Yesterday I had the privilege of attending the global launch of the HP Institute Program at the Science Museum in London. The sun was shining, we had our first and probably last day of summer, and I was surrounded by innovation and examples of what we can achieve if we come together as one.

Employability, skills gap, finding the right talent to match an organisation's needs are at the top of everyone's agenda in today's fast moving connected world; and the time is right for IT vendors to connect with governments, trade associations and education establishments to collaborate and make a difference for the good of all.

New HP Networking guest blog by Rebekah Harvey, Director, Learning Product Management (AKA CertDoctor)

It’s a natural progression—our careers (and lives) start with a cloudy focus and a foot-on-the-ground novice perspective.  As we learn and grow, we see the need to adopt wider and deeper perspectives and capabilities.

What do a major city in Austria and an IT-industry certification program have in common?  Besides both playing a role in HP’s Discover 2011, there are some other intriguing similarities.

HP DISCOVER – Vienna is THE place to be, 29 November-1 December.  While you’re there “discovering” HP, discover ExpertONE.

I’m just now getting caught up after my busy week at VMworld 2011. What a great event! I spent much of my time in the HP booth, talking and networking and spreading the word about HP ExpertONE.  I found there were a lot of people who weren’t familiar with the name “ExpertONE.” Oh, sure, they knew about the HP Certified Professional program, but ExpertONE was new to them.

Earlier this week we talked about how the expertise gap ["Don't let an expertise gap hold you back"] is holding some companies back from deriving the highest value from virtualization and, more specifically, a converged infrastructure. In fact, a 2010 IDC survey of CIOs says that a “lack of staff skills” is one of the top challenges to moving to converged computing. HP ExpertONE aims to solve that challenge with a comprehensive training and certification portfolio covering virtualization and the HP Converged Infrastructure.

Hiring managers tend to use the phrase “skills gap” when they explain their plight of not being able to hire people with precisely the right qualifications. I use the word “expertise” instead of “skills” to imply that there’s more to being an IT expert than merely having technical skills. “Expertise” not only includes having practical hands-on experience with the technologies and solutions that are in play today, such as virtualization and converged infrastructure, but it also means that you have access to additional knowledge content and other experts, such as solutions architects and product engineers, so that you can pick their brains and absorb some of their knowledge just when you need it most.

So, I almost titled this blog “These boots were made for walkin’” but decided you all didn’t need a mental image of thigh-high go-go boots as my final send-off to HP DISCOVER—although with the multiple “Elvi” (thanks @matthewnorwood for THAT little nugget) and Marilyn Monroe’s running around, I guess go-go boots are not too far off the mark—it is Vegas after all!  But back to my point…(I did have one when I started this?)

Now I remember…

HP DISCOVER has been an amazing week for me and I hope for a lot of other people as well.  I’ve met some of the smartest, most creative people this week.  On the DISCOVER ZONE floor, I met a lot of people who are passionate about HP and our products and a few people who are ambivalent about our products.  I met people who know a lot about the ExpertONE program and who hold multiple certifications and I met people who had never heard of the program.  It was a pleasure to meet them all. 

I can’t believe it’s Thursday already!  This week has been a mad dash blur of listening to keynotes, attending sessions, and meeting with ExpertONE certified professionals.   

On Tuesday, I had the pleasure of sitting down and talking about the ExpertONE program with some of the bloggers who are here. Thomas Jones (@Niketown588 ) and I even had a chance to talk about the program on camera.  http://www.niketown588.com/2011/06/interviewing-rebekah-harvey-phd-at.html

So here’s a big shout out to Thomas for letting me share our story with his viewers.  Thanks, Thomas! 

Tuesday night’s “TweetUp” was a lot of fun, as was the Triple Crown Event for ExpertONE, Connect, and Vivit members.  “That’s Our Susan” won the fourth race at the Triple Crown, which of course made my boss, Susan Underhill, feel pretty good. 

On Wednesday I got to meet a number of ExpertONE Master certified professionals at the MASE luncheon.  Rich Gossman did a great job of challenging the group to tell more customers about the ExpertONE program and the benefits that it provides to customers (like lower costs, faster time to implementation, higher ROI, etc.).   We also had an opportunity to recognize the first group of Master ASE Converged Infrastructure Architects at the luncheon.  If you want to know more about the Converged Infrastructure MASE, click here.

Forgive the somewhat chronological summary of events thus far, but I can’t come up with a more compelling hook right now—I think I’m starting to hit that wall where I’ve consumed so much new information that my virtual memory is running low. 

This is a very exciting time to be with HP.

It hasn’t been quite a year yet since I joined HP, so this is my first time to attend the big customer conference, HP DISCOVER. I am in awe as I look around at the ten thousand or so people who came to Las Vegas to learn about the future of computing. Then again, I’m not surprised that so many people are here to see for themselves how HP is changing the IT industry.

If I had to pick a single word to describe the theme of the conference content, it would definitely be “convergence.” In Tuesday morning’s general session, Dave Donatelli presented the CI products that were announced Monday and followed that with a detailed explanation of our end to end product strategy. 

As I think about all of this technology convergence, I am reminded that there’s more to the successful deployment of business solutions than just great technology. People are also a critical component. More specifically, companies need people with the right expertise to work with new solutions such as HP VirtualSystem, HP CloudSystem and HP AppSystem. As it happens, there are about two thousand members of HP ExpertONE here at HP DISCOVER who are learning about these technologies and how to turn them into great business solutions for HP customers.

HP’s Converged Infrastructure and CloudSystem strategies will change the way our customers think about how to implement these technologies in their IT organizations to support their business. As more and more customers want these technologies in their environments, the need for ExpertONE professionals with the right skills and knowledge will only continue to grow. There’s plenty of opportunity for everyone. Even if you aren’t here in Vegas getting your first taste of these newest HP products, we encourage you to join the ExpertONE community and start building your expertise—you’re going to need it.

Greetings from HP DISCOVER and sunny Las Vegas (not that you would know it was sunny outside if you’ve spent much time in sessions.)

So I’ve become a little obsessed with the TV show Cash Cab in the past few months…so as I’m wandering through the DISCOVER Zone early this morning, the dark interior of the DISCOVER Zone floor and the vibrantly colored pillars reminded me for some odd reason of the flashing lights on the cab ceiling in the game.  Besides the obvious differences—we’re not in a cab, for instance, and this isn’t a game show, it’s real-life, the only major difference between HP DISCOVER and Cash Cab is that the answer to every question here is the same.

What is the only company to provide single pane of glass management for servers, storage and networking?  Answer.  HP.  Check out more information about IMC at the DISCOVER e-collateral site.

What is the only company to provide a converged infrastructure AND the physical room or “pod” from which to run it?  Answer. HP.  http://siliconangle.tv/ Watch Jim Ganthier’s discussion to learn more about the EcoPod.

What is the only company to provide a completely open, innovative approach to Cloud that has been seriously lacking in the IT industry?  Answer.  HP. Check out more information about HP CloudSystem at the DISCOVER e-collateral site.

Sometimes I really am in awe that I get to work for a company that has such an amazing presence and does so many different things to help customers innovate and grow!

This week at HP DISCOVER, we’re honoring our first “class” of HP Master ASE – Converged Infrastructure Architects. But before the certification officially existed, we had a beta program in which we tested the training, the proctored exam, and the board review exam. HP presales consultant Russ Wagner was one of our beta testers, and I caught up with him the other day to ask him about his experience in trying out the new certification.

Russ is part of the Solutions Architect team for HP in North America. His job is to talk to the executive ranks of HP customers about their enterprise architecture and how HP can help them transform their IT operations toward cloud computing. He has held his current position for about two years, but he has more than 25 years of experience in the IT field.

Given his role and his experience level, he is an ideal candidate for the Converged Infrastructure Architect certification—and that’s precisely why we asked him to beta test our new Architect level certification process. You see, this is the first time HP has used a board review process to evaluate a candidate’s expertise, and we wanted to make sure we have it right.

Russ told me there were two reasons why he was personally interested in the Converged Infrastructure Architect certification. First, he wanted to solidify his professional pedigree—to show that he has proven himself in a program that recognizes quality skills and knowledge. He says the “master” word in the certification’s title is very important in the technology field. His customers can see he has reached the pinnacle of his profession.

The second reason he wanted to earn the certification was to keep his HP training current and accurate and aligned with where the company is going. As a presales consultant representing Hewlett-Packard, Russ says it’s important that he show channel partners that HP employees value this certification. He is leading by example.

You may have heard about the HP Converged Infrastructure Maturity Model. We call it CI MM. It’s a model that helps a company assess its current and desired future state of its data center. Russ helped develop some of the training for this maturity model. When he attended his annual sales conference last year and saw that the ExpertONE team was beta testing the training for the Converged Infrastructure Architect certification, he thought he’d audit the course and see what value it has to offer. Turns out he got a lot out of sitting in on that course. He told me it was “essential for his professional development.”  This comes from a guy that helped develop CI training for others. If he found the ExpertONE course to be so valuable, that tells me we packed some really good stuff into our certification training.

To prepare for the CI Architect board review exam, Russ reviewed the materials from our course as well as materials he had used with customers when he was doing CI MM engagements. This little bit of preparation – combined with his actual field experience – gave him the confidence to head into the board review exam.

Here are his exact words about the board review: “It replicated the customer experience so well that I actually got lost in the experience, feeling like I was actually standing in front of customers giving a customer briefing. I had to remind myself that these people were my peers and associates and not real customers.” Now, it makes my heart soar to hear that. It tells me that those of us who built the certification process really got it right.

I asked Russ what advice he might offer to future candidates for the Master ASE – Converged Infrastructure Architect certification and he offered up a few tips:

• Come into the board review process with the perspective of offering a business solution for the customer and not a product pitch or roadmap. You need to analyze the case study to understand the challenge the customer is facing and how this can be addressed with a comprehensive solution.

• Understand that the members of the review board aren’t going to interact with you like a real customer would. The review process has to be standard for every candidate that goes through the process, so the judges aren’t going to guide the candidate toward a right answer. The judges’ stoicism is different from a real customer environment, but it’s a necessary part of the judgment process.

Russ now carries the title of Master ASE – Converged Infrastructure Architect. Modest guy that he is, he has just started promoting himself with that title. He said it’s important that customers know the caliber of his expertise when he begins an engagement with them.

Wouldn’t you, too, like to hold this title to prove your professional pedigree? Learn more about it at http://www.hp.com/certification/data_card/HP_MASE_Converged_Infrastructure_Architect_2011.html

Yes, I work in a major corporation and I intentionally chose the word, “problem” for my title.  It’s not a “challenge” or an “opportunity.” It’s a problem. I’m talking about the HP Certification and Learning Product Management team’s new “accelerated” training for several of our ExpertONE ASE and MASE-level networking courses. Here’s the problem…and how we can solve it.

Hi,

I’m looking forward to seeing you in Las Vegas next month at HP Discover!  We have been busy planning a wide range of sessions, events and activities to ensure you get the most out of this year’s conference.

HP ExpertONE will have a big presence at the upcoming HP DISCOVER conference in Las Vegas. Our members will be at least a quarter, and possibly a third, of the total audience. That shows that ExpertONE members are truly interested in staying on top of the latest HP technologies and solutions.

Did you know that ExpertONE is hosting an onsite certification testing center during the entire week of the conference? Even better, we’re giving you the opportunity to take up to five proctored exams (HP0 exams) at no cost to you. Since this type of exam normally costs $175 in the U.S., you can save up to $875 by taking your certification exams at the HP DISCOVER conference.

All of our HP0 exams will be available for the taking. A preliminary list of the exams is posted on the DISCOVER website, and we’ll update the list as we get closer to the conference.

There are a couple of things to keep in mind about taking an exam onsite in Las Vegas:

• You must have an HP Learner ID in order to register for and take an exam. Go here to learn how to get a Learner ID, or how to retrieve your existing ID if you have forgotten it. We cannot issue learner IDs onsite, so be sure to request yours no later than the end of May.
• You will need to register for each exam you want to take at DISCOVER. Registration will open in May and the information about it will be posted on the DISCOVER website.
• The testing center will be open Monday through Friday during DISCOVER. See the hours of operation here. The last test of the day will be administered one hour before the center’s closing time.
• Seating is on a first come, first served basis. Be aware that the testing center can get very busy during popular times.

If you have any questions about the certification testing, send us an email at certification.americas@hp.com.

Taking a certification exam (or a couple of exams) is a great way to add value to your trip to HP DISCOVER. Save yourself the cost of the exam, and come home with a new certification to boost your career. And, if you become a first-time ExpertONE Certified Professional during the conference, you’ll get all the special privileges afforded to our CPs at HP DISCOVER. (Haven’t you always wanted to give that ExpertONE Prize Wheel a spin?)

We hope to see you in Las Vegas!

There’s an ethnic restaurant in Houston, Texas, that has some pretty interesting choices on the menu. At first glance, you might not recognize the foods. Would you order bigos? How about pierogis, or maybe a nice paczki for dessert? Confused? What if I explained that these foods are simply hunter’s stew (bigos), a dumpling (pierogi), and a donut (paczki)? Oh, yes, much better! Once you recognize what something is – even if it goes by another name – it’s familiar and you feel comfortable with it.

The same can be said for HP DISCOVER Las Vegas. The name is new, but it’s really your annual technical training conference previously known as HP Technology Forum. HP rebranded the event with a new name this year because HP DISCOVER  also incorporates two other training events: HP Software Universe and Technology@Work. Because there is considerable overlap in the content presented at these events, especially in the keynote addresses, HP decided to pull them all together into one “big tent” conference. This gives you the opportunity to “cross over” to new content not previously available to you.

Rest assured that everything you’ve come to know about the high quality of technical training offered at HP Technology Forum – included the acclaimed hands-on labs – will be at HP DISCOVER Las Vegas. There will simply be more choices for you. Now HP is offering more than 800 breakout sessions, including 55 unique hands-on lab topics. The sessions span every topic about HP products and solutions from the hand, to the desktop, to the data center, and everything in between. Of course, a big focus this year is on cloud computing and the converged data center—two of the hottest technical topics on the planet right now. You need to get up to speed on these topics for sure.

As usual, we’ll have special amenities for our ExpertONE certified professionals, like the hospitality suite, a general session, onsite certification testing, social activities, CP-only non-disclosure discussions, and more.

Don’t be confused by the name; HP DISCOVER Las Vegas is your technical training event. Get registered now so you can choose your hands-on labs and preferred technical sessions before they fill up.

Staying on top of the ever-evolving IT world is a constant challenge for today’s IT professionals.  You need to prepare for tomorrow’s opportunities today.  We have training to keep your skills current, relevant and prepare you for real-world scenarios.

 2011 Las Vegas Session Catalog 

In my last blog post, we discussed how the path to making your more network security begins with well-educated security professionals. Here, I continue my discussion with Eric Holton, technical marketing engineer, and John Trollinger, product marketing manager, for HP’s Firewall Technologies, to learn more about what your company should do to strengthen network security.

What I know about network security is pretty much limited to the error message I sometimes get that goes something like this: You cannot do [whatever it is you’re trying to do]. This may be due to firewall restrictions or network problems. That’s why I decided to talk to a couple of my colleagues about network security and the role of security certifications in educating security professionals.

Boy have we been busy since the holidays!  It’s been almost a month since I contributed to our community site – my apologies.  However, it’s not because we haven’t been busy!

How can we keep in touch without clogging up your inbox?

Check out my latest blog on the HP Networking site...

http://h30507.www3.hp.com/t5/HP-Networking/What-does-perfume-have-to-do-with-networking/ba-p/86805

I am working on highlighting our offerings to help IT Professionals accelerate their skills development in support of both their career progression and in meeting the needs of their Customers.

I think fast track is a positive phrase to capture in essence what we are trying to achieve with the program, but are there some potential negative connotations? Past offerings from training providers using naming such as bootcamp and Industry terms such as accelerated learning can lead to an impression of short cutting the learning experience and potentially achieving a “paper” qualification or certification. Quality may be in question and could impact the currency or worth of the achievement. This is not something I want to convey as I believe fast tracking a candidate through a learning program recognises their skills and previous experience, building on a foundation that already exists.

I’m running a little research and analysis to help understand the sentiment behind the term, I’ll post the results when I have them. Early signs look good.

Should I spin it up! Perhaps use naming like Fastrack or FastTRACK or ExpertTRACK? Not so sure. There was a series of very successful adverts in the UK for a paint and varnish company that used very plain English in describing their product and they ended with “it does exactly what it says on the tin”. So my current thinking is if the term Fast Track is widely accepted and acknowledged in the IT industry I’ll use it.

What do you think?

Unlike the Publishers’ Clearinghouse, the administrators of the Certification Clearinghouse won’t show up on your doorstep with a check for ten million dollars. However, you’ll still find plenty of good reasons to give the Certification Clearinghouse a try.

For a few crazy days before the launch of HP ExpertONE in October, my HP Certification & Learning team spent many hours talking to every member of the press and analyst community who would give us the time of day. One of the guys we spent some time with is Wendell Odom, a key blogger for the Network World Cisco Subnet blog.  I’ll admit that we were nervous about talking to Wendell because of his deeply detailed knowledge of Cisco networking certifications and his strong allegiance to Cisco.

First, my apologies for the delayed post; despite my best intentions I just haven’t been able to get this blog out the door this week.  Second, apologies to my international friends for the “Thanksgiving” theme of this post.  Since gratitude is not bound by geography, I hope you won’t mind indulging me.

For the past 10 days I’ve been traveling in EMEA and attending our HP Enterprise Technology & Solutions Summit for HP Channel Partners Certified Professionals.    Last week I was in London and this week I’ve made my way to Frankfurt.  The ETSS event format is technical, incorporating for the first time a set of solution sessions with focus on Cloud, TCO/ROI, Converged Infrastructure strategy, and solutions with our partners such as SAP, Oracle, MS, SWD solutions (virtualization, consolidation), and information management.  The sessions cover the HP ESSN portfolio with particular focus on business value, demo’s, labs and hands-on experience.

Although it’s been a LONG time since I attended preschool, I still remember my very favorite thing—the sharing circle.  I think I talked my parents into buying me a toy train, because a boy in my class brought his train for our “sharing circle.”  Come to think of it, I believe that’s how I also talked them into buying me a pet rat, a pet fish, and a pet rock.  Pet rock aside, my point is that a lot of good things can come into one’s life through sharing.

As someone who has been involved with nine acquisitions and mergers throughout my career, I recognize the feeling you get when an acquisition is completed.  First, comes a brief moment of elation, followed by the stark realization that although it may look a bit different from today, tomorrow is just another day.