Any successful organisation considers their employees as their lifeblood. That said, investing in the right certifications is deemed one of the best moves they can make. When the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was introduced, training employees in matters that relate to data privacy has become almost obligatory.
In Singapore, those who want to know more about the foundation and competencies required to have a career in personal data protection have the option to take a PDPA course. Those who want to learn about the best PDPA practices can also benefit from taking a PDPA course.
For many years now, certifications have been used as a means of proving something to others. Certifications are also used to distinguish the best from all the rest, be it products, organisations, systems, processes, or individuals. That said, it is intuitively better to have a certification than none at all.
The Enticing Benefits of Privacy Certification
Pursuing a certification offers a plethora of enticing benefits including:
Standing out from the crowd
If you want to be different from the average, getting a certification from a reputable assurance body testifying about your skills in your area of expertise is recommended.
Beefing up your CV and getting noticed during the hiring process
This one is a no brainer. Even if there are countless others vying for a position, if you have a certification in the area of competencies the job requires, you get that edge over the others. Also, nowadays, most hiring agents use certifications and other relevant keywords to filter the CV of candidates.
Internal promotion
When looking for internal promotion or considering a career change, having certifications can be an advantage. Keep in mind that certifications highlight that you have the skill or knowledge in a specific field and you have put in the required time and effort to become better at what you do.
Proof of expertise
If you want to provide an assurance that you have in-depth knowledge of the position, getting a certification is one of the best things you can do. Certifications will also show that you have knowledge and have been exposed to all the important issues in the field. This is especially helpful when an organisation submits an application to a tender.
Assurance for clients
Privacy certificates can go a long way towards demonstrating knowledge of the subject matter and assures customers when they use the services of the company.
Nowadays, many certifications in the data privacy domain are available. Some are maintained and issued by reputable not-for-profit organisations whose primary activities cover advancing data privacy issues.
Others on the other hand (including those that are issued by commercial enterprises), provide services that are related to data privacy aside from certifications. Below are some of the notable certifications for privacy professionals:
- CIPP – Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) covers specifics about data privacy regulations and laws and how to apply them.
- CIPM – This is another data privacy certification from the IAPP. Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM) will prove that the person has the required expertise to maintain, establish, and manage privacy programs across all the stages of its life cycle.
- CIPT – Certified Information Privacy Technologist (CIPT) is another certification from IAPP. The main target audience is professionals in the engineering, technology, and information security fields.
- CDPSE – Certified Data Privacy Solutions Engineer (CDPSE) is a technical certification that assesses a technology professional’s ability to implement privacy by design. This will enable organisations to build trust and advance privacy technology platforms that provide peerless benefits to consumers.
