Scottsdale, Arizona: April 25, 2008 -- As an individual hoping to shore up a resume with a designation, or a manager seeking consistency and standardization in a team, look for a certification program that is respected, accessible, and creates real world value.

Respected
Do your homework! Is the certification respected in the industry? Is it referred to as a standard? What happens when you Google the name of the certification? When you search job boards, is it listed in the description for posted positions?

Accessible
Is the certification program easy to find and attend? This is a matter of convenience but it’s even more important if you’re trying to standardize an approach for your department or company. If the plan is to repeatedly rely on this type of certification, make sure the program is affordable and offered in locations that are accessible. Ask how often the examination is given – and how often the content is taught, and where. If the program is too expensive, or offered on a limited basis, it will be hard to stick to any kind of standard.  

Creates Real-World Value
Certification provides the right to use a designation but those three little letters after your name don’t really provide any impact. In order to see value, the certification program has to teach material that matters. It has to provide it in a way that allows understanding and the ability to remember the information. Then, the certification exam simply reflects that level of knowledge. It’s the KNOWLEDGE that provides impact, not the designation itself.

Because it’s the knowledge that really matters, look for a certification program that teaches relevant content. Furthermore, try to ensure the program is taught in a way that really impacts attendees – an approach that makes it easy to understand and retain the core concepts. If the content is complete, taught in an engaging and effective manner, and the exam reflects knowledge of the core content, the certification won’t just be a designation – it will provide real value, and help the person operate with increased effectiveness.

For hiring managers, certification can be really helpful in screening resumes; an appropriate designation is an indicator in hiring, and should be one of many indicators used to screen and hire. Those other indicators are important, because a designation simply doesn’t give the full story. Certification alone cannot answer whether a candidate works well with others or that the tested skills can be converted into action. It can, however, tell if the candidate knows the standards, the processes, and the language. In the end, certification is a filter rather than a guarantee.

Pragmatic Marketing Certified
Pragmatic Marketing, the company that created the industry-standard model for technology product management with the Pragmatic Marketing Framework, reached a milestone last month when the 8,000th person became Pragmatic Marketing Certified.

The Pragmatic Marketing Certified program was introduced in 2005 as a way for Practical Product Management seminar attendees to demonstrate their knowledge of the Pragmatic Marketing Framework and the principles of market-driven product management.

"Being Pragmatic Marketing Certified is regularly seen as a job requirement for product managers and marketers" says Steve Johnson, instructor at Pragmatic Marketing and author of the ProductMarketing.com blog. "When you search job websites like Monster^® or CareerBuilder^®, Pragmatic Marketing's certification is routinely seen as desired at many of today's leading technology companies."

Summary
Attaining a professional designation is a personal achievement that opens doors for career growth. If you are a Product Management professional seeking to broaden opportunities, or a manager seeking consistency in a team, Pragmatic Marketing Certification can help reach those goals.

About Pragmatic Marketing
Twice recognized by Inc. Magazine as one of America's fastest growing private companies, Pragmatic Marketing teaches a practical, market-driven approach to creating and delivering technology products using the Pragmatic Marketing Framework. More than 45,000 product management and marketing professionals in the United States, Australia, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Singapore and South Africa have been trained, with more than 90% of alumni indicating the training as essential or very useful to their careers. More than 8,000 people are Pragmatic Marketing Certified, indicating their knowledge and proficiency with the Pragmatic Marketing Framework.