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RE: "Credentials are so 20th century" - "The degree is doomed" - Harvard Business Review
Subject:RE: "Credentials are so 20th century" - "The degree is doomed" - Harvard Business Review From:Michael Wyland <michael -at- sumptionandwyland -dot- com> To:'techwr-l' <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Mon, 8 Dec 2014 17:34:51 +0000
To all:
The irony, of course, is that what's doomed isn't credentialing. The author is merely identifying a shift towards alternative forms of credentialing and/or alternative credentials.
My consulting partner (also my wife) made this decision fifteen years ago when she eschewed going after her doctorate in favor of seeking licensure as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). Having secured that credential, she proceeded to pass the test to become a Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR), a credential maintained by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM).
The combination if the LPC and SPHR is potent for her executive coaching practice as well as for her organizational leadership consulting with universities, hospitals, and other clients. I'm not sure whether a Ph.D. or Ed.D. would have provided similar professional benefit.
Where I disagree with the article's author is the apparent universality with which the abandonment of certification is treated. In our practice with clients, we are finding that a master's degree is becoming the expected "ticket to entry" for senior management positions in many industries, both for-profit and nonprofit. Anyone under 45 without an advanced degree wishing to rise to the executive level should be looking to obtain one. There are an ever-growing number of accredited schools offering advanced degree (and degree completion) programs to mid-career individuals that allow them to study while still working full time.
My son, on the other hand, just turned 21. He's an auto mechanic working in a new car dealership. He has completed 7 of the 8 tests required for his Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) master mechanic designation, and is about 1/3 of the way through the American Honda master mechanic's training program.
I bug him about finishing both certifications. ASE is entirely in his hands, while Honda is dependent on his employer's ongoing support. I'm old enough to believe that having a certification is better than not having one. In addition to the education and /or skills attainment it represents, certification also represents the accomplishment of completing something and being recognized for it. Employers want people who finish what they start. Entrepreneurs *must* be able to see work through to completion (and payment <g>). More generally, people who can cite accomplishments - to themselves, aside from others - are generally happier than those who cannot.
Michael L. Wyland
Sumption & Wyland
818 South Hawthorne Avenue
Sioux Falls, South Dakota 57104-4537
(605) 336-0244 or (888) 4-SUMPTION
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