Posting Credentials in your work email Signature

Ultimas

Two questions:

Do you guys do it?

How do/would you format it? Like this?

Respectfully,
John Smith, A+ Certified
Widgets Corp
555-555-1234

scaredoftests

Have to.
Yes, that is how we do it as well.

jvrlopez

This is a hot topic with people on both sides.

I don't do it but see people at work with tons of certs list them all out. Some are over two lines long, some use the logos.

I would only use my highest level (and related to the context of the email) cert in my email signature if need be.

I've seen it formatted like:

John Doe, CISSP
Cyber Analyst
Company
111-222-3333 (cell) 444-555-6666 (office)

IS3

Funny cause my co worker now is doing it with the logos and the cert number but hey its an achievement people are entitled to do what they want to do. In my case though i feel its more of a show off on the negative side but it is just me. maybe in time my certs will sink in to me and ill start adding it to my signature

networker050184

There are some threads here on the topic if you search. Personally I think it's super cheesy and makes me think less, not more, of the people that do it. The exceptions would be possibly a CCIE or equivalent high level cert.

shodown

Only when I get Digits

rsutton

There may be some context where it makes sense to do this. That being said, if your default signature includes your certifications, that seems silly to me. I actually had someone email me who had put CCIE in the display name so when they emailed me it came through as "John Doe CCIE". I immediately knew this guy was a tool.

jvrlopez

All of our cubicle name plates have our certification logos on them along with our company's name. I'm not a big fan of that...you can tell what the mandatory certs are because almost everyone has them. Some of them are impressive, others are just full of a bunch of unrelated/unnecessary certs. Heck, my nameplate got redone immediately after I passed my CISSP but before I have completed my endoresement/audit (I appreciate the thought and kudos, but I put the old one back for now ).

Again, as far as email, unless it helps you in the message you're trying to get across, I wouldn't bother. It comes off to me like showing off (sure it's an accomplishment you should be proud of) and if most of the people in your working environment have it, I wouldn't bother.

N2IT

No - I would be made fun of to be honest.

Your formatting looks fine to me.

TheChameleon

I was hesitant to add any certs to mine but as you get more then why not show them off especially to your management. This sends a clear message that you aren't disposable.

On the flip side, I think that any lower level certs where you gained a higher level should be removed. If you have a CISSP then why list Security+ for example.

Adding them to a name-plate would be cheesy to me. Wearing a pin on your jacket for a cert I think would also be cheesy.

What is the difference between putting your certs on your LinkedIn profile and putting them on your signature line. Also you can just have two signature profiles, one with and one without.

networker050184 wrote: »

There are some threads here on the topic if you search. Personally I think it's super cheesy and makes me think less, not more, of the people that do it. The exceptions would be possibly a CCIE or equivalent high level cert.

networker050184

LinkedIn is like your online resume. You put your certifications there for the same reason you do on your resume. And if you need certifications in your email signature to show you aren't disposable I don't know what to tell you man.

mikelau13

If you have many certs, i would suggest to use a smaller font size on that line.

Remember your role is more important than your certs for most people.

ande0255

I think credentials should only be put in your signature if you are broadcasting that you can answer questions related to the credential, as when I have a R/S question over my head, I am going to ping the person I know is a CCNP from his signature.

Once I get some higher level credentials I might put them in my signature for people to ping me for assistance, but I don't think many people care much about my CCNA with those higher level certs floating around in peoples signatures.

rsutton

TheChameleon wrote: »

I was hesitant to add any certs to mine but as you get more then why not show them off especially to your management. This sends a clear message that you aren't disposable.

As someone who manages a team of technicians, I would never think this if someone put a cert in their signature. I would also ask them to remove it before emailing any of our external clients/partners because I don't think it represents our company well.

TheChameleon wrote: »

What is the difference between putting your certs on your LinkedIn profile and putting them on your signature line. Also you can just have two signature profiles, one with and one without.

The difference is that LinkedIn has a place for it, just as it has a place for previous employment and education. After all, that aligns with the purpose of linked-in as a marketing/job-finding/business networking web site.

jvrlopez

Our managers are aware of our certs, they don't need us to have them in our signature block to inform them.

JasminLandry

Personally, I wouldn't do it, but the company wants us to do it to show our clients that we are good at what we do, that's what they told me anyway!

instant000

TheChameleon wrote: »

What is the difference between putting your certs on your LinkedIn profile and putting them on your signature line.

I treat my LinkedIn profile like a business card. (You normally show your credentials on a business card.)

If I was working in a consulting role, I would consider showing my certs in my signature.

Since I currently work in an internal role, I do not include my certs in my signature. (I have no one to impress, and am not the type to care to.)

On this website, I show my certs (this is a website about certifications). On some other sites, I'm just any other Joe, as it is not pertinent.

In my personal case, showing off the certs is contextual marketing.

Hope this helps.

Devilry

I laugh every time I see anyone do this.

To me it would be just as funny as someone posting "Jane Doe, A.S. in Business"

Just because you earned it, doesn't mean it should be advertised in your contact info.

Signature is just supposed to be your contact info like a company letterhead. Nothing more, nothing less.

xnx

No, unless you have a pHD, CCIE or are a professor.

Ultimas

Man this is hot topic. I did not expect there to be so many No votes. I think I will start after I earn my MCTS/MCSA certs (I personnally will feel accomplished once I have those under my belt).

I agree with TheChameleon though, I will probably put any exam that supersede other exams and leave out the lesser exam.

N2IT

mikelau13 wrote: »

If you have many certs, i would suggest to use a smaller font size on that line.

Remember your role is more important than your certs for most people.

Truth right here.

aaron0011

shodown wrote: »

Only when I get Digits

Agreed.

Khaos1911

I've seen this topic come up a couple times in the past. So the TechExams.net consensus is that putting certs you've earned in your sig is tacky or frowned upon and displaying your cert(s) at your desk is also frowned upon (different thread on the board)? Well damn, I didn't know putting in all this effort for knowledge was suppose to be so secretive, lol...My opinion, do what you want with those certs. You took the the time and effort to study for them, so fugg everybody else's negative feelings on the matter. Posts your certs, son!

Jamm1n

Maybe the higher end ones CCIE, CISSP... my Chief has Security+ and A+ in his signature, which everyone in the navy is required to have, he is such a tool

RouteMyPacket

I have seen where only Professional or Expert level certifications are allowed on business cards/email signatures. The biggest laugh is when you come across the "CCIE Written" crowd that post that. lulz

higherho

networker050184 wrote: »

There are some threads here on the topic if you search. Personally I think it's super cheesy and makes me think less, not more, of the people that do it. The exceptions would be possibly a CCIE or equivalent high level cert.

I agree. Recently I've been IT people put degree's and certifications in their SIG that has almost nothing to do with the job (MBA, PMP, etc). I guess individuals who spend that kind of money on a Masters degree want to really show that they have one. However, I just feel that when you start listing your certificates like that and make basic mistakes then it would just make you look bad.

Doyen

You are right higherho that it would make the person look bad if they are flaunting their certifications and make a mistake for something that you are certified for. I think it would be okay to post maybe the greatest professional certification as it relates to your job. The same for a degree. An MBA for a network administrator would be irrelevant compared to listing a CCIE, JNCIE, or MSISA, MS: Network Management after your name. Let's assume that said Doyen has the above certification & degrees. I feel it should be listed like this:

Doyen, CCIE: R&S
Senior Network Administrator
or
Doyen, CISSP
Senior Security Analyst
or
Doyen, MSISA
Forensic & Incident Response Team

I feel listing certifications and degrees under a correspondence is a tad obnoxious. Of course I do realize that I am being a hypocrite due to my signature below my post. Then again, would it be so wrong to perhaps have a link to your LinkedIn instead under your name in your signature instead? If they curious about your creditability, your LinkedIn should provide them with certification or degree accreditation. I've even seen a someone's name as a clickable link to their LinkedIn page.

Iristheangel

RouteMyPacket wrote: »

I have seen where only Professional or Expert level certifications are allowed on business cards/email signatures. The biggest laugh is when you come across the "CCIE Written" crowd that post that. lulz

Every time someone puts "CCIE Written" on their resume, god kills a kitten

Then again, you could have your CCIE and be THIS guy: http://readwrite.com/files/files/files/images/besttats_networking_knuckles.jpg

Doyen

Iristheangel wrote: »

Every time someone puts "CCIE Written" on their resume, god kills a kitten

Then again, you could have your CCIE and be THIS guy: http://readwrite.com/files/files/files/images/besttats_networking_knuckles.jpg

I agree about "CCIE Written". It really doesn't have much merit in relation to being a CCIE. You are not awarded a CCIE until you pass the written and the lab, yet I've seen people (especially on LinkedIn) flaunt that title. Might as well take the first part of the A+ exam and say A+ 220-801. Same as any CCNP track. You don't have it until you passed all 3 exams.

As for the image, if they ever let their CCIE lapse or get another CCIE number, I wonder what they would do. I doubt many would keep recertifying long after they retire. Perhaps then it would be a keepsake of their endeavor?

daceto

I dont think you should either. The only exception for me is that I promised myself once I got my VCP I would be adding that in since I think its a fairly important cert versus my Comptia ones or my lower level VMware ones. Otherwise a bunch of certs just make you look like a show off and most people dont even know what they mean.

networker050184

I think it's pretty telling that the people here, the most certification friendly community I know of, overwhelmingly agrees it's not a good idea.