Quote:
Originally Posted by TribalElder
So you would hire an eagle scout combat vet who kept the network up by blowing sand out of the switches in Afghanistan over a CCIE?
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It depends... First, like it or not, don't think today's CCIEs are quite the same as they were in the early 90s. Just look at the difference in lab today compared to what it was in the early 90s (if you're that old) and you'll probably agree. Add to that Cisco has diversified the certification, perhaps by need, and today you're left wondering which one you can affort to have on staff. Not that that's bad, but usually at the price of a CCIE, you want a Cisco SME, not a Cisco Wireless SME. And I've seen a growing trend in these newer CCIEs saying they're uncomfortable swimming outside of their lane.
I'm not saying they're bad, they're great, I'm just saying their CCIE doesn't make them God's gift. That might have more to do with bootcamps than anything, but it is what it is.
As for hiring a vet or an Eagle scout over a CCIE, I have. While there is no one single truth I've found that the most recent CCIEs have more arrogance about them than those in, let's say, the 90s. So if I've got a position that needs a leader, you dam right that a combat vet, a person who's coached kids (herded cats!), and Eagle Scout - somebody who's shown that s/he might have the people skills to implement Dot1x in the larger community instead of just knowing the commands on the network side - yeah that's far more important. And few people outside of the TAC or large communications companies get to focus on one part of the network every day of rhe year; and they have to play well with other parts of the community.
So, if I'm hiring a pure 1-part-of-the-network-spectrum person (less than 10% of most staffs) certifications might be 75% of it. If I'm hiring the rest of the community they factor in less, perhaps a lot less.