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A TECH DATA EDUCATION PUBLICATION

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Ready or not,must certify to

1. 'pntil recently, anyone with

I I the ability to tinker with\-/ high-tech products could

ventufe into the business worldand successfully compete. Theexplosion in technologyoutpaced industry-widestandards of measuring atechnician's capabiliry. Thencame vendor certification, whichpaved the way for manufacturefsand consumers alike to tlte atechnician's level of expertise.

In a field that depends heavilyon technical competency,certification has evolved into auniversal measure of the skillsneeded to work with advancedsoffware and hardware. Butincreased knowledge isn't theonly return companies get frommaintaining certifications. Manyresellers fepoft a swift increasein overall business.

The investment in trainingoffsets time away from the field,resulting in fewer customefcomplaints and the ability totroubleshoot, solve complexproblems and answer customef

"Certification gives usi ncreased prod uctivityand a greater ability to

diagnose things over thephone. Once you gothrough the training,

working on them a n uf actu rer's m ach in es

is much easier."

questions. Denise Stroh, trainingcoordinator for AlternativeResources Corporation (ARC),

which services Hewlett-Packardproducts, says her company seesa direct correlation betweencertification and new business.

"Certification gives us increasedproductivity and a greater abilityto diagnose things over thephone. Once you go through thetraining, working on themanufacturer's machines ismuch easier."

ARC technicians have gainedcertifications on various HPproducts, including the ColorJet45OO and 85OO series, theMopier 32O and others.

Greoler soles ond loyoltyIt's widely accepted thattechnicians drive sales byrecommending what they like towork on. For resellers, thismeans that highly skilledtechnicians specify the most

appfopriate products, fesultingin fewer service calls during thewarranty period.

Certification also promotesprofessional growth amongtechnicians.Those who areencouraged to excel in theirtechnical knowledge are morelikely to be happier at work thanthose without such opportunities.For resellers, that meansincreased employee retention.

Troining formots voryAs technology has increased, sohas the need for companies tomaster an assortment of newtools their customers need.Preparation for vendorcertification exams ranges fromhands-on training in a classroomsetting to self-study manuals, CD-ROMs and information on theInternet.

Itzhile some organizations relysolely on the traditional lectureand lab format to prepare theirtechnicians, othefs prefer acombination of training soufces."I personally like the classroomsetting because it's hands-on -

you can take the machines apartand interact with the instfuctor,"Stroh said. "You retain more withthat type of experience."

Companies also must investigatewhether the training facilitythey're considering is authorizedby the vendor. Unauthorizedfacilities are generally lessexpensive but often providelower quality than those thatinvest heavily in personnel andequipment.

A prerequisite for businessMore than 5O percent ofvendors now require some kindof certification for their reseller

partnefs, and many of theseprograms are new or recentlyrevised.The idea behind thetrend is to increase competencyand decrease problems in thefield.This creates happier endusers who are comfortablemaking future purchases, saidLance Fiveland, a systemsengineer with Cisco.

Certification, he said, benefitsend users, resellers and vendorsalike."If a reseller buys a

Certification alsodistingu ishes rese llersfrom competitors who

may not have the sameIevel of technical

expertise on a product orapplication.

product - a router for example- and hasn't diagnosed thesituation correctly with the enduser, he may actually deliver aproduct that doesn't work.Thevendor might then have toprovide extensive support to theend user. Certification raises thestandards to help curb this typeof frustrating and costlyscenario."

Certification also distinguishesresellers from competitors whomay not have the same level oftechnical expertise on a productor application.

"Most people would not go to adoctor who graduated frommedical school 2O yearc ago buthasn't kept current in the fieldof medicine," Fiveland said."Certification in our industry

shows that resellefs afeinvesting themselves andmaintaining a high level ofcompetency. My experience as asystems engineer shows thatcustomers prefer companieswith certifications."

More knowledge, more sqles"Not only is certification anecessary investment fortechnical competency - it alsohelps build long-term businessrelationships," said Doug Tinning,Microsoft Alliance Manager forFileNEt a leading provider ofenterprise Web contentmanagement and e-businessapplications.

Among their certi-fications, manyof FileNET's techniciansmaintain the status of MicrosoftCertified Systems Engineers.Thedesignation and the mastery oftechnical concepts it signifiesprovide confidence to thecompany's sales teams, whichrelay to customers the highlevels of technical knowledgethey can expect.

"The more knowledge onMicrosoft platforms that wehave, the more credible we arein presentation anddemonstration situations withcustomers," Tinning explained."We're willing to take oursystems professionals out of thefield for training because there'sa payback we can measure insales and customef service."

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