The MicroTrain Blog

If I know the information why do I need training?

75-90%of jobs around the globe will require postsecondary education or training.  And if you’re applying for one of them and don’t have it, you will not be hired. A new, forecast by the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce[i], forecasts that by 2018, 63% of all jobs will require at least some post-secondary education. This means that some college or professional training after high school is now the norm and in the future will be a requirement for almost every job. In IT, this is even more critical because not all IT jobs require a college degree, especially entry level jobs. But, they do require certifications to prove that you have had this post-secondary training and actually know your stuff.

Are certifications really that important to employers?

The short answer is yes. Especially in Information Technology, certifications prove that you are proficient in a very specific skill and can be a big benefit to employers. For example, companies who hire Cisco Certified Network Administrators (CCNA) receive a discount on hardware and help save money by increasing productivity and lowering costs to an organization. According to the IDC research[ii], each new certification on a team leads to increased productivity and the following benefits:

• Unscheduled downtime was 20% lower in organizations with more certified professionals
• Budgets spent on external support for network management were 20% lower
• Budgets spent on external support for network security were 30% lower

For these reasons employers want to hire candidates with certifications. 91% of hiring managers consider certifications part of the hiring criteria.[iii] 86% of hiring managers indicate IT certifications are a high or medium priority during the candidate evaluation process and 80% verify certifications during the hiring process.[iv]

IT is an industry where technological advances create new jobs and new software and programming languages evolve quickly. If you are hanging on to old technology or skills you will very quickly become outdated and left behind. Most employers want to hire candidates with the latest skills in the specific technology and software they have implemented. They also won’t just take your word for it, they want proof. This means two things: certifications and experience.

Employers want both and they have plenty of candidates to choose from. A study by the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM), found that a hiring mistake could cost up to five times the bad hire’s annual salary. So why take a chance on hiring someone who isn’t certified? In a survey of 700 IT networking professionals, 60% said certification led to a new job.[v]

Why should I take the test?

Several people have asked me this question—especially people who have found employment and think they no longer have the time to devote to study. Some students have found work while they were in training or soon after taking training but this is a small percentage and no job lasts forever. What happens if you get laid off or when you are looking to advance in your career? Many job seekers put their training classes on their resume but when an employer inevitably asks if you actually earned the certification, you will have to say no and may miss out on a great opportunity.

What good does it do you to look at someone else who got a job without actually taking the test and say, “Well he/she did it, I shouldn’t have to take it either”? Just wishing that completing the class counted as an actual certification doesn’t make it so, and it doesn’t reflect the reality that employers actually want you to have taken the test. Actually completing a certification says two things to an employer: you know the specific information well enough to pass the certification exam and that when you start something you finish it and can be counted on.

I strongly encourage anyone who has taken training to MAKE the time to study and take the exam soon because the longer you wait, the harder the test will be to pass. In three years no employer will care that you took a class three years ago but if you have the certification, it might still be valid. In addition, if your training was paid for by a grant or scholarship, like WIA, you will not get a free ride again so don’t waste it.

Take a moment to remember everything you did to prepare for your last interview. If you spent more time debating your wardrobe than practicing your elevator pitch or preparing interview questions, there might be a reason you didn’t get called back.

These days it takes much more than a nice suit and a smile to impress an employer. It takes thorough preparation. But what does that mean, and how can you streamline your interview preparation time, so you get the maximum benefit from the least amount of time?

First of all, the best time to start preparing for an interview is before you even have one. That means starting now. While some tools are specific to each job posting, if you start familiarizing yourself with the interview process early, you can easily research the company, customize your responses, and craft your reverse interview questions when you get the call.

Don’t know how to get started? Don’t worry; we’ve got you covered.

The Interview Trainer on TheProfessional.me takes the guesswork out of interview prep by breaking down your interview into manageable parts and coaching you through everything from how to answer the most common interview questions to surefire ways to create compelling questions that show off your knowledge and interest.

But it all starts with a simple question.

Tell me about yourself.

Whether you’re in IT, healthcare or just about any other professional industry, this deceptively simple question is often the first thing asked in an interview. Most interviewers make up their minds about potential employees within the first few minutes of the interview, so it’s essential that you knock this question out of the park.

But don’t be confused; employers don’t want to hear about your hobbies, favorite foods, or anything else about you when they ask this question. They also don’t want you to start rehashing your work history. What they really want you to do is summarize your unique value in a way that lets them know what you can do for them.

Luckily, the Elevator Pitch Generator on TheProfessional.me gives all the tools and guidance you need to create the kind of value-based statements that employers are looking for. The tool is free and takes just a few minutes to complete. There’s just no easier way to come up with the perfect answer to what might be your job interview’s hardest question.

No one has all the answers

You’ll never be able to anticipate every question your interviewer will ask, but that’s okay; you don’t have to! The Interview Trainer not only reveals commonly-asked questions for your position, but more importantly, it teaches you how to answer any question quickly and concisely.

The truth is that, when answering a question, most candidates just don’t know when to quit talking. This leads to long, rambling answers that lose your interviewers interest and make you look unprofessional. But by using the STAR Method, focused on in the Interview Trainer, you can quickly formulate answers to many kinds of questions on the fly, including the dreaded behavioral questions (these usually begin by asking you to describe a past experience or situation).

Behavioral questions are the most difficult to answer questions and will require you to be able to think on your feet and tell stories that showcase your accomplishments. The bonus is that practicing this method can make you a better story teller in general, but when you focus on the results of your actions, employers can more easily see you accomplishing things for them.

Ask the right questions

For most, the barrage of questions from the interviewer is the most stressful part of the interview. So when they turn it over to you to ask questions, it’s tempting to just call it a day. But that’d be wasting a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge and commitment to the position by asking a few, well-crafted questions.

While there are several tried-and-true questions that you can ask in any interview, it’s always best to come up with a few yourself. As with all things during the interview, every question you ask should have a way of reinforcing why you are the best candidate for the position. One great way of doing this is to use your research of the company to highlight your own knowledge and value.

When all is said and done, prepare at least six questions for every interview. You might not get to all of them, but this way you’ll have a few options to choose from depending on how the interview progresses. Visit the Interview Trainer for help coming up with unique questions and to find out which questions you should never ask in an interview.

Practice makes almost perfect

The first time you give your elevator pitch or answer an interview question out loud shouldn’t be in the actual interview. Would you perform surgery or try to play a musical instrument after only taking an online class? Of course not! Interviewing is a skill that can be learned but it is complex and takes practice. Make your mistakes during practice with a friend or family member. You can even record your practice with a webcam and play it back to see where you might improve. The more you practice, the better you will get.

It can’t be stressed enough that everything you do and say in your job interview should relate directly to your suitability to the position. Your goal throughout the entire interview is to show your interviewer why you are the best candidate for the job and what you can do for them. This takes more than a nice suit; it takes thorough preparation for all aspects of the interview. 

So don't let another interview opportunity go to waste. Take a few minutes to visit the Interview Trainer on TheProfessional.me and start preparing for your interview the right way. The easy way.