Hello fellow SAM professionals,
I am relatively new to the position and the community.
There are a few Training courses and certifications available on the market (IAITAM, BSA, etc.).
I am looking forward to attend one of these, and am not quite sure which one would be best.
I’d like it to be based on the ISO standard, help us determine the maturity of our SAM program, Create better policies and workflows.
It would be nice if you could share with everyone how valuable have the certifications been to you and which ones you liked or disliked.
-Vytas Demenis
My only experience is with the IAITAM certifications, which seem to be a prerequisite for a lot of ITAM jobs in the US. I got the CSAM, CHAMP, and CITAM certifications maybe 8 years ago, and at the time, I felt there was good foundational information but the learning materials were too high level with not enough best practices or templates to help the individual implement or improve their programs. The yearly recertification process also isn’t rooted in understanding of best practices. I feel that the cost of the certifications is very high. It’s possible that the certification program has improved in the years since I initially took the courses, but that was the impression I was left with personally. I’m glad I did it and continue to get the recertification because it seems to be a requirement in the industry.
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Thank you for sharing Elise,
The pricing does seem quite high, considering, that it is a one day training + material and the exam at IAITAM (the CSAM course).
This is why I think sharing this information is important, as I hope I am not the only a bit confused here 
I have experience with the SCAM certification. I have found the certification to be extremely valuable in my career. It has provided me a base of knowledge to improve our SAM program. It also helped me improve my understanding on the lifecycle of Software Assets as well as legal implications of non-compliance.
I am also looking at taking the CHAMP course. I am not at the point in my career that I want to go back to school, but these certifications are a great way to show that you are serious about asset management.
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IAITAM isn’t the only game in town anymore with regard to SAM knowledge, although it is the industry ‘standard’ certifcation mill. My experience since being IAITAM certified in the early 2010’s is that the annual recertification has been the exact same 20 questions for at least the last 6 years, which begs further question of what value or challenge or “certification” it is providing. ITAM Review has much more narrow and deep content around real world ITAM scenarios, and covers subjects on a much more intellectual level; whereas IAITAM is great for the beginner in the industry for learning the basics (stuff that doesn’t change often such as the governance, accounting, and high level process of ITAM). What is missing from ITAM Review is a challenging practitioner certification instrument.
An experienced practitioner would be much better served by taking in a breadth of knowledge (and pursuing certs) from a variety of sources, including ITAM service providers and software publishers themselves. Until ITAM is treated more like Project Management is, related to required knowledge and hours of experience factored into practitioner certification, IAITAM remains the standard. This is something I would love to see this Forum address.
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