Microsoft Changes Partner Competency Requirements
Claymoore
Member Posts: 1,637
I believe this affects the value the certifications have to our careers, but you should get the full story over on Born to Learn before you decide.
About those new Partner requirements? - Born to Learn - Born To Learn - Born to Learn
Partner Competencies:
https://partner.microsoft.com/us/40115883
For those of you who may not have known, certifications have a use beyond getting your resume past the filters. Microsoft requires partners to employ or contract with a couple of individuals who have passed some specific exams and have customer references for deployed solutions in order to qualify for competencies in certain product areas. Competencies give you points towards your Gold partnership and qualify your company for marketing dollars and other funding towards delivering those solutions.
The requirements change quite often and don't always line up to the career-related cert paths. For example, only Exchange 2010 exams count for the new Unified Communications requirements and the virtualization compentency required exams aren't the same exams as the MCITP:Virtualization Administrator requirements. Microsoft announced changes at the Worldwide Partner Conference that change how certs are applied to competencies.
One, Microsoft Certified Master and Architect now count towards competencies. Not a big deal since the individual exams that are required are prerequisites for the MCM and MCA already.
Two, individuals can only have their certs applied to one competency. I don't know if this only applies to the Gold level, but it's a big deal for someone like me. My pile of certs covers the requirements for 5 competencies, but now I only count towards one. That doesn't stop me from delivering solutions in the other areas, but now my certs may not be as valuable to my employer. Less value = less salary. For me at least.
Bad news for me could be good news for you. If partners want to increase their competency level they will need to hire people. Since the career certs don't always map to the competencies, I suggest you head over to the partner site and check out the requirements. You may just need to add a couple of exams to make yourself more valuable to the MS partners in your area. More value = more salary.
About those new Partner requirements? - Born to Learn - Born To Learn - Born to Learn
Partner Competencies:
https://partner.microsoft.com/us/40115883
For those of you who may not have known, certifications have a use beyond getting your resume past the filters. Microsoft requires partners to employ or contract with a couple of individuals who have passed some specific exams and have customer references for deployed solutions in order to qualify for competencies in certain product areas. Competencies give you points towards your Gold partnership and qualify your company for marketing dollars and other funding towards delivering those solutions.
The requirements change quite often and don't always line up to the career-related cert paths. For example, only Exchange 2010 exams count for the new Unified Communications requirements and the virtualization compentency required exams aren't the same exams as the MCITP:Virtualization Administrator requirements. Microsoft announced changes at the Worldwide Partner Conference that change how certs are applied to competencies.
One, Microsoft Certified Master and Architect now count towards competencies. Not a big deal since the individual exams that are required are prerequisites for the MCM and MCA already.
Two, individuals can only have their certs applied to one competency. I don't know if this only applies to the Gold level, but it's a big deal for someone like me. My pile of certs covers the requirements for 5 competencies, but now I only count towards one. That doesn't stop me from delivering solutions in the other areas, but now my certs may not be as valuable to my employer. Less value = less salary. For me at least.
Bad news for me could be good news for you. If partners want to increase their competency level they will need to hire people. Since the career certs don't always map to the competencies, I suggest you head over to the partner site and check out the requirements. You may just need to add a couple of exams to make yourself more valuable to the MS partners in your area. More value = more salary.
Comments
-
earweed
Member Posts: 5,192 ■■■■■■■■■□
It may be incentive for more people to get the higher level certifications if Gold partner companies have a need for more employees with those credentials.
This is definitely a twist on the supply and demand scenario. While people such as Claymoore are in demand because they cover so many competencies now the multiple competencies he covers is effectively moot. This change brings about a demand for more specialized individuals (certified in less areas). I frankly see this shift as being a way to change the way the partner companies structure their specialists and hope that the outcome is a good one. Hopoefully it means people such as Claymoore who are qualified in a wide range of competencies are moved up in the ranks to oversee those in the trenches.No longer work in IT. Play around with stuff sometimes still and fix stuff for friends and relatives.