Christopher Browne wrote:
> A while back, PostgreSQL Inc had some involvement with building
> something of a "skills evaluation" test.
>
> But it isn't totally evident how this is _Truly Useful_.
[snip]
> Until there is a job market that's active enough that you can see
> dozens of PG jobs listed that need to be filled, I can't see a
> certification being of vast practical value.
In Australia, there are legislated requirements to spend 10% of the
payroll on training. Thus if an empoloyee is being paid $30kpa, the
employer is expected to spend $3kpa on training that employee.
This legislation was introduced to (amongst other things) prevent
employers working employees into the ground and discharging them into
the employment market with no currently valuable skills.
As such, it would be extremely useful for Australian open-source
advocates to be able to attend training courses dealing with PostgreSQL
- first it means the training guarantee can be met, second it means that
the PostgreSQL DBAs and programmers in an organisation can get in
contact with other PostgreSQL users and perhaps even share experiences
in solving tricky problems. Training your employees is as much about
making your workforce as effective as possible as it is about giving
your employees new "checkbox items" on their resume.
From the employee's point of view, training courses aren't just about
getting a certificate - they're also about building social networks and
having the chance to see someone else explain things you thought you
already knew, and perhaps even learning a new way to treat an "old" problem.
Regards
Alex Satrapa