact that the IT industry moves, grows and develops at an enormous pace. Keeping up to date with the latest technologies is very important, which is why it's important to do training on the newest technologies as they are released."

MG Marobela, IT Manager at Great North Transport, concurs: "Technology is changing every day, which is why training is important to business. From an employability point of view, I believe that it's essential for professionals to be constantly updating and upgrading themselves so that they're familiar with the latest technologies in the marketplace."

"Training is very important to ensure employability," adds Geldenhuys. "By having done the training and certifying in the specific field of study, it shows that the candidate has the necessary knowledge of the technology to apply it in practice. Candidates with certifications stand a better chance of being employed versus candidates with no certifications."

However, Owen Forsberg, Senior Database Administrator at Britehouse, disagrees to some extent. He says: "I have a working career that spans more than 35 years, with 15 of them in IT. I don't believe that I require bits of paper to help me to do my job. I've always enjoyed the work that I do enough that I was prepared to spend the time and effort learning what I needed to know in order to do the job well. Having said that, I'm now employed by a professional IT company in a consulting capacity where certification is regarded as a measure of competence."

He adds: "Our clients need to know that the advice and assistance they'll be getting is based on a thorough understanding of the subject matter, and because they may only interact with a consultant on a once-off basis, the only measure of that competence is the knowledge that the consultant has the necessary certification. Because of this, we often need to give proof of certification as part of a tender process for a lot of clients. Also, as a Microsoft partner, we need the necessary certifications."

When it comes to employability, Forsberg says: "I imagine that a list of certifications is as important as the workplace experience you have. For young people just entering the job market, I'd think certification must be even more important as there's little else against which a prospective employer can measure you. To my mind, anyone taking the time and effort to achieve the certification shows a measure of a positive attitude to their work and that it means more than just a job at the end of the day."

Geldenhuys is a big proponent of certification over experience, saying: "Although work experience is very important, I feel that certification is even more important. Candidates that apply for a position but don't have the necessary qualification or certification, even though they might have the work experience, will be less successful compared to candidates who have the certification but with less work experience. Even entry-level certification, such as A+ or N+, might be required for a high-end technical position."

However, Forsberg disagrees, saying he believes experience and certification to be equally important. "There's little doubt that work experience is what any employer values as this is what will ensure that any issues are resolved quickly and efficiently. On the other hand, IT is a rapidly changing profession, with computers and software never really lasting more than a year or two before the technology changes, sometimes beyond recognition. The certification and accompanying training required is essential from an employer's perspective, as the new skills acquired will be brought back to the workplace and will prove critical in planning for future advancements and improvements in the business. Obviously, from the employee's perspective, access to ongoing training and certification broadens the scope of their knowledge and allows for flexibility in their career advancement."

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