Takeaways Tech Support

The IT Pro Track at ChannelCon 2019 offered insights (and continuing education units (CEUs)!) on topics including tech support, cloud computing, cybersecurity and more. If you missed out, don’t worry – you’ll have another chance to watch in September during the rebroadcast. In the meantime, check out our five takeaways from the event.
1. The Help Desk as Solutioneers

The first IT Pro Track session featured CompTIA Chief Technology Evangelist James Stanger facilitating a panel on the state of tech support. ImageNet Consulting, LLC, Vice President, Managed IT Services, Juan Fernandez and ITProTV Edutainer Wes Bryan shared their insights and advice for IT pros who work in tech support.

Fernandez and Bryan both talked about how tech support is truly about troubleshooting and helping people.

“I call the help desk solutioneers – they're solving end-user problems,” Fernandez said.

Bryan added to this sentiment, saying that it’s up to IT to help end users understand why security procedures are so important.

“For the average person, when they have the roadblock of multifactor authentication, it can be frustrating,” he said. “Tech support needs to coach people about how to do it and why.”
More Info: comptia cloud essentials salary

Workforce Community Meeting Takeaways

Better thinking comes from diversity of thought, said Channel Futures’ T.C. Doyle, but how do we bring diverse people and thinkers into technology? It starts with undoing some of the traditional hiring practices in IT, according to panel members at the Combined Workforce Communities Meeting. Some legacy companies no longer require a four-year degree for tech jobs and others are relaxing educational requirements overall. “They need people and it’s allowing them to diversify their workforce,” said Carolyn April, senior director of industry analysis at CompTIA.

Adults also need to adjust their thinking on what success means for their kids. It used to be that a four-year degree was necessary to get a job in the workforce, but as times change those expectations need to keep up.

“It’s a shift and a mindset change,” said Aaron Woods, principal consultant at CEX Services LLC. “Let’s look at this as a stepping stone. You can start with certifications. I talk about CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+ as the baseline and then move from there.”
A huge oil company was trying to figure out why their underwater valves intermittently failed deep down in the gulf and spent $1 billion on IoT devices, sensors and new pumps to figure it out, said Doyle. It wasn’t until an oilman talked to a marine biologist that they understood the problem wasn’t with the machinery but bivalve sea creatures messing with the equipment.
More Info: a+ network+ security+ salary

Internet of Things (IoT) and Technical Debt

The current state of the internet of things (IoT) has been at the top of people’s minds. And why wouldn’t it be? Businesses are using IoT more than ever before. Unfortunately, I’ve found that IT and cybersecurity folks are often left out of IoT implementations at key points.

This wasn’t a surprise to me. CompTIA has been researching how IoT devices are being used worldwide for some time, including in the 2019 Trends in Internet of Things study. Many of the discussions I’ve had with IT pros centered around the myriad security issues surrounding IoT and how to resolve them.

These security issues revolve around an unspoken truth: as an industry, we tend to skip certain steps in the development process, hoping to resolve them later. This practice is called technical debt. And like financial debt, it needs to be addressed before it gets out of control – especially when it comes to IoT.
What Is Technical Debt?

Technical debt happens when a device or piece of software is created and a person or organization consciously (or, sometimes, unconsciously) decides to skip certain steps to quickly release some software or piece of hardware.

The idea is that eventually they will pay back that debt. Ever felt a bit burned when you realize that your new, wonderful operating system seems to be more beta quality than production ready? Ever had your operating system or browser fall victim to a security bug that should have been caught? Well, then, you’ve experienced the results of technical debt. It’s happened to all of us.
More Info: jobs you can get with an a+ certification

Get Certified and Get Promoted

IT professionals benefit from getting certified at all different points in their careers. From high school students to career changers and entry-level IT pros to those with a few years under their belt, it’s not unwarranted to ask if investing in an IT certification or two is something they should hold off on until they’ve already made inroads in the field. A recent study by IDC reveals, however, that if you’re on the fence about getting certified, it might work in your favor to snag a cert or two before you land your first IT job. The advantages of CompTIA certifications, it seems, can start on your first day … or earlier!
CompTIA Certifications Can Position You for Promotions

IDC found that IT professionals who get certified before their first IT job get promoted about 23% sooner than those who have not yet been certified – an average of 14 months versus 17 months. And not only do promotions happen sooner for IT pros who have CompTIA certifications when they walk in the door, but there’s also a better chance of them getting promoted. Period.

Within one year of hire, 58% of those who were already certified got promotions, compared to the 53% who got certified once they were on the job. It’s a fairly small variance, but where money and title are concerned, it never hurts to take steps that will position yourself even slightly ahead – if it’s possible and convenient to do so.

Perhaps expectedly, CompTIA certification holders, regardless of when they get certified, are promoted more than IT pros who never get certified. This could be attributed to many factors – some skills based, some confidence based, some owing to IT certifications being necessary for particular job roles.
More Info: comptia a+ careers

How to Choose a Cloud Vendor

Today, what has changed? We are now using our devices, all our devices and appliances for that matter, to connect to applications and data that are stored, well, somewhere else. Today we call that the cloud.

The IT manager has a choice:

1. Call Amazon, Google, Microsoft, IBM or any of the other solution providers and prepare to write a big check.

Or

2. Roll up the sleeves and start asking some serious questions, researching and planning. This will require time, resources, investment and a very serious look at how the business functions.

When choosing option 2, the first question would be, “Why?” That seems like an obvious or over-simplified question to ask administration, basically on the verge of insubordination. But actually, it is spot on.

What are we as an organization looking to gain from the cloud? List out the benefits the company will gain, then begin looking at the drawbacks. At first, it is quick to observe that moving to the cloud means savings that outweigh any possible disadvantage.

But upon further investigation, the analytical IT manager sees otherwise. There are many factors that could cause issue for the organization:
Vendor contracts
Control of cloud services
Privacy
Security
Downtime

This IT manager will begin to seriously look at what solutions are offered by the cloud provider and compare to what the organization is currently doing.

They will ask questions like the following:
How much will software licensing cost versus my desktop licenses over the long run?
What is the cost for processing resources?
What if I go over my limit?
How do I manage user access?
Is there a charge for adding users?
More Info: jobs with a+ certification

Threat Intelligence Platforms

Threat information sharing has long been a hot topic. The idea behind information sharing is fairly simple: after an organization gets attacked and successfully recovers, that organization can then share the solution with everyone else. This way, organizations help strengthen each other.

Information Sharing and Analysis Organizations (ISAOs) and Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs) exist to provide invaluable information like this. These organizations are central resources for gathering and disseminating information about hacker techniques and cybersecurity issues to private and public companies. In fact, CompTIA is now working closely with the cybersecurity community on managing an ISAO. Using information from an ISAC or ISAO helps organizations anticipate attacks and position cybersecurity controls more effectively.

Threat intelligence feeds such as AlienVault OTX, Blocklist.de, URLhaus, and many others, are also available. No matter what organization or threat intelligence feed you choose, it’s up to you to leverage that information as much as possible. After all, wouldn’t it be nice if you could further customize and store information that you receive into your own database?

What IT Skills Are Covered?

CompTIA IT Fundamentals covers the foundations of IT concepts and terminology, infrastructure, cybersecurity, database fundamentals and software development.

CompTIA A+ covers the skills necessary for today’s IT support jobs.

More Info: comptia a+ certification jobs

Trends Affecting the IT Workforce

IT security jobs are predicted to jump 28% from 2016 to 2026, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and three unmistakable trends are shaping the future of tech jobs. It starts with shaking up the way we introduce people to technology careers, said Carolyn April, senior director of industry analysis at CompTIA.

“We also have to educate our kids that getting into technology is not a straight line to working for a technology company,” said April, who studies hiring trends in the IT industry and said the phase-out of the four-year degree is the No. 1 game-changer she sees in the IT workforce.

“The idea that a four-year college degree is not necessary to have a lucrative, worthwhile career has been a big pivot that opens the door for so many people to enter the tech industry,” April said. “We're waking up to realize that there are other means to get educated and get started in this industry.”
Alternatives to Education

April spoke to a packed room during the CompTIA’s Combined Workforce Communities Meeting: The IT Workforce of 2026 with industry thought leaders Sue Krautbauer of Techadox and Aaron Woods of CEX Services. The popular session that looked at trends shaping the IT workforce conversation was hosted by CompTIA’s Advancing Diversity in Technology Community, Advancing Women in Technology Community and Future Leaders Community.
More Info: jobs with comptia a+ certification