More interesting points being made all around.  I'm not sure if I would say there is a 'certification war' akin to VHS/Beta going on - I think both are suited for different purposes.  The IIBA has a fairly strict requirement around number of verifiable and direct hours of experience that you must have prior to gaining certification.  To my knowledge the other certification does not have this requirement.

Precluding that the IIBA certification is a way to get junior or wannabe BA's to give up money (since they don't qualify), one could look at their existence this way - such a certification exists to weed out so-called BA's with the term plastered across their resume and all the right terms listed in their previous experiences/skills.  Granted, a good interviewer will expose these people, but sometimes PMs or directors who are not that knowledgeable in Business Analysis can be fooled relatively easily.  A certification process can be used to ensure that people have a standard set of knowledge as well as direct experience in applying that knowledge.

Again, I'm not all for such certifications - in fact I am looking to get into Project Management in the next year or two and think that the stringent PMP requirements may inhibit my options locally due to the many 'PMP preferred/required' jobs I see.  But I can see their value as a starting point for evaluation for a candidate, not necessarily as a hurdle nor a final decision making point.

larimar wrote More interesting points being made all around.  I'm not sure if I would say there is a 'certification war' akin to VHS/Beta going on - I think both are suited for different purposes.  The IIBA has a fairly strict requirement around number of verifiable and direct hours of experience that you must have prior to gaining certification.  To my knowledge the other certification does not have this requirement.

Larimar,

Yes I see your point but why does "The IIBA has a fairly strict requirement around number of verifiable and direct hours of experience"  - what does that prove? Why that number of hours (whatever it is) and not that number of hours minus 1 or minus 2? What qualifies as "experience" - doing the job or doing the job properly? How could it be proved it was done properly? Who are the IIBA to declare that an arbitary number of hours of undefined experience is a measure of the suitability of someone to take an arbitaary multiple choice exam?

Problems problems...

Guy

Hi,

Just to clarify my 'longer term' comment, and that is difficult given the speed of things within organisations today.   Put it this way I knew testers who didn't have or want the ISEB testing qualification, yet you look at the job adverts know.   I think Business Analysis is going to go the same way.  We (society) are becoming more interested in certified skills than the equally/more important skills brought about by experience.

Everyone is trying to differentiate themselves to gain the best prospects.  Yes there is benefit to the organisations providing the certification that can't be denied, but their view is that they are benefiting the employers by improving the quality of their staff, and the employees who can the differentiate themselves from everyone else.  The benefit changes based on the perspective.