New Delhi, India, September 01, 2020 – Fortinet has announced it is
integrating its Network Security Expert training and certification curriculum
with IBM’s SkillsBuild, a digital platform for users to develop technology and
professional skills, including cybersecurity. Fortinet and IBM will focus on
creating new cybersecurity career pathways by training traditionally untapped
candidates and connecting learners to employers. This collaboration underscores
Fortinet’s Corporate Social Responsibility commitment to closing the
cybersecurity skills gap through global collaborations and its Network Security
Expert (NSE) Training Institute’s Security Academy Program.
Rajesh Maurya, Regional Vice President, India & SAARC at
Fortinet, said,“To further address the cyber skills shortage, we’re excited to
partner with IBMto integrate Fortinet’s Network Security Expert training and
certification curriculum with IBM’s SkillsBuild digital platform. As both a
technology company and learning organization, Fortinet will work with IBM to
make it easier for anyone to start a career in cybersecurity regardless of
their background, previous access to education, or life experiences.”
Growing Demand for Cybersecurity Professionals
Cybersecurity is a high growth area and the global pandemic has
further boosted the industry’s demand. An(ISC)2 poll found that 81% of
respondents view security as an essential function as employees are working
remotely due to COVID-19. As the demand for cybersecurity professionals
continues to rise, so does the need to attract a broader more diverse workforce
into the field.In fact, a recent Fortinet survey found that 68% of
organizations struggle to recruit, hire and retain cybersecurity talent. With
the global pandemic, this challenge has significantly increased.
Fortinet and IBM Join Forces to Further Develop the Cybersecurity
Workforce
Fortinet and IBM’s partnership will help address this issue
through SkillsBuild, a digital platform that provides jobseekers, including
those with long-term unemployment, refugees, asylum seekers, veterans and
students, with career fit assessments, training, personalized coaching and the
experiential learning they need to enter or re-enter the workforce. SkillsBuild
will now include cybersecurity curriculum from Fortinet’s NSE Training
Institute for jobseekers looking for a career in security.
Through SkillsBuild’s new curated cybersecurity content leveraging
Fortinet’s NSE training and certification curriculum, Fortinet and IBM aim to:
• Provide cybersecurity training that develops skills, reskills
and upskills: Now more than ever, there has been an increase in jobseekers,
including those who are unemployed and impacted by the pandemic. SkillsBuild’s
content based on Fortinet’s training curriculum can assist individuals looking
to learn new skills or expand their current cybersecurity knowledge so they can
enter the field or progress in their career growth.
• Help untapped candidates launch their careers: Fortinet and IBM
are providing more learning opportunities to candidates who may typically be
overlooked for a role in cybersecurity. These untapped candidates include those
with long-term unemployment or underemployment, young adults without
traditional degrees, refugees, migrants, asylum seekers, career changers,
veterans and military spouses. Fortinet and IBM are both working with
non-profits focused on the military community worldwide—including CASY,
SaluteMyJob and Soldier On—to provide veterans and military spouses training
and skills to enter the workforce.
• Connect learners to employers: Through Fortinet’s Security
Academy Program and Veterans Program, Fortinet connects veterans and veteran
spouses to its ecosystem of partners and customers. Many of them have secured
employment in cybersecurity as a result. Now, Fortinet will work to extend its
ecosystem of hiring partners and customers to learners on the SkillsBuild
platform as well.
• Offer further recognition of skills: Through IBM’s SkillsBuild,
learners can earn badges that offer tangible evidence to employers of their
expertise, including a cybersecurity badge for the courses leveraging
Fortinet’s curriculum. These badges prepare learners toward a path to receive
technology-focused certifications, such as Fortinet’s eight-level Certification
Program.Technology-focused certifications are highly valued by employees as
seen with a recent Fortinet survey that found that 82% of organizations prefer
to hire candidates with certifications.
Fortinet’s Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives
One focus area of Fortinet’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
initiatives is addressing the cybersecurity skills gap by
collaboratingwithother businesses, academic institutions through the Security
Academy Program,and governments around the world.Fortinet partners with global
leaders from various sectors to help shape the future of cybersecurity and to
build new opportunities in the digital economy.In addition to its strategic
partnership with IBM to further develop the cybersecurity talent pool, Fortinet
is a founding member of the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) Centre for
Cybersecurity and the Cyber Threat Alliance. Fortinet also has a partnership
with the NATO Communications and Information Agency, and is a member of an
expert working group within INTERPOL.
Additionally, Fortinet offers training and certifications through
the NSE Training Institute to further develop skills and reskill or upskill IT
professionals to fill the talent shortage. Fortinet recently made all of its
NSE Training Institute’s self-paced security training courses available for
free to help address the rapidly evolving needs of organizations securing
highly distributed and remote workforces. These courses provide individuals the
opportunity to gain new knowledge or upskill.
“Some of the toughest challenges businesses are facing today need
skills that don’t require a traditional degree, such as cybersecurity experts,
which is why there is a critical need to make sure everyone–from job seekers to
professional transitioning to new careers–are gaining meaningful skills that
align to industry needs. That’s why, regardless of background, education or
life experience, SkillsBuild will equip learners with the professional skills
and mentorship they need to be more employable and navigate jobs in the new
digital economy,” Lisa Neddam, SkillsBuild Program Leader, IBM Corporate Social
Responsibility.
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