More Is Better When It Comes To Certification

And at a time when providing the right solution often means melding different vendors' technologies, compensation levels and pay raises are significantly higher for technicians holding multiple certifications than for those holding a single certification.

CRN surveyed compensation levels for nine certifications and compared them to the level of compensation for technicians with no certifications. On average, certified technicians in each of the nine categories were paid more than their non-certified counterparts in 2002.

For example, individuals holding IBM storage systems management certifications were paid $15,000, or 22 percent, more than individuals with no certifications. This trend also held true for more basic certifications, with Certified Novell Engineers (CNEs) being paid an average of 5 percent more than technicians without certifications.

Solution providers agreed, however, that it is the quality of the certifications not the quantity that matters. "Some certifications matter and some don't; the lightweight ones don't pack the punch," said Geoffrey Lilien, president of Lilien Systems, a Hewlett-Packard solution provider in Mill Valley, Calif.

Under HP's PartnerOne channel program, high-end certifications, such as its SAN Architect track, qualify solution providers for higher rebates from HP, Lilien said.

But he warned that regardless of the certifications a technician has, the job market remains tight. "We are hiring engineers for less money," he said. "There are a lot of people looking for work."

The data also shows that certified technicians received pay raises in the range of 2 percent to 9 percent on average last year. In contrast, technicians with no certifications saw a slight decline in their average level of compensation in 2002.

"There has been a tightening in raises and the job market in general. But the more certifications an engineer has, the more valuable he or she is to the company," said Chris Ferry, eastern regional vice president at Technology Integration Group, a systems integrator in San Diego.

Many vendors require more certifications for technicians and engineers to perform warranty work on their products, Ferry said.

The differences in pay, and pay increases, are reflected in the level of satisfaction with compensation last year. Only 42 percent of technicians with no certifications were satisfied with overall compensation package in 2002, compared with 58 percent for those with the Citrix Certified Administrator (CCA) certification and 63 percent for those with the Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert (CCIE) certification.

More than one-third of non-certified technicians expressed dissatisfaction with compensation, a higher percentage than for any of the nine certification categories surveyed.

Not surprisingly, the survey results also show that security and storage-related certifications commanded the highest levels of compensation in 2002, along with bread-and-butter certifications in the networking, Java and database areas.

These results only add fuel to the debate over the value of certifications vs. work experience. The 2003 CRN Certification Study, to be published in August, will address this question more closely. But there can be little doubt,based on analysis of the data from the 2002 and 2003 CRN Salary Surveys,that non-certified technicians are being left behind when it comes to pay levels and increases.

In addition, the number of certifications a technician holds can make a big difference in what he or she is paid, the survey found.

For the first time, CRN compared compensation levels for technicians holding multiple certifications with technicians holding a single certification. As a group, those with multiple certifications were paid significantly more and received significantly higher increases in compensation than those with only one certification, the results showed. For example, technicians with multiple certifications were paid an average of $78,700 in 2002, while technicians with one certification averaged $70,000, a difference of 12.4 percent.

The differences are even more striking when changes in compensation are taken into account, as the data shows the pay gap between single- and multiple-certified individuals is widening. Average compensation increased 7.3 percent in 2002 for technicians holding multiple certifications, while those with a single certification saw average compensation decline 1.3 percent.

These trends generally hold true among the nine certifications CRN surveyed, although the results must be interpreted with caution given the limited number of respondents in some cases.

For example, individuals holding only the Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) certification earned an average of $63,900 last year, while those holding multiple certifications, including the MCSE, earned an average of $73,200, a difference of 14.5 percent. Average compensation rose a mere 1.7 percent in 2002 for technicians with only the MCSE certification, while those holding multiple certifications including the MCSE saw an 8.9 percent average increase last year.