The agile methodology is all about flexibility across the business to help ensure alignment, using available resources strategically, and advancing the goals that will drive growth. It’s something which needs to happen across the business, not just in the boardroom. For human resources managers and executive teams adopting the 'agile' mindset means taking a step away from the traditional waterfall approaches to business and project management. One of the shifts happens with hiring.
Certifications can often get a bad rap. You can be sure someone has an argument about why practical experience beats almost every certification out there. So how can you guess what they’ll bring to the table? Or if they’re worth your current employees’ time and company funds?
According some experts there is a clear correlation between advancing education at the tertiary level Then others say they are looking for experience and skills. Agile envisions a realistic balance of the two.
In many industries, qualifications do to be complemented by real-world experience. One thing they all agree on is that it varies according in the specific field and in today’s workforce, it’s becoming more and more critical skills be updated constantly to meet the demands of 21st century technology and lifestyle.
In IT industries like software development or risk analysis, an agile certification which lacks real-world, practical training or testing can be detrimental, not just for the candidates, but for organizations that hire them. Other fields don’t necessarily require the same level of hands-on experience or expert knowledge.
This is not so much of an issue for organisations who are hiring from within where they can provide both theoretical and practical training. But for other organisations, especially those who have made the shift to agile already, a candidate with a strong understanding of its manifesto and its methodologies could be a better fit that someone not versed in the mindset.
When you’re looking at upskilling employees internally and cost is an issue, especially in small or medium sized enterprises, most organisations offer certifications with a money back guarantees or strong refund policies, like the PMI-ACP Certification Training here. Which can be helpful if you find the course is not going to be what’s necessary for your purposes.
Thinking about agile certifications, on a resume, it will obviously show that a candidate has taken time to study the best practices around the methodology, but having developers, managers or even executives, on staff possessing an agile certification, doesn’t necessarily guarantee success of any business or project.
HR professionals looking to employ agile methods in hiring should focus on getting new hires to prove their know-how by asking tough questions, that will show the candidate can 'do agile' in practice, not just in theory. Those who know a candidate has the experience shouldn’t be afraid to provide them the resources to acquire solid knowledge of agile methods to help ease them into a promotion or new project.
