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IITPSA reaches important milestone for IT professional


Johannesburg, 18 Sep 2015

The Institute of IT Professionals (IITPSA) announced today that its Professional membership grade (PMIITPSA) has been accredited by the International Professional Practice Partnership (IP3).

IITPSA was visited by a team of international IP3 assessors in July. The team interrogated all of IITPSA's practices, and closely examined the process by which members are upgraded to Professional status. The team recommended to the IP3 board that IITPSA be awarded full accreditation for a period of five years, and approval was given. One of the assessors, Stephen Seidman (USA), said: "We are very impressed with the quality of the processes and procedures at IITPSA."

"I am proud of the team at IITPSA, who have achieved this endorsement of their efforts to show the institute's right to stand alongside their peers in the global community of IT practitioners," said Adrian Schofield, who is a Vice-President of IITPSA and also serves as Vice-Chair of IP3, responsible for Standards and Accreditation. Schofield added that his dual role meant he had to stand back from the accreditation assessment by the international panel, but he had every confidence that IITPSA would measure up to the criteria for accreditation of their professional membership scheme.

The institute was accredited by SAQA as the Professional Body for IT in South Africa in 2012, so it is now accredited at both local and international levels. This helps the institute to further its stated mission: "We lead the ICT professional community in South Africa, promoting professional development and best practice."

Tony Parry, CEO of IITPSA, noted: "The institute is delighted to receive this international accreditation from IP3 as it adds to the professional standing of our South African ICT professionals and underpins the IITPSA's focus on continued growth and improvement of ICT professionalism in the country."

Ulandi Exner, IITPSA President, added: "IT professionalism is an important goal for any serious IT practitioner both on a professional and personal level. IITPSA is the only South African professional body that is recognised by SAQA. Being recognised internationally is of great importance to us and our members because of the acknowledgement that we conform to global standards. The use and role of IT is changing at a significant pace and society should have peace of mind that practitioners are skilled and prescribe to a code of practice and ethics. We expect this from many other professions, such as those in healthcare, law and accounting, and we need to build a structure in order to promote IT professionalism. I am thrilled that IITPSA has received accreditation from IP3."

The PMIITPSA designation is awarded to those select ICT professionals who have met global standards for competence, ethics, and experience. Earning the PMIITPSA designation is no trivial matter. A candidate must submit to the most rigorous vetting process in the profession that includes work history and experience, ethics, and submission of in-depth portfolios covering ICT competencies and responsibility levels. For this reason, employers in the ICT industry should seek to employ IITPSA Professional members for senior positions and encourage all their staff to become IITPSA members with an end goal of achieving PMIITPSA.

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IITPSA

With a proudly South African history dating back to 1957, IITPSA (Institute of Information Technology Professionals South Africa), formerly Computer Society South Africa (CSSA), is a South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) recognised professional body providing a National Qualifications Framework (NQF) registered professional designation (PMIITPSA).

The institute is established to represent, promote and elevate the arts, science and general knowledge of ICT in South Africa, and in particular, to advance and represent the interests, development and professionalism of all those employed in the ICT industry, while endeavouring to protect the public through member-based ethical and professional standards and use of ICTs. www.iitpsa.org.za

IP3

The International Professional Practice Partnership (IP3), a project of the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP), is leading the development of the global IT profession by providing a platform that will help shape and implement relevant policies to foster professionalism in IT worldwide. Its mission is to establish a global partnership that will strengthen the IT profession and contribute to the development of strong international economies by defining international standards of professionalism in IT; creating an infrastructure that will encourage and support the development of both IT practitioners and employer organisations; and give recognition to those who meet and maintain the required standards for knowledge, experience, competence and integrity. To carry out this mission, IP3 works closely with member bodies and partners which share its commitment to creating a sound global IT profession. www.ipthree.org

Contact: Moira de Roche, Director: Marketing, mderoche@ipthree.org

Editorial contacts

Tony Parry
IITPSA
tony.parry@iitpsa.org.za