CompTIA Blog

Thanksgiving serves as a great reminder of all the things we should be grateful for in our personal and professional lives, and it’s especially true in the IT field. Some of the world’s greatest minds contribute their knowledge and energy to our industry, creating the products and services that solution providers can combine with their own ingenuity to support a variety of business clients.The IT channel is a collaborative community, requiring a number of people, processes and passion to accompl ...

CompTIA started out the month of November with a bang, hosting our Washington, D.C. Fly-In.  With more than 50 advocacy visits made by more than 30 CompTIA members and partners, we certainly delivered to Capitol Hill an important message – that the interests of small and medium sized IT firms must be addressed.As we near the end of November, however, the interests of small IT businesses will have to be seen within a broader context.  At this writing, it appears that the “Super Committee” charged ...

Takeaway of the week is that, ironically, the most secure position in IT seems to be in IT security - or at least its the best chance for better pay around the corner. However, it doesn’t hurt, apparently, to know how to handle big blobs of data using Hadoop. If you’re in the Pacific Northwest then you probably already know you’re in a good place.Security the Best Way To Secure Better Pay Findings from a new salary guide indicate IT professionals working in the security sector can expect the bes ...

Below is a special blog post from Karen Elzey of the Aspen Institute.While the “skills gap” is undoubtedly felt by many of our country’s employers, small and medium-sized businesses in the technology industry especially are scrambling to fill open positions.  This need was highlighted at the recent CompTIA meetings in Washington, D.C., where the executive vice president of Alvaka Networks stated that there are currently 450,000 unfilled IT jobs.  That’s why it’s critical for small and medium-siz ...

Takeaway of the week is that, ironically, the most secure position in IT seems to be in IT security - or at least its the best chance for better pay around the corner. However, it doesn’t hurt, apparently, to know how to handle big blobs of data using Hadoop. If you’re in the Pacific Northwest then you probably already know you’re in a good place.   Security the Best Way To Secure Better Pay Findings from a new salary guide indicate IT professionals working in the security sector can expec ...

In an increasingly “anytime, anywhere” world, healthcare cannot be confined to a doctor’s office or hospital room. As mobile technologies have become more user-friendly, affordable and powerful, the appeal to businesses of all types, including healthcare providers, grows exponentially. New devices, new form factors, new apps and new methods of connectivity have pushed mHealth to the forefront of IT industry trends.CompTIA’s 3rd Annual HIT Insights and Opportunities study found one in four health ...

According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), more than 100,000 primary care providers have adopted electronic health records through their local Regional Extension Center (REC).  Thirty-eight percent of these providers are from small practices.There are currently 62 RECs throughout the country and they have received $677 million of funding from the HHS.  According to the Office of National Coordinator, the goals of the RECs “include outreach and education, EHR support (e.g., w ...

Managed services and the cloud are a reality that every solution provider has to deal with, whether offering them as part of their portfolio or competing against them in their markets. There is no way around it; the IT channel business model has shifted. This revelation isn’t news to solution providers, but several recent industry announcements serve to reinforce its premise, including the new cloud approach from CA. As noted in Channel Insider, the company built on physical software is making a ...

For those who have been following the roller coaster ride of whether comprehensive cybersecurity reform will be accomplished this legislative session, there have been some interesting developments that took place within the last 24 hours.Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sent a letter yesterday informing Minority Leader Mitch McConnell that cybersecurity legislation will be introduced after the December recess. This letter prompted a reply letter from Sen. McConnell advising Sen. Reid to introdu ...

Professionals in the IT industry are traditionally more likely to put their faith in cold, hard facts. When it comes to the not-quite-age-old, but-getting-there question of the industry certifications’ true value, numbers, more and more, back up the claims of proponents of accreditation. In a new survey of 700 IT professionals, nearly three-quarters of the respondents credit their certifications for promotions, new jobs and other career benefits. In addition, 40 percent of those queried i ...

How securely are you using your smartphones or network-enabled tablets? CompTIA reached out to industry experts for their top personal best practices for mobile device security, and here’s the resulting checklist: 1) Password-protect your device. This was the starting rule for all experts CompTIA contacted. “Passwords matter a lot,” said Rebecca Lawson, director of WW Enterprise Security Solutions for HP Enterprise Business. “You need to use them.” 2) Lock your phone when it’s not in use. “ ...

A look at the week of November 14 in public advocacy for the IT channel: This week, Janet Napolitano, secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, authored an op-ed citing the urgent need for cyber legislation.  A bipartisan group of senators has introduced a bill allowing states to collect sales tax on online purchases.  The Institute of Medicine released a report recommending the creation of an independent federal entity to monitor effects of health IT.Ramping Up U.S. Cybersecurity; Op-Ed ...

Early in 2011, CompTIA issued a challenge to all of the member communities:  identify an IT related charity to support with a donation of $5000.The EMEA ITSS community adopted Close the Gap, a UN Global Alliance partner based in Brussels that helps bridge the digital divide by offering cost-efficient high-quality used IT-equipment to projects in developing countries.Close the Gap follows a five-step process to ensure the integrity of the program: Material donation, Material reconditioning, Benef ...

IT Outsourcing: Economic Slide Could Produce Upside for Providers Despite a decline in the IT outsourcing market recently, a possible double dip economic downturn could spell good news for outsourcing providers in the near future. So says findings from the latest quarterly report by outsourcing firm Everest Group, as reported in CIO this week. For the first time in the past year, activity within the global outsourcing market, for both IT and business processes (BPO), dropped, according to t ...

In my previous blog I wrote about managing your costs to increase profitability and the value of your IT business. Let’s change gears and talk about something else that is related to value, but is more difficult to measure than sales and profits. I’m talking about risk. Risk refers to stability of earnings and diversity of products, services and markets. Investors in the stock market fully understand that companies with lower risk factors are generally worth more. But how does this apply to a pr ...