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Having hired many folks for cloud engineering positions we never hired anyone with a certification. Experience was a better predictor of success. What is it yo

Having hired many folks for cloud engineering positions we never hired anyone with a certification. Experience was a better predictor of success. What is it you want to do? is the certification the best path to reach that goal?

meragrin_ 5y ago
If you never hired anyone with a certification, how do you know experience was a better predictor of success?
- brodouevencode 5y ago
  You can usually tell in the interview process.
  - jugg1es 5y ago
    I'm surprised to see you get some downvotes for your comment. That's what the interview process is for - to determine one's skillset. You can definitely tell if someone has solid hands-on experience in an interview.
    - brodouevencode 5y ago
      Social sites frequently suffer from "I don't agree with you but I'm too lazy to write a rebuttal or work to clarify the nuance so, here, you get a downvote". HN is no exception. Besides, I'm not too concerned about internet points - my life has fulfillment outside of what strangers think of me.
      - jugg1es 5y ago
        To prove your point, I was also downvoted for my non-confrontational, accurate and benign comment. I guess people don't like that interviews are intended to evaluate ones' potential at a particular job.
NicoJuicy 5y ago
It's a benefit that my employer pays for it, but they don't require it anywhere internally. So why not take advantage of it.
ipaddr 5y ago
How could experience be a better predictor of success when you never hired someone with a certificate?
- jodrellblank 5y ago
  A better predictor of successful hiring. :|
maxk42 5y ago
Going to jump in since you're being downvoted for answering honestly. I've interviewed hundreds of people over the past 6 years and hired dozens. Certificates have NEVER been a strong indicator of skill in my experience and I generally disregard them when looking at applicants. I give every applicant a very basic fizzbuzz-style test when hiring. You'd be surprised how many people claim to have 10+ or 20+ years of experience, a CS degree, and 3+ certifications and can't answer a question you should be able to master after reading only the first 2 - 3 chapters of an introductory programming book for. I hired a director of DevOps just eight months ago and I couldn't tell you whether or not he had any certifications. I did, however, explain to him the challenges we were facing and he immediately came up with a solution no other applicants had even mentioned previously. We made an offer the same week. If you want to work for a company that values certification then I suppose try getting a certification. If you want to work at a company that values your contribution then learn to master your craft: no certification necessary!
- Spooky23 5y ago
  For hiring, certification isn’t very important IMO. For consultants, it’s critical, especially if you buy consultants through procurement processes, because it helps filter out the shitty companies that will train new folks on your dime.
Aduket 5y ago
> Having hired many folks, we never hired anyone with a certification that means you are biased against certifications. the probability of not interviewing any candidates those having certifications along with the experience/skillset you look for is next to 0. certifications aren't only for juniors, many seniors also take them because it a proper and short way to refresh your knowledge and the challenge of these exams is just fun!

meragrin_ 5y ago

If you never hired anyone with a certification, how do you know experience was a better predictor of success?

brodouevencode 5y ago
You can usually tell in the interview process.
- jugg1es 5y ago
  I'm surprised to see you get some downvotes for your comment. That's what the interview process is for - to determine one's skillset. You can definitely tell if someone has solid hands-on experience in an interview.
  - brodouevencode 5y ago
    Social sites frequently suffer from "I don't agree with you but I'm too lazy to write a rebuttal or work to clarify the nuance so, here, you get a downvote". HN is no exception. Besides, I'm not too concerned about internet points - my life has fulfillment outside of what strangers think of me.
    - jugg1es 5y ago
      To prove your point, I was also downvoted for my non-confrontational, accurate and benign comment. I guess people don't like that interviews are intended to evaluate ones' potential at a particular job.

NicoJuicy 5y ago

It's a benefit that my employer pays for it, but they don't require it anywhere internally. So why not take advantage of it.

ipaddr 5y ago

How could experience be a better predictor of success when you never hired someone with a certificate?

jodrellblank 5y ago
A better predictor of successful hiring. :|

maxk42 5y ago

Going to jump in since you're being downvoted for answering honestly. I've interviewed hundreds of people over the past 6 years and hired dozens. Certificates have NEVER been a strong indicator of skill in my experience and I generally disregard them when looking at applicants. I give every applicant a very basic fizzbuzz-style test when hiring. You'd be surprised how many people claim to have 10+ or 20+ years of experience, a CS degree, and 3+ certifications and can't answer a question you should be able to master after reading only the first 2 - 3 chapters of an introductory programming book for. I hired a director of DevOps just eight months ago and I couldn't tell you whether or not he had any certifications. I did, however, explain to him the challenges we were facing and he immediately came up with a solution no other applicants had even mentioned previously. We made an offer the same week. If you want to work for a company that values certification then I suppose try getting a certification. If you want to work at a company that values your contribution then learn to master your craft: no certification necessary!

Spooky23 5y ago
For hiring, certification isn’t very important IMO. For consultants, it’s critical, especially if you buy consultants through procurement processes, because it helps filter out the shitty companies that will train new folks on your dime.

Aduket 5y ago

> Having hired many folks, we never hired anyone with a certification that means you are biased against certifications. the probability of not interviewing any candidates those having certifications along with the experience/skillset you look for is next to 0. certifications aren't only for juniors, many seniors also take them because it a proper and short way to refresh your knowledge and the challenge of these exams is just fun!