CompTIA provides our member companies with tools so that you are not only in the arena but have the bullhorn to address policies and politics that affect your business. We want all of you to be effective advocates for the IT industry. This month, CompTIA member Aaron Woods of Xerox gives his account of what it means to be an advocate for the industry, why he thinks it is important, and how you can become involved.
Woods is the director of North America Resellers (NARS) relationship management and partner programs in the Services Partners and Alliances (SPA) support group, a part of the Xerox Services (XS) organization. As an active CompTIA member since 1989, Woods recognizes the significance of strong advocacy, saying that members play a large role in informing elected officials about the importance of issues related to the industry.“As knowledgeable individuals in our industry we should seek to increase awareness of the issues that affect us with our legislators and to become active advocates to affect change. Through the efforts of CompTIA members, we can help to educate our local legislators about our needs and concerns. It is through these efforts we can spread how current, pending and future laws, regulations, policies and perceptions impact IT providers.”
Green IT, healthcare IT and workforce development are all areas where Woods focuses his personal advocacy efforts, and he supports other members doing the same.
“Advocating for issues you care about is an important activity to bring about change in public attitudes and policies that impact us as an industry," says Woods.
He adds there are several reasons why members should consider getting involved in the advocacy process, some of those reasons include:
- We need to help change laws that affect our industry.
- Advocacy and lobbying offer real solutions.
- Policymakers need your expertise.
- Advocacy and lobbying advances our cause and helps to build public trust.
With the Policy Watch Newsletter and www.TechVoice.org, Woods believes that CompTIA members, now more than ever, have the ability to learn about and get involved in the advocacy process.
“CompTIA has made it much easier for us to make a difference. By reading the newsletter and by going to TechVoice online, I have so many tools at my disposal to actually do something meaningful for the IT industry, members should definitely take advantage,” says Woods. “I encourage all CompTIA members to seriously consider becoming an advocate in one or more of the many areas that need to be addressed. Becoming an advocate for IT issues can have lasting benefits for you and our industry.”
If you have questions about how you can get involved, contact Matthew L. Evans.
