IIBA Announcement and a Closer Look at BabSim.

I wanted to start this week with another update from the IIBA.  They have recently awarded the first Certification of Competency in Business Analysis (CCBA).  Check out the note below:

IIBA Awards First CCBA Designation

International Institute of Business Analysis (IIBA) is pleased to announce that it has awarded the first Certification of Competency in Business Analysis^™ (CCBA^™) designation to Mr. Michel Sauty of Villars-sous-Yens near Geneva, Switzerland. Congratulations!

Mr. Sauty is the first of the new CCBA™ recipients. All are IIBA^® members and they come from around the world—the U.S., Canada, Australia, India, Switzerland, the U.K. and the Netherlands.

The CCBA^™ certification was introduced in response to industry demands for a designation that could be obtained earlier in a business analysis practitioner’s career than the Certified Business Analysis Professional^™ (CBAP^®) designation. We expect the CCBA^™ designation to become the industry standard for business analysts.

There are now over 175 people approved to take the exam. If you haven’t already applied for the CCBA^™ designation, you can do so by visiting the Certification section of the IIBA website.

Once again, congratulations to Mr. Sauty and all CCBA^™ recipients.

Michael Gladstone, CBAP
Executive Vice President, Certification

If you caught last week’s blog then you know about some of the updates from the World Wide Partner Conference.  One of the key points made by Microsoft Learning at the conference was that 60% of students choose a training partner based on the facilities location and comfort level.  We here at babsim have always taken this very point VERY seriously.  We have one of the top notch facilities in the country, and our students and instructors love it.  We pay close attention to the needs of our students, and when it comes to the learning environment and amenities we don’t slack.  Check out some of the photos below and see what kind of world you’re stepping into here at babsim.

 This is a glimpse of our lobby

These are the state of the art classrooms you will sit in as a student here at babsim

Our babsim Café is a big hit with our students and faculty, especially when the fresh hot cookies are sitting out each afternoon

There's ALWAYS enough gourmet Cup of Joe coffee for everyone

-Matt

World Partner Conference Updates

Hey everyone!

Babbage Simmel sent two of our own to the Microsoft World Partner Conference in Los Angeles last week, and what we learned is that there are many things to be excited about in the world of technology coming very soon!  Let’s start by checking out one of the keynote addresses by Steve Ballmer himself!

Keynote

Cloud computing is going to be huge in the world of IT.  We are talking about major changes on the horizon and the need for training on the Cloud will be in high demand.  With that being said, many are still wondering exactly “What is the Cloud?”  Check out these two articles on Cloud computing and prepare for the changes ahead!

http://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/definition/cloud-computing

http://www.cnbc.com/id/43854790

I also wanted to highlight a few classes this week that are on the horizon and still have seats available.

CISSP  8/8/11-8/12/11

This five-day, instructor-led course trains students in all areas of the security Common Body of Knowledge (CBK). They will learn about security policy development, secure software development procedures, network vulnerabilities, attack types and corresponding countermeasures, cryptography concepts and their uses, disaster recovery plans and procedures, risk analysis, crucial laws and regulations, forensics basics, computer crime investigation procedures, physical security, and much, much more. They will explore the contents and concepts that make up the diverse domains and learn how they work together to provide true "in-depth" defense.

M-10262 8/15/11-8/19/11

In this course, experienced developers who know the basics of Windows Forms development gain more advanced Windows Client design and development skills. WinForms and WPF programming models, as well as relative strengths and when to use each technology, are covered.

M-6235 8/31/11-9/2/11

This three-day instructor-led course teaches students how to implement an Integration Services solution in an organization. The course discusses how to develop, deploy, and manage Integration Services packages.

See you all back here next week!

-Matt 

CDU's and PDU's

            The highlights for this week at babsim were Project Management and Business Analysis. 

Dave Wirick was back again (I think he’s just going to move in) with a packed class this week and it was a huge success!  Our PMP class is really hot right now, and the next one on tap is nearly full.  If you want to get some of the best Project Management training in the country you need to sign up ASAP!  Here are the next couple dates:

BAB520: PMP 1-2-3: A Guide to Preparing for the PMP Exam 

8/15/11-8/19/11 and 10/3/11-10/7/11

This workshop is intended to prepare you to successfully take the PMP^® exam, and the flow of the course is directed toward that end. The workshop will employ a case study that will be referred to throughout.

On the Business Analysis side of things, we ran another successful CBAP class this week and we have a full slate of BA classes coming at you for the rest of the year!

BAB609: Business Analysis Principles and Techniques: CBAP Exam Prep

9/19/11-9/23/11

This workshop is intended to provide knowledge of what a business analyst should do and how they should do it. More importantly, however, this workshop is designed to build a strong foundation in business analysis that can allow participants to understand why something should be done. It's that "why" element that allows for understanding and
answering test questions.

BAB608: Business Analysis Essentials

10/17/11-10/19/11

The best way to ensure that projects meet the needs for which they were initiated is to apply a consistent requirements process and requirements management methods and tools. The goal of this workshop is to enhance the skills of project teams including those engaged in requirements elicitation and management and to increase the capability of an
organization to deliver products and services that meet user and stakeholder needs. It provides an overview and application of the processes of requirements management and is intended to allow participants to build requirements management processes that can help them increase the success of their projects

BAB607: Business Analysis Theory and Practice

11/14/11-11/18/11

A critical role in requirements elicitation and management is played by the business analyst. Business analysts serve as the link between the business interests served by the project and the technology that will be employed to deliver the functionality required by it.
They are responsible for translating business needs into language that systems analysts can turn into a solution, for framing the problem and identifying the most appropriate solution. They keep the project focused on the needs for which it was initiated. They are often charged with gathering, documenting, and testing requirements, especially in software development and implementation projects.

I’ll be back next week with updates from the Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference!

-Matt

Behold the ScrumMaster!!!

We have another exciting announcement this week at Babsim.  One of our lead instructors for Project Management and Business Analysis, David Wirick, has recently been awarded the Mary Marvel award for Best Instructor at the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at THE Ohio State University.  This award is voted on by the graduating class each year, and this is the third time Dave has won this award in the last four years.  I like to think that if we had a similar award here at Babsim Dave would win that one as well.  He’s pretty good to say the least.

In other exciting news this week, we had our first Certified ScrumMaster course over the last couple of days, and the class pretty much had free reign over our lobby.  Tom Mellor (CST) led the class and brings a wealth of knowledge and experience here to Babsim. Tom is a Certified ScrumMaster, Certified Scrum Product Owner, Certified Scrum Professional, and Certified Scrum Trainer . He is a past board member and past chairman of the board of the Scrum Alliance and a frequent speaker at industry conferences.  He has been active in business operations and management since 1980 and has worked in State Farm’s IT department since 2001.  He introduced Scrum into State Farm in 2004 and now champions, trains, and coaches Scrum-based product development throughout the department. He also advocates for use of better software engineering practices and for transformation to a more agile culture and environment.  He leads, coaches and supports various technical product development projects using Scrum and helps teams acclimate and adjust to the nuances of agile-based work environments and collaborative development.   

Here is a photo of Tom (the tall one) and Co-Trainer Brian Levy.   

Here are some shots of the class doing some group activities and problem solving.

 

I mentioned earlier that the group had free reign over our lobby.  I wasn't kidding. 

 When we say hands on learning, we actually mean HANDS ON LEARNING.

We plan to offer the Certified ScrumMaster course again on September 24-25.  You didn’t read that wrong, it is a Saturday and Sunday.  This will allow for students who aren’t able to get time off during the week to attend this unique training.  Please sign up on our website to reserve your seat in the class now!

-MJM