The increasing adoption of technologies like cloud computing, blockchain, IoT and artificial intelligence (AI) has put the focus on continuous learning, upskilling and cross-skilling. As the pandemic reshapes the business landscape, there continues to be a greater reliance on technology and digital solutions for connecting. Such an economy demands new and diverse skill sets and capabilities that will test the workforce.

As a first step towards this, ISACA today announced in India and globally the launch of the Certified in Emerging Technology (CET) certification, which will enable IT professionals to boost their skillset in such emerging technologies and ensure their knowledge is up-to-date for the changing demands of the future.

Established IT professionals, students and recent grads alike can set themselves apart with employers and gain foundational knowledge about the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and cloud without having prior experience. Along with ISACA’s recently launched Information Technology Certified Associate (ITCA) credential, the CET certification is unique in offering a vendor-agnostic, hybrid learning model. The CET model features both performance-based and knowledge-based learning—including live labs in a virtual environment—and incorporates a stackable series of certificates.

According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs report, 50% of all employees will need reskilling by 2025 as the adoption of the new age technologies increases. Cloud computing has witnessed an unprecedented growth. Global cloud spending is predicted to grow 7 times faster than the overall IT spends in the next few years, making it one of the most in-demand skills for 2021. Similarly, artificial intelligence and machine learning jobs have already witnessed a massive 75% growth in the last four years. Another report by KPMG indicates that the reskilling and certification segment, the largest in the online education space, will surge to USD 436 million by 2021, as credentials become increasingly important for building and demonstrating skills in a constantly changing environment.

CET certificates, which can be achieved at one’s own pace from anywhere, provide both a deep examination of each technology and a holistic view of the connections among the emerging technologies, allowing IT professionals to upskill and cross-skill in the following domains:

• Cloud Fundamentals Certificate
• Blockchain Fundamentals Certificate
• IoT Fundamentals Certificate
• Artificial Intelligence Fundamentals Certificate

“It is important for professionals in IT audit, risk, security, governance and privacy to have an understanding of emerging technologies and how they intersect with their work, as well as impact their organizations at a business level,” says David Samuelson, ISACA CEO. “With the new Certified in Emerging Technology certification, ISACA is pleased to offer our global community the tools to gain this knowledge and skillset and continue to take their careers to new heights.”