眾所皆知，在被抹平的世界裡，每個行業都正不斷的被專業分工與標準化，認證逐漸成為顯學，唯『證』時代或許言過其實，但確是跨入抹平世界的必然趨勢。

然而，聽過CNE（Certified Novell Engineer）證照嗎？這張曾經是ICT認證鼻祖的證照，是哪家公司、哪個產品的證照？現在能回答的人似乎越來越少，足見這個證照產品所曾經擁有過的市場與周邊加值行業，已不復當年盛況！

這個例子見證了過去十多年來，資通訊（ICT）產業、產品認證與市場的供需連動，隨著企業經營從產品走向商業模式，人才考量關鍵也從價格轉向價值考量，從中驗證了證照與行業興衰互動的四種特性：

1.證照是行業景氣的前視與後視指標。
2.證照熱度與行業發展相輔相成。
3.證照和行業興衰有區域化移動與全球化競爭的雙重特性。
4.證照價值隨市場需求與證照數量而快速變化。

從市場供需的發展軌跡來看，開發中國家或區域，熱門的市場主流通常都以資訊基礎建設為主，這個階段的證照需求，大致上也以電腦、區域網路以及網路作業系統為首；而後隨著電信網路舖設，網路已成為辦公室不可或缺的配備，這時期的網路規劃、建置相關證照，就緊跟著水漲船高。

然而回歸『科技來自人性』的初衷，資訊的價值仍是在人際行為上的應用，這也是目前全球資訊匯流的最新趨勢-產業升級後的服務加值應用，此階段的核心關鍵-人才，無疑成為帶領企業成長的引擎，而證照不僅成為學歷外的重要參考，更是驗證人才能力的重要指標。

根據美國CertCities 網站 （http://certcities.com）調查2004~2006全美十大熱門ICT證照來看，在一個典型服務加值型產業國家中，三年內市場與證照發展趨勢一致，主要還是以高階網路產品、資訊安全、開放原始碼和專案管理等證照為主軸，其中尤以資訊安全和專案管理最值得注意，不僅連年進榜，數量和排名也不斷提升。

以台灣ICT產業發展緊追美國市場的現況來看，隨著全球委外、岸外生產、供應鏈外移等趨勢影響，低階ICT人力需求漸漸縮減，高階的軟體架構、軟體品保顧問、資安顧問和專案管理師取而代之成為熱門職缺，相關證照在『物稀為貴』的情況下，當然同步走紅。

證照反映產業與市場興衰，證照與個人、企業相互加值，相互為用而緊密結合，這種產業市場→證照→市場→產業的循環，正透過區域經濟板塊挪移，不斷在全球各地湧現。因此當認證開始啟動另一種商機時，通常也意味產業對人力創新投資的價值肯定，換言之，「服務型加值產業」的年代已悄然來臨。

在Joseph Pine II 與James H. Gilmore 所合著的『TheExperience Economy』體驗經濟一書中，將企業發展分成五種經濟模式，從產品→商品→服務→體驗→轉型; 這樣的劃分，具體呈現企業與個人對「服務」的要求，將會隨著區域經濟的發展逐步演化，以馬士洛（A.Maslos）的5大動機需求來解構這樣的發展，剛可以對應出層級企業發展的潛在因素與未來核心在產品與商品的競爭空間裡，『成本』的掌控是關鍵，從服務與體驗的角度來看，『差異化』是選擇的要素，而如果企業要以『轉型』為訴求，那麼『創新』是唯一的途徑。取得『產品』或『商品』認證，只是個人或企業進入產業的門票，任職也只是『服務』價值的開始，解決客戶的問題、讓客戶因而獲利，才是證照發揮『體驗』與『轉型』的價值所在。

由此可見，ICT產業與證照的未來發展，應朝向服務加值產業的終極目標，例如從「獲取顧客的青睞」與「搶奪客戶的心」等，來找尋可能的方向！

As a result of the ongoing process of economic globalization, all industries are seeing the emergence of an increasingly fine division of labor and an increased emphasis on standardization. These trends are reflected in the growing importance of certification as a means of demonstrating competence.

How many people today have heard of CNE (Certified Novell Engineer) certification? Once upon a time CNE represented the ultimate in ICT professional certification, but nowadays the number of people who could tell you what type of products or technologies this CNE certification covers is growing smaller all the time; both the certification and the related industry segments are past their prime. This is just one example of the way that ICT certification has been affected by changes in market demand over the past 10 years or so. As enterprise come to focus less on products and more on business models, and to emphasize value over price in their human resources decision-making, the relationship between certification and the health of the industry to which it applies can be seen to display four key features:

1.Certification constitutes both a leading and lagging indicator of the health of the industry to which that certification applies.

2.There is a mutually reinforcing relationship between the popularity of a particularly category of certification and the development of the industry to which that certification applies.

3.Both certification and the health of industries have dual characteristics of regional move and global competition.

4.The value of a particular type of certification can change rapidly in line with changes in market demand and in line with the number of people holding that certification.

In developing countries and regions where the main emphasis in ICT development is on basic IT and communications infrastructure, demand for certification is heavily concentrated in basic computing, LAN (Local Area Network) and network operating systems. As telecommunications network infrastructure improves and Internet access becomes a vital business tool, demand for certification relating to network planning and network deployment increases.

Ultimately, the value of information lies in its application to interpersonal activity. This fact is reflected in the current global trend towards the development of value-added services. In this stage of ICT development, human talent becomes the single most important driver of growth for the business enterprise, and professional certification becomes than just a supplement to traditional educational qualifications: it is a vital indicator for appraising an individual's capabilities.

In the US, CertCities (http://certcities.com) has published the results of a survey undertaken to determine the 10 most popular ICT certificates in the US - one of the countries where the development of value-added services is most advanced – during the period 2004 – 2006. The results showed that certification relating to high-end networking products, information security, open-source services and project management had become increasingly popular, with information security and project management certification attracting the most interest; both information security and project management moved steadily up the Top 10 rankings over the three-year period.

The development of the ICT sector in Taiwan has followed closely on the heels of the US. The global trends towards outsourcing, off-shoring and supply chain relocation have resulted in a gradual decline in demand for low-level ICT talent in countries such as the US and Taiwan. At the same time, demand for high-end software architecture experts, software quality control consultants, information security consultants and project management specialists has increased, resulting in a commensurate increase in demand for related professional certification. The popularity of particular types of certification reflects the health of the industries and markets to which they are related. In terms of value creation, there is a mutually supporting relationship between certification, individual employees, and business enterprises. The industry→market→certification→ market→industry cycle can now be seen all over the world as a result of the movement in regional economies.Whenever certification can be seen to be stimulating the development of a new type of business opportunity, this usually reflects the recognition within industry of the value of investing in manpower development; in other words, the era of the value-added service industry is dawning.

In The Experience Economy, Joseph Pine II and James H. Gilmore identify five stages in business model evolution: commodity business→goods business→service business →experience business→transformation business. This five-stage model shows how the needs of business enterprises and individuals with respect to services evolve in line with the development of the regional economy. The model can be integrated with Maslow's hierarchy of needs to clarify the factors that enterprises at each stage need to consider.

At the commodity business and goods business stages, cost is the key factor affecting competition between enterprises. At the next level – service business and experience business – differentiation is the most important element. Finally, if an enterprise wishes to move into the transformation business, then innovation is the only way to achieve that goal. Certification – whether of commodities or goods – is only the "entrance ticket" for the enterprise or individual concerned. Taking up a new position is only the commencement of the "service business" stage; an individual's professional certificates only begin to create value and take them up to the experience or transformation business stage when the individual or the enterprise for which they work succeeds in helping the firm's customers to solve their problems and make profits.

The ultimate goal in the future development of the relationship between the ICT industry and professional certification should thus be the promotion of the valueadded service industry. Enterprises and individual employees will need to move away from merely securing customers to "winning their customers' hearts".