The Value of Certification

I am often asked “what is the value of certification?” Simply put, certification holds the most value when there is a lot to gain or a lot to lose. This can fall into several categories—money, time, equipment, contracts, or even lives. iNARTE certification provides benefits to both the individuals that get certified and their organizations. The iNARTE multi-tier certification program—with it’s new ongoing requirements—helps both individuals and organizations break through to the next level, providing an internationally-recognized competitive advantage. Professional certification through iNARTE formally confirms the individual’s engineering qualifications in specialized areas. iNARTE represents and promotes the professional interest and needs of certified individuals, promotes the industry as a whole, and advocates competency and professionalism in the engineering field.

From the perspective of the certified individual (engineer and/or technician/practitioner), iNARTE certification provides several advantages in the competitive in job market:

It provides a recognized credential in lieu of licensure where no such licensure requirements exist

It offers the transportability of a nationally and internationally-recognized certification program

The robust certification methodology provides a measurable level of expertise and quality that provides proof of technical competency

The credibility of iNARTE certification has prompted many communications, transportation, utility, and manufacturing corporations as well as government and military, to mandate or prefer iNARTE certification as a pre-requisite to employment

It promotes the recognition of spectrum management engineering as a specific discipline—distinct from other engineering disciplines—with opportunities for growth within the discipline from technician/practitioner to engineer

For the engineer’s ongoing career, it establishes the individual as a top performer in the industry, judged against an international standard of excellence. It is thus an advantage for technical and positional advancement within the organization. Maintaining iNARTE certification provides evidence of dedication to remaining current in this field of expertise.

It provides professional credentials technical for personnel who may be required to provide expert testimony in courts cases, etc

It offers the certified individual a document attesting to his/her credentials

From the perspective of the high-tech organization that employs iNARTE certified professionals, there is the reality that technical risks related to EMC, ESD, and product safety cannot be prevented and solved by technology alone:

Professional expertise applied to complex technology is the key success factor for assuring product quality, safety, compliance, and limitations of liability

Certification provides the means of identifying the most knowledgeable and capable engineers and technicians—particularly when it is a prerequisite to certain job assignments

iNARTE provides an independent, non-product-based competency credential. Assignment of certified individuals increases the likelihood of a successful procurement or project.

increased the acceptability of product testing results by customers.

Proof of technical competency encourages customer confidence in a company’s dedication to excellence.

Overall, having certified staff enhances the public image of the company and its technical personnel and enhances the marketing power and prestige of companies providing design and testing services to government and industry

Aside from market and regulatory benefits, certified individuals facilitate personnel hiring, assignment, and advancement decisions.

Moreover, the iNARTE members’ requirement to abide by the certification’s ethical code of conduct can provide an additional level of confidence to the employer.

Finally, iNARTE certification can enhance the workplace environment by providing a sense of achievement and confidence among employees, not only in their co-workers, but also in themselves.

To truly understand what separates iNARTE engineers from everyone else in the industry you need look no further than our code of ethics. This code was established many years ago as a guiding principle for all certified persons to follow and this adherence to the code is reflected in the comments I hear globally from employers, co-workers of certified persons, and government agencies looking for contractors.

We the engineers, technicians and other professionals certified by iNARTE, in recognition of the importance of our technologies in affecting the quality of life throughout the world, and in accepting a personal obligation to our profession, its members and the communities we serve, do hereby commit ourselves to the highest ethical and professional conduct and agree:

To accept responsibility in making decisions consistent with the safety, health and welfare of the public, and to disclose promptly factors that might endanger the public or the environment;
To avoid even the appearance of professional impropriety, to avoid real or perceived conflicts of interest whenever possible, and to disclose them to affected parties when they do exist;
To be honest and realistic in stating claims or estimates based on available data and to exercise independent objective professional judgment;
To reject bribery in all its forms;
To improve the understanding of technology, its appropriate application, and potential consequences;
To maintain and improve our technical integrity and competence, to assist in preventing unauthorized practices and to undertake technological tasks for others only if qualified by training or experience, or after full disclosure of pertinent limitations;
To seek, accept, and offer honest criticism of technical work, to acknowledge and correct errors, and to credit properly the contributions of others;
To treat fairly all persons regardless of such factors as race, religion, gender, disability, age, or national origin;
To avoid injuring others, their property, reputation, or employment by false or malicious action;
To assist colleagues and co-workers in their professional development and to support them in following this code of ethics.

Certification is a tremendously powerful tool but is only as powerful as we help it be. It is not enough to simply achieve the certification and maintain it, not enough to simply frame it and hang it on the wall, we must talk about it, explain to those who don’t know or aren’t certified why this is a valuable tool.

The long history of iNARTE is replete with tales galore of how a certified individual saved the organization billions of dollars or countless lives but unless we all do our part to talk about and share these examples they can fall out of sight and get lost in the day to day duties. I therefore put forth a challenge to all certified persons, talk about your certification as often as you can, share your stories with co-workers and new acquaintances and in our newsletter, take the time to recognize your accomplishments and you will give your certification more and more power and in turn it will help you and your organization to take those next steps in advancing.