I am an 16+ years of experienced software programmer, architect. I have the tendency to think I can learn anything if the job needs it within couple of weeks. I also see certifications generally take anywhere between 4-12 weeks based on the complexity. I am of thinking that what could you really master in 4-8 weeks than working on them day and day out and gaining experience. I usually have gained good records in terms of performance throughout my career. Are my thoughts valid about certifications or certifications are the way to go. I am searching for a Job but my Linkedin Applications are rejected and I am at loss to know the reason. I tick all the boxes for the jobs I apply. Whats wrong ?
I think applying for jobs on LinkedIn might be the actual problem. That site is the bottom of the barrel, the place people scrape through when all else has failed.
You should start with your actual professional and personal contacts, i.e. people who know you as opposed to “connections” on LinkedIn and other social media sites.
Identify specific companies you think you want to work for and target them by learning as much as you can. The idea is to present yourself as the perfect match for their actual needs, rather than one more mass-emailed resume that “ticks the boxes” on a generic job posting.
You need to present yourself as someone who will add value and solve business problems. Regardless of what job postings say, no business has the requirement “We need another person with XYZ certification.” What business problems does that represent? Or rather what lazy outsourced hiring practice?
If you don’t have a professional network (hard to imagine if you have 16+ years experience), reconnect with former colleagues and friends, and make it your goal to meet more people with jobs and spend less time on LinkedIn.
If you don’t have the necessary certifications, you don’t get past the HR bot, and your application is never seen by a live human being.
Back in the day, Netware certifications really meant something. And then Cisco certifications really meant something. Most Unix/Unix-like certifications, not so much.
These days, low-level AWS certifications are relatively easy to get. The higher end certifications do seem to be more difficult to obtain, and do appear to require that you actually know your stuff.
I can’t speak for any other certifications.