From: Lab Dude (ccielabdude@gmail.com)
Date: Wed Feb 20 2008 - 11:52:57 ARST
Hi Alan,
I personally think that as a Network Support
Engineer/Consultant/Architect/Designer one needs to have a diversified
portfolio. By that I mean being familiar with a variety of different vendors
products and technologies in order to be successful at what you do, assuming
you don't only work with a single vendor equipment/technology all the time
at your day job. I personally wouldn't want to put all my eggs in one
basket, unless I work for a particular vendor and have no choice but to
pursue that vendor's products/technology :-)
Lets face it, Cisco is the leading vendor at this time when it comes to Data
Networking (Enterprise and SP space both) with Juniper as the next major
competitor. Working towards CCIE is great, and I personally think that one
needs to have at least CCIE R&S along with 5-6 years of hands-on experience
with Cisco kit. I think CCIE R&S gives you a good solid exposure to core
Cisco technologies. If you feel that you work more with other aspects of
Cisco (like SP, Security, Voice etc) on a day to day basis, then either one
of those CCIEs would be a good option to pursue after you get your CCIE R&S.
I personally don't recommend getting more than 2 CCIEs (at max) unless you
plan to work at Cisco TAC, or as a NCE/SE at Cisco. Most large organizations
are multi-vendor these days and usually prefer candidates who have had
exposure to different vendor kit with the ability to think outside the box
:-)
In the SP and Enterprise space, Juniper is the leading competitor of Cisco.
Hence, if you plan to target SP or Enterprise space (which is where most
networking folks are focused at currently), I would get some form of Juniper
certification (along with some hands-on experience) to back it up along with
a CCIE R&S. This would help increase your marketability. From a potential
employers perspective, 2x CCIE might be better than 1xCCIE R&S and some
other vendor certification (for instance Juniper) along with some hands-on
experience of both vendors to back it up. Theres no point in getting
multiple certifications without any real hands-on experience with the
particular vendor kit. Its almost as good as not having the certification.
If you are focusing on Security space, after getting your CCIE R&S, maybe
you might want to focus on getting CCSP first, then CCIE Security. Once you
have achieved CCIE Security (or are working towards it), you might want to
consider other Security certifications like CISSP (ISC2) or some Check Point
stuff (like CCSA or CCSE).
These days Wireless/WiMax is hot too. Might be worth exploring options in
that area, if you want to diverge from Cisco/Juniper.
Going for other vendors like Alcatel, Lucent, Siemens, Tellabs, Ericsson
might be good, but I would explore the job market for folks with that
vendors technology in isolation, and check out the salary range and skills
demand etc. There is no point in focusing on *a* particular vendor in an
attempt to shy away from Cisco/Juniper, just to find out that you are
limiting your job scope, and future job/growth prospects.
My two cents.
On Feb 20, 2008 12:23 PM, Alan Chng <ccieteam@gmail.com> wrote:
> Fellow experts,
>
>
> Considering the amount of time and 'sacrifice' made to achieve the
> CCIE and make our mark in the networking field, would anyone here
> contemplate on moving to a role supporting another vendor (e.g. Alcatel,
> Tellabs, Ericsson) ??. I'm referring to a role which requires in-house
> training to learn the intricacies, proprietary protocols and CLI of the
> vendor and be completely "isolated" from the Cisco world. I'm discounting
> Juniper since I tend to see them in the same market segment.
>
> Would anyone do it? And if so, what would be the factor? Better
> opportunity?
> Less competition? Another challenge?
>
> I find the switchover challenging as I believe a lot of us started the
> CCIE
> journey more as a hobby and through the course of the time and developed a
> familiarity to the IOS, not to mention the resources, information,
> forums/communities that are widely available today.
>
>
> Any opinions will be much appreciated
>
> Regards,
> Alan
> CCNP/IP/SP, R&S due in May
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