CompTIA offers a wide range of products that help individuals get started in technology. But to meet the growing demand for technical expertise in various industries, the CompTIA product portfolio is expanding to include advanced IT certifications and learning resources aimed toward expert-level technology specialists – the CompTIA Xpert Series.
The Progression of Technology Careers
Before we dive into CompTIA’s newest suite of certifications, let’s first take a step back and understand the typical progression of tech careers.
In an episode of CompTIA Volley, Teresa Sears, vice president of product management, CompTIA, talks about how the progression of acquiring and developing technical skills can be represented by a pyramid.
At the base of the pyramid is digital and career literacy where the focus is gaining a foundational understanding of different technologies. After the fundamentals are learned, individuals will work toward digital fluency, which builds additional skills and knowledge on top of the fundamental skills they already have.
“If a digitally literate person is a fairly capable end user, someone who is digitally fluent might start creating things at that level that can be used in their day-to-day work, or even in their personal lives,” Sears said.
Moving up the pyramid, the next layer is tech employability, where aspiring IT pros learn the skills needed for technical roles. This is where CompTIA certifications come in, to prepare individuals for an early-career role and prove to employers that they have the right skills for the job.
At the top of the pyramid is where expert tech pros fall, where a deep level of technical expertise is needed across multiple different IT functions. This layer of the pyramid shifts the focus from day-to-day tasks to the broader skill set and decision-making responsibilities that are vital to a business's success but might not be conducted frequently. To help mid-career professionals advance to this stage, CompTIA has introduced the Xpert Series certifications.
What Is the CompTIA Xpert Series?
The CompTIA Xpert Series, launching in 2024, is comprised of advanced-level certifications designed for IT pros with multiple years of work experience who are interested in validating their expert-level knowledge of business-critical technologies.
The first set of CompTIA Xpert Series certifications will include CompTIA DataX, CompTIA CloudNetX and CompTIA SecurityX.
Aside from validating technical skills, tech pros who earn a CompTIA Xpert Series certification will be able to lead discussions on the impact of emerging technologies on the business, implement advanced technology solutions and leverage deep specialization as a trusted advisor. For each exam, candidates will be evaluated on three components of expertise:
- Technical expertise in one or more well-defined areas
- Broad expertise in adjacent areas
- Business acumen
CompTIA DataX
As an advanced-level data science certification, CompTIA DataX will:
- Validate the understanding of data, the ability to leverage data trends and AI to make predictions, and the ability to communicate those predictions to stakeholders
- Be designed around the tasks performed by a senior data scientist
- Be a natural progression from the job roles aligned to CompTIA Data+
CompTIA CloudNetX
CompTIA CloudNetX is an advanced networking certification that will:
- Validate skills in advanced network and system architecture for designing and managing complex, hybrid, IT infrastructures
- Be designed around the tasks performed by a network architect, infrastructure architect, enterprise architect and cloud architect
- Be a natural progression for the job roles aligned to CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA Cloud+
CompTIA SecurityX
As the evolution of CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+), CompTIA SecurityX will:
- Validate job tasks performed by a security professional with 10 years of IT experience and five years of security experience
- Be designed around the tasks performed by senior security engineer and security architect roles
- Be a natural progression from the job roles aligned to CompTIA Security+
Benefits of Earning a CompTIA Xpert Series Certification
Earning a CompTIA Xpert Series certification can open up a wide range of opportunities for career advancement. Not only can it help you stand out in the competitive job market and increase your earning potential, but it also allows you to showcase your technical expertise and commitment to professional growth. Whether you're looking to move into a senior-level role or aiming to broaden your skill set, the CompTIA Xpert Series certifications can provide you with the tools you need to achieve your career goals.
Take Your Career to the Next Level
As organizations seek to align strategic plans with business objectives, the importance of certification programs becomes more evident. Expert-level credentials, like the CompTIA Xpert Series, play a vital role in validating the advanced skills that seasoned IT professionals need to drive technology initiatives and contribute to business success.
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