There are few industries that have experienced the kind of growth that we see in the IT industry. To set your business apart from your competitors, you should consider investing in employee training. One of the programs that will help certify your employee professional skills is the CCNA certification.

Most companies globally recognize the CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate). This certification is ideal for employees in the IT department and it certifies that they have gained the ability to install, operate, configure, and troubleshoot switched and routed networks.

How Long Does it Take to Earn the CCNA Certification?

How long your employees take to earn their certification will largely depend on the program you choose. If you choose a package that includes four-day classes followed by an exam, then they may finish the CCNA training in less than a week. However, employees that have a depth of knowledge in the relevant technologies are more suited for this accelerated program. The self-study program takes more time, which means delayed certification. Keep in mind that there is a time limit within which your employee must have met all the requirements.

A Formal Training Program will help your Employees Earn their Certificates Sooner

While the internet has become a great resource for learning, it hasn’t replaced the need for formal education. CCNA formal training will help your employees earn their certificates sooner by:

Providing them with a solid foundation and knowledge: This is the most important benefit of formal education. While most of the information learned during the training is obsolete, the foundational knowledge will last and can be used in a wide range of positions. Foundational knowledge is also the most difficult to learn on your own.

Structure: While self-learning may be more convenient and flexible, it lacks the structure that you only find through formal training. Some of the benefits of the structure include:

• The curriculum and resource materials are structured appropriately. Self-taught students normally don’t know where to start or how to progress.
• The formal learning structure also helps to hold your employees accountable. While your employees may be willing to take time and learn, without structure and accountability it’s hard for them to put in a consistent effort.

Increasing options: Because there are several institutions that offer CCNA training, some offer online courses. More options means that you will find a program that will fit your business.

Increases the ability of your employees to work well with others: The myth that most IT professionals enjoy working solo is less common in today’s workforce. Most IT professionals today work in an office environment and interact with other employees. Collaborative efforts in IT departments are more common than ever and everyone is expected to know how to work with their fellow workers.

Why is CCNA Certification Important?

While most people may not know the value of CCNA, some companies do. For instance, according to Fast Company, Amazon’s page slowdown can cost them almost $2 billion in sales each year. To avoid such problems, you need professionals with basic networking knowledge. Ideally, your professionals should know how to configure network devices and troubleshoot connectivity problems in less time and this is where CCNA comes in.

Employees that have undergone the CCNA training will have the knowledge and skills to set up all types of home and business networks. This can range from setting up simple networks through a router, utilizing bridges and routing protocols to more technical network systems. An important part of the training includes OSI (Open System Interconnection) model. This model ensures that all CCNA candidates understand the international standardized systems of networking including:

• Application
• Presentation
• Session
• Physical
• Network
• Transport
• Datalink

CCNA trained professionals understand the importance of these systems and the part they play in the networking business. Additionally, trained and certified CCNA employees know how to build local area networks (LAN) and wide-area networks (WAN) from scratch. This means that they will learn how to design and then build networks. For LAN, your employees will understand everything about Ethernet technologies in both theory and practice. Other parts of their training will include understanding all protocols including ARP, TCP, ICMP, RARP, and BOOTP.

Do Your Employees Need the CCNA Certificate?

One way you can be able to verify whether your employees possess hands-on IT skills is through an official CCNA certification. Connect with Infotec today for more information about CCNA training programs for your workers.

For more information about Infotec or any of our programs click here: http://www.infotectraining.com/ or https://ops.infotecpro.com/course_schedule/course_schedule.cfm.