Age old question - What next?

msteelio91

I'm sure this is something you all hear a lot, but I'm looking for advice on choosing my next certification.

I just acquired the ITIL v3 Foundations cert this past year and now I'm looking for something relatively lightweight (easy) since I work a full time job as well as go to school. I considered CCNA, but it's too much at the moment!

Career path is headed toward IT Management/Director positions.

Looking for something pretty generic, nothing crazy.

Any input appreciated!

msteelio91

Bumppp

N2IT

A+ is relatively easy

stryder144

Well, to be honest, you've probably nailed one of the "easiest" certs out there. Having said that, though, maybe CompTIA's Project+? Cloud Essentials?

Unfortunately, no one can answer your question definitively as we don't know your technical capability, work experience, etc. As such, if you are highly technical, any of CompTIA's certs would likely fit the bill. Also, what time frame are you talking about? I have several friends who fall into the "go slow" category, so they tend to set 12 month objectives, per exam, instead of monthly/quarterly ones. Taking their time allows them to have time for the other things in life that they prefer to do without stressing too much about obtaining certs.

Ultimately, only you can really say which cert would be beneficial while not being overly difficult and time consuming to study for.

msteelio91

A+ is on my list. Timeframe is within the next 6 months and I'm pretty decently experienced. I'll have to explore the CompTIA certs and see what is most relevant. Thanks!

cyberguypr

OP, what is your objective>? Resume filler only?

N2IT

@OP I think A+ is still a good one but I wouldn't go COMPTIA crazy.

Since management is your thing check out COBIT. If you want to hop into project management first then into operational management (which is usually how it works), then MS Project 2013 or whatever year is some low hanging fruit and it will teach you how to manage a project schedule using that tool. Lot's of shops look for someone with those skills, that's why I did it

msteelio91

cyberguypr wrote: »

OP, what is your objective>? Resume filler only?

Yeah 90% resume filler. Though if I learn something that I can apply along the way I'll be even happier!

N2IT

msteel - truth be told, MS Project is one of those skills you can leverage for you whole management career. It's like Excel for accountants, it's used everywhere and can really help you stay organized when tasked with multiple projects and reports fairly well too, so you can spin reports up on the fly for your managers. Think about it!

You don't have to be a project management to manage* projects. Most of the work I do is projects based.

msteelio91

N2IT wrote: »

msteel - truth be told, MS Project is one of those skills you can leverage for you whole management career. It's like Excel for accountants, it's used everywhere and can really help you stay organized when tasked with multiple projects and reports fairly well too, so you can spin reports up on the fly for your managers. Think about it!

You don't have to be a project management to manage* projects. Most of the work I do is projects based.

Good point. Funny enough I just purchased MS's new license for Office 365, $10/month for project licenses. Not bad! Project+ sounds like a perfect move right about now.

Thanks for the replies all, I think I'm going to go with Project+ for now and possibly follow up with A+ after.

Hopefully I can offer some insight on these tests for others here as I complete more.