CompTIA Blog

A look at the week of August 22 in public advocacy for the IT channel: This week, Amazon announced a new cloud service geared toward government agencies.  Peter Orszag, former director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under Obama, believes the HITECH Act is creating significant value in healthcare.  The White House wants to expand the role of agency CIOs to encompass management of the agency’s total IT portfolio. Amazon Launches Gov-Only Cloud — Amazon's new "G ...

These days the question on everyone’s mind seems to be: “Will the economy ever recover enough to let us succeed in business again?” Unfortunately, the key to success can’t actually be found in that question. You see, a thriving business is only marginally dependent on the broader economic conditions in which it operates. While many businesses benefit from a thriving economy, it’s undeniable that strong businesses are able to thrive no matter what the economy is like.Thus, the more meaningful que ...

Our UK Channel Community is nearly one year old, and members are finding they get out much more than put in.  The community allows them to share knowledge and learn from each other.This month, UK Channel Chair Richard Tubb interviewed community member George Ilko of Vitality Consulting, a leading managed services provider focused on the small and medium-sized business market.  Why is Ilko involved in the community and how is it helping him grow his business?  Listen to the podcast.[podcast]http: ...

Every year the NFL and NHL refit their players with some of their historic uniforms, paying homage to the great teams of the past—while raking in some extra cash by selling this limited-edition gear to their fans. They’ve learned that people relish the past and the organizations can still generate significant income by providing that link. While the correlation between that situation and what’s happening in the IT vendor community may not be exact, this week’s news seems vaguely familiar.  Of co ...

Pupils across the U.K. have received their A-level results and are wondering what to do next. Like every year, we can expect that nowhere near enough of these talented individuals will pursue a career in IT.The reason for this is surely not that IT has little to offer, or that it is too specialist, or even that it is boring, for it is none of these things. But this is how a lot of young people see it. Until we start doing something to change this perception, we will struggle to attract the requi ...

Congress' August Recess is a critical time for CompTIA members to tell their representatives about the importance of career and technical education and urge Congress to restore funding to the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, which recently saw significant cuts. The Perkins Act is a principal vehicle for funding career and technical education (CTE) in this country, serving both high school and community college students preparing for college and careers. In FY 2011, Perkins w ...

A young Ashley Knight envisioned his future in technology. The still-young man is well on his way to achieving that dream while putting his CompTIA certifications to work in trailblazing fashion for others to follow. Knight, 19, of Reigate, a market town in Surrey, England, was plucked from his studies to become the first technology apprentice for an investment management firm after displaying a preternatural gift for all things IT-related. Among the requirments of his training program was com ...

A look at the week of August 15 in public advocacy for the IT channel: This week, the National Institute of Standards and Technology released a plan to improve U.S. cybersecurity by focusing on education. A new Treasury report finds fewer small businesses than previously thought. Unemployment in the IT sector remains much lower than the national average and employment is expected to grow rapidly. U.S. Agency Releases Cyber-Education Plan — The U.S. government will work to develop an “unrivaled” ...

The President announced new initiatives recommended by the White House Rural Council for creating jobs in rural America.  These initiatives are intended to help rural small businesses access capital, expand rural job search and training services, and increase rural access to healthcare workers and technology.   CompTIA has long-noted similar needs within the small IT community – whether rural or urban.Included in these initiatives are: $350 million in SBA funding over the next five years to ...

Congress’ August Recess is a critical time for CompTIA members to tell their representatives about the importance of career and technical education and urge Congress to restore funding to the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act, which recently saw significant cuts.The Perkins Act is a principal vehicle for funding career and technical education (CTE) in this country, serving both high school and community college students preparing for college and careers.In FY 2011, Perkins was c ...

A look at the week of August 15 in public advocacy for the IT channel:  This week, the National Institute of Standards and Technology released a plan to improve U.S. cybersecurity by focusing on education.  A new Treasury report finds fewer small businesses than previously thought.  Unemployment in the IT sector remains much lower than the national average and employment is expected to grow rapidly.U.S. Agency Releases Cyber-Education Plan — The U.S. government will work to develop an "unrivaled ...

During this year’s Breakaway Conference in Washington, D.C., we saw a large number of participants take place in the first ever CompTIA Tech Summit. These members heard from expert panels regarding healthcare IT and cybersecurity. The Summit provided members with critical insight into the future of the industry and how what happens in Congress affects it all.With that in mind, we also saw dozens of members stop by the CompTIA public advocacy booth during the trade show portion of the conference ...

With a variety of football training camps opening up, ranging from peewee league to the NFL, I thought it appropriate to use a couple of sports analogies in this post. When the games get into full swing, inevitably teams get into pressure situations on the field. Typically, it’s a tie game with just one score separating the winner and loser—and time ticking away. The coach often calls a play where the receivers “go deep” to get the ball across the goal line. Rather th ...

TIS & Partners, a structural design firm based in Japan, has developed a construction material that is better than concrete. The new material, called CO2 Structure, hardens in one day whereas concrete takes 28 days to fully cure. CO2 Structure is also more stable than concrete, with a tensile strength at least 2.5 times greater.Why am I writing about concrete on an IT blog? Because I think it highlights the importance of continuing to innovate in areas that might be viewed as basic commoditi ...

Small and medium-sized technology businesses have the expertise, knowledge and skill sets to help the U.S. healthcare industry advance its use of new IT tools, but barriers may keep many of them on the sidelines, according to a new CompTIA white paper, “Health IT: The Essential Role of Small IT Solution Providers”. The paper focuses on opportunities to increase participation by IT solution providers, including: Providing additional re-training options that focus on health IT, Int ...