The tech boom is over. It is no longer a seller's market. Many IT jobs
are being outsourced abroad, so it's important to be ready and equipped
to compete for the ones that remain in the United States. Simply stated,
IT professionals cannot get caught standing still. Those who want to be
more employable or more valuable to their company need to strive to gain
extra knowledge to get a competitive edge. Otherwise, an IT professional
doing the same duties and providing the same services as everyone else,
may find himself or herself expendable.
Training options available
There are a variety of training formats available to the IT
professional, including books, classes, seminars, computer programs and
videos. The costs of these products range from a few dollars to
thousands of dollars.
Books are the least expensive but are also the least personal. When in
print, the subject matter is always available to the learner. However,
if there is a question on the interpretation of material, the reader may
become confused, and the question goes unanswered. Also, learning
through reading is not the most effective modality for many individuals.
Classroom learning is generally more informative. More knowledge is
likely to be absorbed when material is presented by an individual or
panel of experts, especially where dialogue and participation are
encouraged. However, with the benefits also come increased costs. These
expenditures include actual dollars for the cost of admission, travel,
lodging and meals as well as the soft costs that include loss of work
time.
A viable alternative to classroom instruction is the professionally
created training video. This form of training is efficient, informative,
convenient, and technically accurate. Videos capture the personal touch
of the instructors and are affordable. Produced and delivered on a
CD-ROM, they allow trainees to learn at their own pace and schedule.
The individual professional
It's easy for IT professionals to use video skills training programs to
enhance their careers. Training videos are especially attractive to
individuals who don't have time to attend classes or invest substantial
dollars to bolster their experience and knowledge. They can select
topics to increase proficiency with their existing ability or to learn
new skills. Equally important, videos allow for the quick gathering of
information that is not always learned in certification training.
Brian Hernandez, a network administrator from New Albany, Ohio uses
video training on his own time.
"I'm able to take what I can from these products and review the material
whenever I need to," he says. "Before, I was basically maintaining
someone else's design at work. Now I'm more valuable. The videos have
given me a foundation to build on."
Training trends
Microsoft and Cisco and their subcategories are some of the more popular
video training courses in the industry. This makes sense since Microsoft
and Cisco are the two of the biggest selling systems in the market.
Online service is another new direction in the video training industry.
Providing a streaming subscription accessible to customers 24/7,
subscribers have access to entire libraries of videos allowing users to
log-on anywhere at anytime to acquire the information that they need.
These services are also a management tool allowing companies to record
and track who from their organization is taking part in the training and
when. Companies can see a return on investment from these reporting
capabilities.
Other areas of new development in video include the training for
voice-over IP and telephony. The new direction is voice and data network
convergence. This technology is taking existing data networking
infrastructure and adding voice to it (Internet phone systems).
Keep an eye on the future
IT professionals know that certifications get them in the door. But
certification doesn't always ensure that IT professionals know how to
use exact technology required in their new positions. Nor does
certification provide a vehicle for future learning.
That's where video training can offer an option for gaining new skills
and information in a just-in-time format.
It's clear. To get ahead in this industry, individuals must enhance
their value. Going 18 months without a new skill simply makes one
obsolete.
Jeff Short is the director of marketing for CBT Nuggets Inc. based in
Eugene, Ore.
