Prometric Assessment Services - Information Technology Certification – Press Release
Contact:
Donald W. Boucher
Vice President, Global Marketing
Prometric
443.923.8031
donald.boucher@prometric.com
Prometric Releases 2002 Global IT Training and Certification Study
BALTIMORE, MD (February 21, 2003) - Prometric, a part of The Thomson Corporation (NYSE: TOC, TSX: TOC) and the global leader in technology-enabled testing and assessment services, along with its sponsors, has created a partnership of industry leaders to measure attitudes toward and the perceived value of training and certification among IT professionals worldwide. The 2002 Global IT Training and Certification Study confirms that certification has value and the majority of IT professionals plan to continue training and certifying in the next several years.
"Training and certification hold significant value for IT professionals," said Michael Brannick, president and chief executive officer of Prometric. "Understanding how this value is interpreted in the market is critical for identifying the opportunities and confronting the challenges that exist in the certification process. Prometric will continue its role of building strength in the certification industry through focused research and educational projects with our clients, partners and candidates."
Contracted by Prometric and its co-sponsors Cisco Systems, CompTIA, Hewlett Packard and Sun Microsystems, the study was conducted by Thomson Marketing Resources, an independent research organization within the Thomson Corporation, to identify how candidates arrive at the decision to certify, train, prepare for an exam and resulting benefits. The 2002 Global IT Training and Certification Study was designed and conducted in a two-phased approach, including qualitative in-depth interviews and quantitative surveys executed via the Web and the Prometric global test center network. In total, more than 8,000 IT professionals from more than 50 countries participated in the research in the following regions: North America, Latin America, UK, EMEA and Asia/Pacific.
Particularly in a slumping IT economy, the study finds that the most important benefits of certification for candidates are personal in nature. Preparing for and achieving certification can result in a confidence boost as well as perceptions of credibility and competence among colleagues and clients—key means of surviving in an intensely competitive marketplace. With respect to managers, the value of certification lies in its value to the organization.
Thirty-two percent of candidates surveyed and 34 percent of already certified respondents cite credibility as the top reason to seek certification. Candidates in particular are less motivated to seek certification to prepare for a new position (14 percent in 2002 vs. 23 percent in 2001). There was also a shift among already certified respondents, with drops in the importance of increasing compensation (38 percent in 2001 v. 25 percent in 2002), increasing productivity (28 percent in 2001 versus 20 percent in 2002) and finding a job (33 percent in 2001 versus 15 percent in 2002) as reasons to seek certification.
View the complete 2002 Global IT Training and Certification Study online at http://www.prometric.com/PressRoom/KnowledgeCenter/industryResearch.htm.
About The Thomson Corporation and Prometric
The Thomson Corporation (www.thomson.com), with 2001 revenues of $7.2 billion, is a global leader in providing integrated information solutions to business and professional customers. Thomson provides value-added information, software applications and tools to more than 20 million users in the fields of law, tax, accounting, financial services, higher education, reference information, corporate training and assessment, scientific research and healthcare. The Corporation's common shares are listed on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges (NYSE: TOC, TSX: TOC). Its learning businesses and brands serve the needs of individuals, learning institutions, corporations and government agencies with products and services for both traditional and distributed learning.
Prometric (www.prometric.com), a part of The Thomson Corporation, is the global leader in technology-enabled testing and assessment services for information technology certification, academic admissions, and professional licensure and certifications. Prometric delivers standardized tests for more than 300 clients, in more than 25 languages, over the Web or through a global network of testing centers in more than 121 countries. Based in Baltimore, Md., Prometric employs more than 3,000 employees worldwide.
