This question often arises when professionals are faced with the expiry date of their hard earned qualification.  They question how much new information will be in the current version of the training material versus the training material they had when they attended the course.

Re-certification has great value for both the professional himself/herself as well as the organisation he/she is working for. Re-certification is not just about learning new things, it is equally important for professionals to keep their current knowledge at the levels required.

“But I work in the data centre every day so I don’t need to be re-trained, I still know everything….” is another argument often heard. 

So how about pilots? Pilots fly every day but they still go over the same old check list even if they have flown the same plane and the same route many times. Pilots undergo regular refresher training, re-examination and re-certification no matter how many flying hours and years of experience they have.  If they don’t have a valid certificate they would not even be allowed to fly. There are plenty of data centres which also have the policy that if personnel doesn’t hold a valid certificate then they are not considered for a data centre job.

If pilots make mistakes, that could lead to fatal accidents and loss of life. If data centre professionals make mistakes, it could lead to fatal business interruption, loss of business and even in some cases loss of life. 

Don’t play with your career, don’t play with your business. Get re-certified!