June 2020, IDC #US46572820
White Paper
Benefits of Role-Based Certifications
Sponsored by: Microsoft
Cushing Anderson
June 2020
IDC OPINION
The success of business increasingly relies on the IT organization supporting business requirements
and often implementing new and evolving technologies. New research from IDC demonstrates that the
responsibilities of a single IT professional typically span several domains, and each role works with
several (or many) different technologies. This suggests that "technology focused" certifications are
insufficient. If a certification focuses solely on a technology — such as Azure, Windows, or SharePoint
— it will not prepare IT professionals for the full scope of their "real world" responsibilities.
On the other hand, the research demonstrates that IT professionals who have achieved a relevant
role-base technical certification perform on average 26% better than their uncertified colleagues with
the same responsibilities.
This is particularly important for organizations and their IT professionals responsible for implementing
technology transformation in support of critical business objectives and implies a need for continuous
professional development and represents another value of IT certification to the enterprise.
SITUATION OVERVIEW
Technology has moved out from the IT department to the desktop, to tablets, and to a phone in every
pocket. In fact, there is more "digital transformation" (DX) happening outside the IT organization than
within it. As an organization senses an opportunity, it deploys a new approach using technology to help
streamline or automate processes. Digital transformation is ushering in a new era of digitally enabled
customer-facing products, services, and experiences in an environment of rapid change and
uncertainty.
Most DX is deploying and effectively using core capabilities — better collaboration, integrated
applications to improve communication, and improved data analytics and reporting. And these core
capabilities represent both the foundation of what most businesses require to succeed and a
performance benefit to the IT organization itself. Because technology is at the center of business
growth for all companies, transformation requires an IT organization with the right skills. IDC estimates
that trained and certified teams responsible for core IT activities are generally 20% more productive
than uncertified staff.
This research was designed to help us understand the kinds of responsibilities IT professionals
typically have and the extent to which role-based certifications from Microsoft improve their
performance of those responsibilities. We found that while roles are increasingly complex, IT
©2020 IDC #US46572820 2
professionals that hold IT certifications related to their responsibilities typically perform significantly
better in specific KPIs related to their assigned tasks.
IT Roles Are Increasingly Complex
The skills IT professionals need are continuously evolving. IT professionals are assuming new roles,
working with new and more diverse solutions, and implementing new configurations. The continuous
evolution of skills requires a conscientious program of continuous learning and development that
supports both the range of technologies and the breadth of responsibilities of an effective IT
professional.
In IDC's recent
Drivers of DX Success in the IT Organization Survey,
more than 650 IT leaders across
a variety of roles helped us uncover the relationship between capability, as measured by the
attainment of a relevant technical certification, and critical KPIs that suggest effectiveness and
efficiency in execution of their work in significant IT roles. The roles we examined at Microsoft
included:
▪ Azure data engineer/Azure data scientist/Azure AI engineer
▪ Azure solutions architect
▪ Security administrator
▪ Azure administrator
▪ Enterprise administrator
To understand the roles and their responsibilities, we asked more than 650 IT professionals who
worked with Microsoft technologies what their role was and what significant responsibilities were
included in their role. Each responsibility was also categorized into the role where it was typically
found.
We also asked each IT professional if his/her responsibilities include working substantially with a list of
Microsoft solutions and products.
Responsibilities Span Traditional Role Boundaries
We found that across these roles, IT professionals had responsibilities that might be also categorized
as primary responsibilities of other roles.
Figure 1 illustrates the breadth of responsibilities for each role and indicates how often the role was
specifically responsible for some activity that might be classified as belonging to another role. For
instance, while 100% of Azure solutions architects performed responsibilities related to Azure solutions
architects, 24% also performed Azure data engineer responsibilities, 44% performed Azure
administrator duties, and 32% performed enterprise administrator duties. Similarly, security
administrator responsibilities included enterprise administrator responsibilities 42% of the time,
messaging administrator responsibilities 32% of the time, and Azure solutions architect responsibilities
15% of the time.
While a "role" is a defined set of responsibilities, responsibilities overlap and are commonly part of
many different roles. This suggests that an Azure data engineer, or an Azure solutions architect, must
be familiar with the "responsibilities" that might have historically been the domain of security or
enterprise administrators.
©2020 IDC #US46572820 3
FIGURE 1
Responsibility Profile for Select Roles (% of Respondents)
Q. Which of the following are important responsibilities of yours?
n = 256 for data engineers, n = 63 for Azure solutions architects, n = 133 for security administrators, n = 107 for enterprise
administrators, and n = 78 for Azure administrators
Source: IDC's
Drivers of DX Success in the IT Organization Survey,
2020
Roles Work with a Wide Range of Technologies
In addition to having a broad responsibility profile, these roles typically worked with a wide range of
Microsoft products.
Figure 2 illustrates the range of technology solutions with which each role worked. For instance, more
than 90% of enterprise administrators work with Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft Windows 10. 67%
of those enterprise administrators work with OneDrive and 62% work with SharePoint. For Azure
administrators, the range of technologies is similar. 100% of Azure administrators work with Azure,
while 53% also work with SharePoint and 59% work with OneDrive.
The technologies each role works with as part of its responsibilities are broad and growing as the
business problems being solved become more complex. This suggests that IT professionals in any
role, such as an enterprise administrator or Azure administrator, must be familiar with a broad range of
technologies to be successful in their role.
100
38
52
35
34
29
7
19
16
9
0 20 40 60 80 100
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Teamwork administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Other
Enterprise administrator includes
responsibilities related to...
7
11
11
5
5
5
6
6
100
6
0 20 40 60 80 100
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Teamwork administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Other
Data engineer includes
responsibilities related to...
40
29
38
19
27
100
23
36
18
12
0 20 40 60 80 100
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Teamwork administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Other
Azure administrator includes
responsibilities related to...
32
22
32
16
22
44
30
100
24
16
0 20 40 60 80 100
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Teamwork administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Other
Azure solutions architect includes
responsibilities related to...
42
41
100
30
32
23
10
15
20
8
0 20 40 60 80 100
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Teamwork administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Other
Security administrator includes
responsibilities related to...
©2020 IDC #US46572820 4
FIGURE 2
Technology Profile for Select Roles (% of Respondents)
Q. Do your responsibilities include working substantially with any of the following Microsoft
solutions?
n = 256 for data engineers, n = 63 for Azure solutions architects, n = 133 for security administrators, n = 107 for enterprise
administrators, and n = 78 for Azure administrators
Source: IDC's
Drivers of DX Success in the IT Organization Survey,
2020
CHALLENGES/OPPORTUNITIES
By the end of 2019, up to 70% of companies engaged in digital transformation efforts struggled to
translate business needs into effective IT investments and operations plans. That is often because
they don't have the skills they need to build and execute an effective transformation. In recent IDC
research of IT leaders, "having the right skills in-house" is most often selected as the biggest challenge
to successfully completing digital transformation of their datacenters. Other challenges exist too —
developing new applications, migrating workloads to the public cloud, and data integration issues. But
each of those challenges is also impacted by the skills of the IT professionals in the organization.
But the findings of this research — that responsibilities typically span several domains and each role
works with several (or many) different technologies — suggest that "technology focused" certifications
are insufficient. If a certification focuses solely on a technology — such as Azure, Windows, or
SharePoint — it will not prepare IT professionals for the full scope of their "real world" responsibilities.
91
91
67
63
62
50
17
1
0 20 40 60 80 100
Microsoft Office 365
Microsoft Windows 10
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft Skype
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Azure (and related Microsoft
development tools and solutions)
Microsoft Dynamics 365
None of these
Enterprise administrators work with
these technologies…
87
78
57
62
39
35
10
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Microsoft Office 365
Microsoft Windows 10
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft Skype
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Azure (and related Microsoft
development tools and solutions)
Microsoft Dynamics 365
None of these
Data engineers work with these
technologies…
90
79
63
49
57
100
17
2
0 20 40 60 80 100
Microsoft Office 365
Microsoft Windows 10
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft Skype
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Azure (and related Microsoft
development tools and solutions)
Microsoft Dynamics 365
None of these
Azure solutions architects work with
these technologies...
94
82
59
53
53
100
15
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Microsoft Office 365
Microsoft Windows 10
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft Skype
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Azure (and related Microsoft
development tools and solutions)
Microsoft Dynamics 365
None of these
Azure administrators work with these
technologies…
92
89
59
62
59
44
17
0
0 20 40 60 80 100
Microsoft Office 365
Microsoft Windows 10
Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft Skype
Microsoft SharePoint
Microsoft Azure (and related Microsoft
development tools and solutions)
Microsoft Dynamics 365
None of these
Security administrators work with these
technologies…
©2020 IDC #US46572820 5
Reliable High Performance Requires Role-Based Certifications
Within any company, IT roles are no longer simply described as "administrator" or "engineer." Instead,
each job title has subheadings, such as "security systems engineer," and some have subcategories to
identify niche and specific roles.
Acknowledging that IT roles cover a wide range of responsibilities, and touch a range of technologies,
it is important that training is more job specific than simply in-depth knowledge of a specific
technology. Training to prepare for well-constructed "role based" certifications ensure IT professionals'
skills align with the responsibilities they have. These certifications and the training to prepare for them
need to be kept current with new features while services are added to the solution area and job role.
We examined dozens of responsibilities and compared the performance of IT professionals who were
certified with the performance of uncertified IT professionals. We found that Microsoft-certified IT
professionals performed 26% better across all roles than uncertified IT professionals with the same
responsibilities. To illustrate the impact of certification on performance, the following are the
performance benefits for four roles:
▪ Azure data engineers design and implement the management, monitoring, security, and
privacy of data using the full stack of Azure data services to satisfy business needs. A
Microsoft-certified Azure data engineer:
▪ Spends 20% less elapsed time setting up the infrastructure, completing nearly two days
sooner
▪ Spends 33% less elapsed time to train and evaluate a machine learning model,
completing more than two days sooner
▪ Azure administrators implement, monitor, and maintain Microsoft Azure solutions, including
major services related to compute, storage, network, and security. A Microsoft-certified Azure
administrator:
▪ Is 55% more likely to be able to determine the scope of impact of a security issue with a
virtual machine
▪ Is 13% more likely to assign "the least privilege" to roles
▪ Enterprise administrators evaluate, plan, migrate, deploy, and manage Microsoft 365 services.
A Microsoft-certified enterprise administrator:
▪ Spends 40% less time designing and implementing Microsoft 365 services
▪ Is 46% more likely to implement two-factor authentication
▪ Security engineers implement security controls and threat protection, manage identity and
access, and protect data, applications, and networks in cloud and hybrid environments as part
of end-to-end infrastructure. A Microsoft-certified security administrator:
▪ Has 37% fewer network-related security incidents that impact multiple devices
▪ Has 5% fewer network-related security incidents that had systemwide impact
Refer to Table 1 in the Appendix for the complete list of roles and responsibilities IDC examined for
this research.
These findings are consistent with other research IDC has completed related to the performance
differential of certified IT professionals. What sets these certifications apart is the specific focus on the
broad responsibilities of each role.
©2020 IDC #US46572820 6
Leverage Certifications as Part of Strategic Skill Development
Identifying IT professionals with the right skills has never been straightforward. And in this period of
rapid change and economic disruption, it has never been harder nor more important. Recognizing or
validating specific competence can be a challenge. IDC believes that leveraging relevant, well-
constructed role-based IT certifications from significant technology vendors can help IT leaders build a
successful IT organization and effectively execute digital transformation initiatives.
Certification programs can be part of a reliable development road map to help organizations build skills
during every phase of a transformation journey. IDC analysis has determined that IT professionals
should get at least 10 hours of job role–related training every year to remain current. And additional
training is necessary when significant digital transformation projects are being planned. For important
roles, IT leaders should seek advice from their technology and tool providers to identify the specific
skills and training paths necessary to upskill the role to meet future needs. Technology vendors with
relevant certification programs are in a unique position to support the skills requirements of a range of
IT and business professionals.
To effectively leverage IT certifications for increased DX success, it is essential that the certification
program be a good fit for your organization. Consider the following seven criteria as a starting place for
selecting an appropriate IT certification program:
▪ Is the certification program from a significant provider of your IT infrastructure? Or is the
certification program so significant industrywide that it is an "industry standard"?
▪ Is the certification program aligned to roles that are relevant to your organization's current and
future requirements? (Are you willing to be committed to these roles for the long term?)
▪ Are the skills represented by the certification program evolving with the technology?
▪ Does the certification program have progression that is sufficiently robust to grow with your
staff?
▪ Does the certification program use exams that include performance-based testing?
▪ For appropriate roles, does the certification program validate business knowledge and skills in
addition to technical competence?
▪ If you are going to use the certification program for selection or promotion, does the
certification program ensure that the exams have not been compromised?
CONCLUSION
To successfully implement DX to support critical business objectives, IT organizations will need to
adopt new skills, leverage new technologies, and continuously upgrade their skills to maximize the
value the DX initiative delivers to the enterprise.
While research consistently shows that training and certification lead to greater performance, this
research indicates that role-based certifications help IT professionals perform across a wide range of
responsibilities and technologies.
©2020 IDC #US46572820 7
To leverage this finding to improve business success with digital transformation, it is essential that IT
organizations:
▪ Align IT organizational requirements and development plans with DX strategy.
▪ Leverage IT vendor certifications as guides to IT professional development.
▪ Provide sufficient ongoing training and relevant certification opportunities to maintain and
improve skills over time.
▪ Monitor DX projects and operational priorities for new/expanding skill requirements.
APPENDIX
Table 1 lists the roles and responsibilities IDC examined for this research.
TABLE 1
Examined Roles and Responsibilities
Role
Enterprise administrator
Desktop applications administrator
Security administrator
Messaging administrator
Azure administrator
©2020 IDC #US46572820 8
TABLE 1
Examined Roles and Responsibilities
Role
Azure developer
Azure solutions architect
Data engineer/data scientist/AI engineer
Source: IDC, 2020
©2020 IDC #US46572820 9
MESSAGE FROM THE SPONSOR
About Microsoft
As companies are evolving with digital transformation to bring new ways of generating value
(learn more), Microsoft learning resources enable you and your organization to get there too.
Microsoft Certifications ensure individuals and organizations are kept up to date with necessary
skills and ability to perform job roles in a modern digital business. They also validate the ability
to demonstrate "doing" skills and hands-on real-world scenarios with performance-based
testing.
And as products and technology update, keep up to date by building technical skills while
preparing for certification with updated learning content. Get started on Microsoft Learn with
free, interactive, hands-on training or dive deep with instructor-led training offered by Learning
Partners and taught by Microsoft Certified Trainers worldwide.
About IDC
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