Hail to a new IT society
Established 23 years ago and headquartered in Chicago, CompTIA's mission is to provide a unified voice, global advocacy and leadership, and to advance industry growth through standards, professional competence, education, and business solutions -- as stated on its Web site.
CompTIA courses, ranging from security to networking qualifications, are well known among IT professionals, especially in North America. In Australia certification centres such as Dimension Data Learning Solutions have been offering such programs for years.
The association has a reputation of being a vocal and influential lobby group. In recent times, CompTIA flexed its muscles in Europe, campaigning in favour of software patents. And while the organisation has only been in Australia for three years, it looks set to stamp its mark here with the launch of IT Pro Australia -- an organisation aimed at individuals with IT certifications. This new group aims to help companies in the IT industry improve the qualifications and skills of their employees.
Globally, CompTIA has 20,000 company members from sectors ranging from manufacturing, to distributing, reselling, and telecommunications. But here, with IT Pro, it will go after technology workers and students.
It's exciting news for the industry as a whole but does Australia really need another IT society?
Definitely, says CompTIA regional director Danika Bakalich. She told ZDNet Australia's Munir Kotadia that IT Pro is not a duplication of the Australian Computer Society (ACS).
The ACS is focused on academic qualifications while IT Pro has a more practical stance. "A university degree is not the benchmark for membership," she says. "We cover everyone from kids at school doing a Cisco academic program, to coders and architects -- but with a focus on industry qualifications and skills."
Another point of difference is the ACS' strong mandate for reaching out to anyone who uses a computer, including teachers, nurses, and lawyers. Issues that concern the ACS and its members such as invasion of privacy with mobile phone cameras are beyond IT Pro's line of sight.
IT Pro only wants IT professionals, so there shouldn't be much overlap between the two.
Emphasising the gap in the industry which will be filled by her group, Bakalich believes the bottom line is to "get people into the [IT] industry and keep them in".
"Members of IT Pro will have instant access to all vendor-based training programs along with the ability to network with other members," she says.
Although Bakalich went to great pains to distance CompTIA Australia from its lobbying heritage, she did let slip a contradictory statement. "We represent the industry so if the industry wants us to make comments to any particular body, then we will if it is appropriate."
This basically means the organisation will come to the "rescue" of members and do whatever it takes to "influence" certain quarters to protect its base. We will, no doubt, be keeping a close eye on its activities.
The opportunity IT Pro offers -- to network and learn from one's peers -- is definitely a good thing. And by keeping the entry barrier low -- a yearly membership fee of $85 ($25 for students) -- IT Pro is set to do well provided it doesn't stray from its original mission.
This article was first published in Technology & Business magazine.
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