SAN FRANCISCO, Nov. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- The Open Group, a vendor- and technology-neutral consortium focused on open standards and global interoperability within and between enterprises, today announced plans for a new certification level, Distinguished Certified IT Architect, within the IT Architect Certification (ITAC) program. In addition to this new level, the organization also announced that over 2,000 individuals have become ITAC certified since the program's debut two years ago. This number reflects certifications of professional architects from a diverse group of global enterprises and government organizations such as Capgemini, Credit Suisse, EDS, HP, IBM and Microsoft, to name just a few.

"We have certifications for programmers, database administrators and network engineers. These certifications are specific to the technology and platforms that are used within our organization," said Tom Burke, chief architect, The Washington Post. "Certification at an architectural level should be based on open standards and be vendor and technology neutral. That is why The Washington Post chose The Open Group as its certification authority for IT Architects."

Individuals certified at the new level must demonstrate a history of significant breadth of impact to the business through the application of IT architecture. Core attributes possessed by the Distinguished Certified IT Architect include: executive level communication skills; effective leadership skills; responsibility for significantly complex architecture engagements; a demonstrated architectural vision for key business initiatives; and governance expertise. The new level also provides for three distinct career paths including chief/lead architect, profession executive and enterprise architect. Operating under a peer-review model, ITAC certifies IT architects that meet the global skill and experience-based open standard developed by members of The Open Group. The program includes direct certification of applicants as well as a process and a set of criteria for accrediting an organization's internal certification programs.

"In order to achieve our goals, it is critical that we attract and retain the best IT professionals in the market. The independent, global and well-founded IT Architecture Certification (ITAC) of The Open Group presents a strong opportunity," said Andreas Buzzi, head of Software Engineering, Credit Suisse. "By following industry best practices, The Open Group has defined an outstanding benchmark for IT architects, which makes it easier to identify the highly skilled and experienced professionals that Credit Suisse is looking for. In addition, I am very much in favor of The Open Group's efforts to certify skills and experience, rather than academic qualifications only."

"As GTECH is a leading gaming technology and service provider, having our architects ITAC certified was a sure bet," said Steve Lupo, senior research scientist & systems architect, GTECH Corporation. "This program equips us with an internationally recognized qualification that demonstrates our architecture skills and experience has been independently assessed and verified against a worldwide standard benchmark."

"The fact that over 2,000 individuals have achieved IT Architect Certification is indicative of a growing trend that certified architects are the next step in the development of the architecture profession in IT," said Len Fehskens, vice president and global professional lead for Enterprise Architecture, The Open Group. "Leading enterprise architecture practices from around the world have adopted this certification program because they realize the critical need for recognizing architectural competence as defined by open, global standards of excellence."

About IT Architecture Certification (ITAC)

The Open Group's IT Architect Certification (ITAC) program is the premier, global certification program for certifying skills and experience in the enterprise IT architecture community. Based on the proven best practices in the industry, it sets an independent, industry-wide standard for IT Architects and creates a foundation for trust between suppliers and customers.

About The Open Group

The Open Group is a vendor-neutral and technology-neutral consortium, which drives the creation of Boundaryless Information Flow(TM) that will enable access to integrated information within and between enterprises based on open standards and global interoperability. The Open Group works with customers, suppliers, consortia and other standard bodies. Its role is to capture, understand and address current and emerging requirements, establish policies and share best practices; to facilitate interoperability, develop consensus, and evolve and integrate specifications and open source technologies; to offer a comprehensive set of services to enhance the operational efficiency of consortia; and to operate the industry's premier certification service. Further information on The Open Group can be found at http://www.opengroup.org/.

Note to Editors: Boundaryless Information Flow and TOGAF are trademarks of The Open Group. All other company, brand and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

CONTACT: Heather Sieberg of The Bateman Group, +1-408-406-2356,
opengroup@bateman-group.com, for The Open Group

Web site: http://www.opengroup.org/

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