Hidden beneath the salary survey numbers are additional important facts, including the non-monetary perks of certification.
Salary is Just One Perk of Certification
Hidden beneath the salary survey numbers are additional important facts, including the non-monetary perks of certification.
This issue of MCP Magazine is the most eagerly
awaited issue of the year, and with good reason. The MCP
salary survey provides real, substantive information.
But it can obscure as much as it reveals if you don’t
review the data carefully. For example, national averages
are an interesting curiosity, but unless you plan to work
everywhere around the country, they’re irrelevant
to how much you can or should expect to earn. Data for
your region or, even better, for your metropolitan area,
are more important. MCP Magazine provides these
geographic breakdowns online so you can see how fellow
MCPs are doing in your area.
Geography is only one important criterion for MCPs. Experience,
length of time in the industry, company size, and industry
are also important breakdowns—and their effect on
salaries also varies by geographic region. As you examine
these variables and others, be sure that you don’t
lose sight of important truths: MCP salaries remain strong,
and the demand for qualified professionals continues to
climb. Microsoft anticipates that Microsoft Certified
Solution Provider companies and enterprise organizations
will have 647,000 openings this year.
Beyond salary nuances not captured by the numbers, there’s
another part of compensation that the salary survey doesn’t
attempt to consider—the non-monetary perks. Working
conditions, benefits, promotions, and a range of career
enhancements are all parts of total compensation for MCPs,
and they don’t all show up on the salary survey.
As these additional aspects suggest, MCP certification
is a win-win for individuals and their employers in ways
that go far beyond salary. The program is a win for individuals,
because it gives them the confidence, credibility, perks,
and benefits that come from achieving a demonstrable,
in-demand skill set. As Cyndy Fitzgerald pointed out in
June’s “@microsoft.com”
column, Microsoft is taking steps to retain the certification’s
value by using cutting-edge testing techniques to ensure
that the program accurately measures real skills and the
ability to put those skills to use on the job. Other steps
that Microsoft is taking include periodically replacing
exam questions over time, a revised exam-retake policy,
continuing certification requirements, and increased exam
security. Employers know that Microsoft certification
is a valuable credential, which is why MCP compensation
stays strong, and why MCPs receive increasing control
over their jobs and careers.
The program is also a win for employers, because MCPs
are more knowledgeable and efficient than their non-certified
peers, enabling better solutions and superior management
of existing systems. For example, a 1998 MCSE criterion
validation study found that MCSEs are more competent than non-certified
systems engineers in all relevant job dimensions that
were identified by the job analysis. Furthermore, IT managers
don’t believe that certified employees are more likely
to leave an organization in greater numbers than non-certified
employees—in a recent GartnerGroup study, 90 percent
of 250 IT managers reported that certified employees either
stay with the company longer, or as long, as non-certified
employees.
Compensation, credibility, greater productivity, and
a highly valued credential—Microsoft certification
is a winner for MCPs and employers alike.
About the Author
Donna Senko is the Director of Microsoft’s Certification and Skills Assessment Group.