CompTIA Blog

From time to time, we give focus to our CompTIA members’ activities or views in relation to specific policy matters. In May we shared with you developments surrounding patent reform legislation in the U.S. Congress. Below is an opinion piece by CompTIA Member Kevin McDonald of Alvaka.I’ve noticed a lot of gratuitous talk by our legislators about being all for small business and protecting the individual. They bandy about rhetoric about the Constitution and consistently are finding rights that a ...

In February, we shared information on efforts to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act. Recently, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions (HELP) released a discussion draft of that legislation and was scheduled to hold a hearing to “mark up” the proposed legislation on June 29. That mark-up hearing has now been postponed until Wednesday July 20. We will keep you apprised of new developments and welcome your thoughts and reaction to the discussion draft. The legisl ...

1. Do I have to enroll in CompTIA’s Continuing Education (CE) program? I thought my certification never expired. If you earned one or more of the following certifications, CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ or CompTIA Security+, on or before Dec. 31, 2010, those certifications will never expire, and you will always be considered “certified for life” for those certifications, regardless of if you participate in the CE program.If you earned a CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ or CompTIA Security+ certif ...

We continue to see the most significant challenge facing small technology firms is the shortage of capital.  Congress has known about this issue for the last few years, however, there has been no substantial move to address the need.  And while the Recovery Act provided much needed funding for many businesses and government jurisdictions, small businesses were left without cover.  Of course, some noted that small businesses could apply for SBA loans, however, the banks were simply not lending.  ...

A look at the week of July 12 in advocacy for the IT channel: The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) allowed Top Level Domain restrictions to sunset; this might create substantial cybersecurity problems. A new defense department program allows for the temporary exchange of public and private IT workers. The Senate Subcommittee on Crime and Terrorism held a hearing to evaluate the Obama Administration’s cybersecurity proposal. Senators Lieberman, Collins and Carper co-aut ...

1. Do I have to enroll in CompTIA’s Continuing Education (CE) program? I thought my certification never expired. If you earned one or more of the following certifications, CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ or CompTIA Security+, on or before Dec. 31, 2010, those certifications will never expire, and you will always be considered “certified for life” for those certifications, regardless of if you participate in the CE program. If you earned a CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ or CompTIA Security+ cer ...

In a previous post, I wrote about business valuation and how it varies according to who’s in the market looking to buy (including the different types of buyers). But how can you systematically drive up the value of your company?   Increasing the size and profitability of your business is the surest way to increase its value.  That’s easy to say, but which ideas are most suitable for the owner of an IT service company?  First let’s focus on specific suggestions that can increase your top-line rev ...

After investing the time and energy to achieve your CompTIA certification goals, would you sit back and wait for new clients to knock on your door? Of course not! Most solution providers want to leverage their new skills and use this recognition to improve their revenue and industry standing— but what’s the best way to accomplish that objective?One proven method is to take an additional step and get your CompTIA Authorized Service Center (ASC) credential, which will not only validate your organi ...

Next month, our members get a special treat with a Breakaway keynote by best-selling author and noted business consultant Peter Sheahan.  As founder and CEO of ChangeLabs, Sheahan will give his cutting-edge insights into workforce trends and generational change. He’ll explain what companies must do today to stay relevant and competitive in the future. Below is a guest blog from Sheahan as a sneak peek.There has never been a better time to be in information technology. New business models are eme ...

When the small business lending legislation (HR 5297) was enacted into law last September, it was heralded as a step to stimulate loans to small businesses by community banks.  Under this legislation, $30 billion has been directed to a “Small Business Lending Fund” administered by the Department of Treasury.  The purpose of this fund is to provide capital investments in small banks (community banks with assets of $10 billion or less) coupled with incentives for those banks to increase small busi ...

Despite our transition to a credit and electronic payment-based economy, when determining the strength of your business, cash is still king. The effective management of money, particularly the amount of currency you have on hand at critical points in time, is essential to all organizations and their growth plans. Without the proper amount of cash available, it can get dicey when trying to meet your payroll and current expense obligations in a busy month when you have a significant increase in ma ...

Earlier this week, health insurer WellPoint, Inc. agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit in which the company was accused of failure to properly notify officials that a security breach occurred. According to the Indiana Attorney General’s office (which filed the suit), social security numbers, financial information and health records for as many as 32,051 people were potentially accessible through an unsecured website over a five month period starting in late 2009. As specified in India ...

In an effort to shine a light on a critical federal education initiative repeatedly in the crosshairs of deficit hawks in recent years, CompTIA looked toward a leading local lawmaker this month. When Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) paid a visit to Roger C. Sullivan High School’s Medical Academy in Chicago on June 1, he was shown the inner workings of just one example of just one school system’s use of Career and Technical Education programs that teeter on the financial precipice due to federal fundin ...

Earlier this week, health insurer WellPoint, Inc. agreed to pay $100,000 to settle a lawsuit in which the company was accused of failure to properly notify officials that a security breach occurred. According to the Indiana Attorney General's office (which filed the suit), social security numbers, financial information and health records for as many as 32,051 people were potentially accessible through an unsecured website over a five month period starting in late 2009. As specified in Indiana's ...

The House Judiciary Committee favorably reported out H.R. 1439, the "Business Activity Tax Simplification Act of 2011," by a voice vote yesterday. Now, this legislation can be considered by the full House, although the timetable is uncertain.This legislation sets up a physical presence nexus standard, which means that in order for a state to tax a business activity, that business must have a tangible connection to the state, such as an office or a sales force. Without this legislation, businesse ...