| Why Choose Dice Learning? |
by Evan Lesser, Director - Dice Learning - July 13, 2009
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The concept to create a portal site dedicated to tech knowledge came right from the top of the Dice organization. CEO Scot Melland reflects,
"Our customers post tens of thousands of tech jobs on Dice.com monthly. Every job has requirements for technical skills and certifications. We tell candidates exactly what training they need to apply for those jobs, but we don't tell them how to get it."
With that, the idea for Dice Learning was born. It's a high ideal, but makes sense for our
audience. Job seeking candidates get technical training and knowledge, and employers looking for their next hire on Dice.com can find even more highly skilled candidates. And in a difficult economy, education is a smart way to add value to one's resume. Everybody wins, right? While the concept seemed simple, we quickly discovered how complex and confusing the world of IT certification and training really was.
The Problem - Too Much Data
Like big numbers? Hit your favorite search engine and search for "IT certification." With over 21 million results found, the first problem was very clear: There are way too many results to surf through to find solid, valuable information on technical training and certification.
Idea #1: Manage the results - Consolidate tech training
and certification information into one searchable service
and remove the junk.
At its core, Dice Learning is a niche search engine, dedicated only to tech training and certification. We've filtered search results to focus only on U.S.-based tech training. We’ve filtered the data down to ensure every search result is some type of class, course, certification track, or training.
The Problem - Who's Reputable?
Looking around, we saw a consistent theme. Every IT training and certification company claims to have the best courses, the lowest prices, and lots of freebies. "Company A" offers a free Blackberry when you take their online courses. "Company B" guarantees you'll pass the certification exam on the first try. "Company C" includes a gourmet meal when you take instructor-led training in their classrooms. Sounds delicious, but who can be trusted with all of these providers making unverified claims?
Idea #2: Isolate the best training providers - Invest the time to research top providers
of learning content, and narrow the playing field to the best of the best.
Dice.com has a 18-year track record of bringing together tech professionals and employers. If there's one thing we know, its tech jobs and tech candidates. Through test and trial, Dice Learning found the most reputable providers of tech training materials. We took the time to take actual classes from multiple training providers. We then ranked and rated each, and determined which was best. The preferred training providers we selected for Dice Learning have been teaching tech professionals for decades, and are authorized by vendors like Cisco, Microsoft, Sun, and Oracle to develop and teach courses on their technologies.
The Problem - Confusion
Bootcamps, CD-ROMs, web-based training, classroom training, college certificates, oh my! If I live in Denver, how is tech training in Tampa relevant to me? If I see 250 classes on network security, which do I need to take to prepare for a CISSP exam? General search engines pull up every form of tech training imaginable and from all locations. Is it possible to separate everything out in one site?
Idea #3: Organize - Figure out how to place tech training products and
services into logical, intuitive categories to make finding a class easier.
The answer is yes. You may be interested in an instructor-led class for one topic, but a video for the next. Search results on Dice Learning allow you to refine your results to quickly retrieve training materials by common learning methods. Whether you are interested in self-paced online training, instructor-led classroom training, bootcamps, books, videos, or certificates from accredited colleges, one click filters the list to your preferred method of learning. For classroom training and bootcamps, a zip code is all it takes to narrow results to your location. Browsing courses by major technology vendors like Microsoft, Novell, RedHat, and IBM or by high level categories like security, databases, and web development allows for quick and accurate results. Courses are bundled logically to show you precisely how to train for common IT certifications.
The Problem - Jobs and Training are Separate
All tech jobs have tech requirements. To apply and actually be asked to interview, your skills and knowledge have to be up to par. It's a fact - jobs and technical education are closely tied, so how come nobody makes that connection?
Idea #4: Combine tech jobs and tech training - Create innovative ways to
learn about training that matches the jobs you are interested in.
The marriage of Dice.com and Dice Learning means you can navigate seamlessly between services. Browse jobs on Dice.com and automatically see relevant training from Dice Learning. Browse classes on Dice Learning and automatically see relevant jobs on Dice.com. Purchase any web-based training course on Dice Learning, and get a month of the popular Dice Advantage resume service for free. Soon, we'll start mapping IT certifications to salaries to help you understand how certification might affect your career goals.
The Problem - Cost
It's no surprise - tech education isn't cheap. Companies that hire quality instructors and create current courseware, tech videos, and online learning tools make investments in their products and charge accordingly for their classes and learning tools.
Idea #5: Negotiate for deals, discounts, and
freebies on Dice candidates' behalfs.
Whether you are finding instructor-led classes through Dice Learning, purchasing courseware through our webstore, or signing up for bootcamps, Dice has worked to obtain the best pricing and discounts on learning materials. You pay less when you use Dice Learning. Click here to view the current discounts, deals, and free offers exclusive to Dice Learning users.
Conclusion
It's widely recognized that the combination of on-the-job training and formal education is critical to the career health of tech professionals. Unfortunately, the world of tech training and certification has always been too complicated and daunting. There are too many providers, with too many classes, and too many claims.
We've worked hard to make Dice Learning into a valuable, free service for technology candidates. By taking the time to review major training providers, and determine who is the best, taking care of the most difficult task in finding a class. Our aim is to simplify tech learning just like we simplify tech jobs, and take the confusion out of IT training. If you can spend more time learning, and less time searching for classes and finding out who you can trust, we've done our job. We appreciate you utilizing Dice Learning, and look forward to developing this site to suit your needs over time.
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| Michel F (Canada) |
on 29 Oct 2009 at 12:02 pm |
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| This is a great thing that could help me, thanks! |
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| Gavel (St. Louis) |
on 23 Jul 2009 at 5:02 pm |
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| This looks like an excellent tool. Thanks Dice! |
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