How Agile Certifications help an Individual in Career Path

Often, people have a very vague idea of what Agile is and how it is implemented. For many professionals, Agile simply means more freedom, less or no documentation and changing plans as and when desired. This is a very bad interpretation of what Agile actually is, and in fact creates a negative impression due to which many of them stop short of embracing Agile.

Agile certifications are a very good way to gauge an individual’s knowledge of what Agile really is and how Agile Principles are implemented across different scenarios. It is very important for an individual to participate in a good training session ahead of any Agile certification e.g. PMI-ACP™ by PMI, Scrum Master Certification (SMC™)by SCRUMstudy, The Agile Project Management™ (AgilePM®) certification by APMG etc.

These certifications prove to be invaluable in an individual’s career growth because they prove to be indicators that the certified person is well equipped with knowledge and practical experience of Agile implementation. It further proves that the individual is well equipped with different Agile tools and techniques to be able to properly manoeuvre an Agile project in the right direction. Also, the fact that Agile is a relatively new concept with lots of dynamics involved, and many additions happen in this adaptable methodology. So, even if a person has worked in an Agile environment before, still he/she might not be aware of the new concepts evolved recently. Also, for example, an individual might be working in a TDD or Kanban environment, but he/she might not be aware of Scrum or XP principles, also all of them are considered Agile. Hence, a training of Agile certification really helps an individual to get a bird’s eye view of all the different Agile Methodologies. Also, different case studies pertaining to various scenarios augments the learning experience overall, and their viewpoint is also broadened immensely. Another benefit of Agile certifications is that they help an individual switch verticals and work in some other domain. Normally, companies are reluctant to hire people from different domains. But Agile certifications help cut through that barrier in an effective manner. If the requirement in some other domain requires Agile implementation, companies are ready to hire professionals from other domains also.

In a nutshell, Agile certifications help an individual gain mileage in terms of knowledge as well as a greater pedigree in the work environment.