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Your Route To the Top

Careers in management can be very multi-faceted, and suit many different types of people. You will need to explore your training options to gain the relevant knowledge for your area of interest.

You can then work your way up either in one company (but usually several) by gaining valuable on-the-job experience along with further incremental training.

Our Spotlight Is On The Following Roles...

Database Administrator, Manager Of Human Resources and Systems Management.

Finding out about the various learning and exam criteria for each of these professions can take a good deal of investigation. There will be a number of training colleges featured alongside this report - they could be used as a good starting point when doing your research. If you Bookmark this page by typing Ctrl-D it will be easy to come back to whenever you want.

Database Administrator MCTS Training Programs

Not surprisingly, the management of databases is very detailed and analytical work. A senior administrator will have a team of data input clerks who must work to exacting standards. A DBA (Database Administrator) is accountable for everything that is put onto the organisation's Database Management System.

He or she will be expected to hold a professional certification such as the MCITP (Microsoft Certified Information Technology Professional) DBA, and have served their time in industry prior to making this grade of management.

You can get started on this career path by taking the Microsoft certification, the MCDST. You can get into industry with this, and begin building some technical employment experience. To progress your career you'll also need to learn about the database language known as SQL.

The recognised qualification for this is the SQL Server version of Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist or MCTS. Database systems can be very sophisticated and managing them takes skill. Database management can mean dealing with new software, implementing security controls and having an input into specific design features as well as the day to day running of data analysis, interpretation and reporting. The position of DBA is a highly respected one, and as such salaries have a tendency to reflect the seniority of the role.

Human Resources Management

Human Resources management suits people who enjoy working with and interpreting employment legislation, and can at the same time handle the internal day to day requirements of employees.

The HR team is responsible for ensuring the correct number of workers are employed in each department and that talented staff members are properly developed.

Alongside that work, the HR Manager and team have to ensure that all company policies conform to current employment legislation. It is the right of any worker to be told about all internal practices that concern employees - and HR are obliged to make them known. Staff disputes, benefits and compensation claims will also be under the jurisdiction of HR.

Promotion to a managerial position in HR would give you a very interesting and worthwhile career. The role has evolved over the last few decades from the 'Personnel Officer' who used to be responsible for advertising staff vacancies and processing the wages. The ability of the HR manager to keep a harmonious workforce is a key aspect of an organisation's future.

You'll find there are several colleges offering training to prepare you for work in the HR environment. A professional body for the industry that offers certifications and member support is the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, or CIPD for short. There are various levels of membership and certification programmes with the CIPD. Discuss your options with the specialist training organisations that advertise on the web.

IT Systems Management

The Systems Manager's job is to be responsible for implementing all the business technology systems. Duties will include budgeting, purchasing, in-depth analysis of the ICT infrastructure, plus overseeing security, back-up, storage capacity, server requirements and handling system changes when up-grades are implemented.

Most mid-large businesses and public bodies will employ an IT systems manager. Others will contract the work out to specialist companies.

They will have a great deal of knowledge and employment experience in the field of IT and technology, plus a strong business background. Within his or her department will be Systems Analysts, Computer Programmers and other support and computer related specialists.

There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to the training and certifications for systems management. Discuss your ambitions with several different IT training companies, and start in the area of IT that interests you the most.

Obviously at Systems manager level you will need expertise in many areas, including the database languages SQL and Oracle. You can take further training in both IT skills and business and management as you build your working knowledge.