The Storage Networking Industry Association (SNIA) has added new educational programs for data protection, storage virtualization and sales professionals.
The Storage Technology Elective Program (STEP) is a SNIA Qualification credential that complements the organization’s Certification program.
SNIA chairman Wayne Adams, who is also a senior technologist in the office of the CTO at EMC (NYSE: EMC), said the new programs are for storage networking professionals who want to get “very deep and very quick” into a new area without the need for another certification.
The STEP program includes self-study materials and access to online exams, with a passing score earning a SNIA Qualification credential. The program is designed for both IT generalists and storage specialists.
The self-study materials are aimed at IT professionals who haven’t yet pursued vendor-neutral SNIA Certifications. For SNIA Certified Professionals, STEP “provides an exam that validates one’s knowledge and skill in specialized areas of technology,” according to SNIA.
The Qualified Data Protection Associate program covers basic knowledge of data protection, backup and recovery, plus strategies for using the solutions within a data storage environment.
The Qualified Storage Virtualization Associate program covers basic concepts of virtualization, benefits, implementation strategies, and administration and management tasks.
Sales pros and others needing general storage knowledge should find the Qualified Storage Sales Professional program useful. The self-study materials cover storage concepts, iSCSI, Fibre Channel, virtualization, data management and backup and recovery methods.
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