COMPTIA DOUBLES DOWN ON KEYNOTE SPEAKERS AT CHANNELCON 2019

CompTIA, the leading trade association for the global technology industry, announced today that basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal and former FBI counter intelligence agent Eric O’Neill have been confirmed as keynote speakers for ChannelCon 2019, the technology industry’s premier annual conference for education, networking and partnering.

ChannelCon 2019 is scheduled for August 5 through 7 at the Bellagio Hotel in Las Vegas.

“Beyond his many accomplishments on the basketball court, Shaquille O’Neal has been just as successful away from the arena as a businessman, brand ambassador and investor,” said Kelly Ricker, executive vice president for events and education at CompTIA.

“Eric O’Neill is one of the nation’s foremost experts on espionage, national security, cybersecurity, fraud, corporate diligence and defense,” Ricker continued.  “We’ve been privileged to welcome many top-notch speakers to past conferences, but our 2019 keynote lineup may be our strongest yet.”

Shaquille O'Neal was among most dominant basketball players in NBA history. In a 19-year professional career he was a Rookie of the Year, league MVP, 15-time All-Star, 14-time All-NBA Team selection, four-time NBA champion and an Olympic gold medalist. He was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.  

Away from court he’s experienced success in acting, music and television. His business ventures extend into restaurants, fitness centers, real estate and technology, including as an early investor in Google. O’Neal is also a national spokesperson for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and has participated in campaigns with the non-profit for more than a decade.

Eric O’Neill has worked as an FBI counterterrorism and counterintelligence operative, a national security attorney and as a corporate security consultant. He founded The Georgetown Group, a premier investigative and security services firm.  He is also the National Security Strategist for Carbon Black, the leader in next generation endpoint security.

In February 2001, O’Neill helped capture the most notorious spy in United States history, Robert Phillip Hanssen. In the three months preceding Hanssen’s arrest, Eric was selected to work with the spy within the newly minted information assurance division, created to protect classified FBI intelligence. O’Neill was charged with gaining Hanssen’s trust and then using that relationship to slowly draw the traitor out of deep cover.  His investigative skill led to the arrest and ultimate conviction of the master spy.

CompTIA offers the tech community several options to attend ChannelCon.

Premier Members of the association receive unlimited complementary conference registrations for their entire company as part of the annual membership dues.

Registered users and technology solution provider non-members can attend ChannelCon for just $350, which includes a complimentary one-year CompTIA Premier Membership. Technology vendor and distributor non-members pay just $675 and can apply the fee to annual member dues.

First-time solution provider attendees can take advantage of a special offer to attend ChannelCon 2019 at no cost by registering with promo code TRYBUY19.

The New CompTIA A+: Problem Solvers Wanted:

CompTIA A+ Through the Years: A Discussion with 4 Certified IT Pros Today’s technical worker does much more than just fix PCs. They play huge roles in their organizations and must understand how applications work across large systems and be capable of solving problems that help keep technologies and companies running smoothly. Launching in January 2019, the new CompTIA A+ certification was designed to ensure that IT pros are equipped to handle complex problems successfully. This entry-level IT certification helps individuals demonstrate their skills and develop a vast understanding of cloud, virtualization, cybersecurity and more. “You may be very capable, but an employer can’t be sure of that unless you have the certification to prove it,” CompTIA Senior Director, Certification Products, Teresa Sears explained on the CompTIA Volley podcast on November 30. “[CompTIA] A+ levels the playing field. It’s a tool the employer can use to determine a candidate’s skill set and have some evidence of what a person knows.”

A New CompTIA A+ for Today’s Tech Support Pro

The number of job openings in the area of technical support is vast and projected to grow much faster than average over the next 10 years. As systems become more complex, the need to have IT workers who can quickly solve problems is intense. Sears said that that’s exactly what CompTIA A+ validates to employers: that an information technology professional is proficient in problem solving.  The new CompTIA A+ offers a sizeable ROI for both the IT pro and employer. Information technology workers can gain the following from the new CompTIA A+: 

• Creative problem-solving skills
• Strategies for resolving cybersecurity issues
• Knowledge of cloud and virtualization
• Exposure to a variety of IT functions

“The new [CompTIA] A+ will open up avenues for career development,” Sears mentioned. “A+ holders might end up working in cybersecurity, network engineering, network administration, business analysis or data analytics. It’s not a direct path, but it exposes technical workers to the functions of IT that really can open up some exciting career opportunities.” The redesigned entry-level IT certification benefits employers as well. For example, when an entry-level worker who has earned CompTIA A+ is able to address complicated IT issues, senior-level employees are afforded the time and resources to work on higher-level projects that enable business and impact a company’s bottom line.  “Now that you have more empowered help desk people who can identify problems and fix them, you are freeing up senior IT employees to work on more strategic projects,” said CompTIA Senior Director, Industry Analysis, Carolyn April, who co-hosts the podcast with Senior Director, Technology Analysis, Seth Robinson.

CompTIA A+ and Cloud Computing

Today’s entry-level IT workers are dealing with increasingly difficult problems. They are slowly taking over the domain, at least in part, of network administrators. This reflects how swiftly the workforce is morphing as digital transformation becomes a higher priority for companies. Taking this into consideration, CompTIA redesigned A+ with a greater focus on cloud computing and virtualization.  It’s vital that tech workers are able to troubleshoot any issue an end user could experience with software as a service (SaaS) applications. To equip IT pros with these specific skills, the new CompTIA A+ certification emphasizes knowledge of cloud and virtualization. “With the new A+ certification, there’s attention payed to devices other than laptops and mobile phones,” Sears explained. “There is discussion of how to support IoT devices. It all ties back to an increase in the sophistication of these technological environments.”

CompTIA A+ and Cybersecurity

The refreshed CompTIA A+ not only focuses on cloud and virtualization, but also cybersecurity. CompTIA A+ has always included cybersecurity skills, but the new version takes them to a new level. “In the [900 series] of A+, you had to be able to recognize malware,” Sears said. “In the new series, you not only need to recognize it, but you need to be able to detect and remove it.” In the information technology industry, there is a broadening and deepening of cybersecurity expertise that the new CompTIA A+ certification will ensure IT workers have.

Coming in January 2019: A New CompTIA A+

The updated CompTIA A+ certification will be available in January 2019. CompTIA will also release training materials for the new exams, including the Official CompTIA A+ Study Guide and the CompTIA CertMaster line of products.

Here You Can Get CompTIA Certification Exam Dumps