George Yarusavage

Two times in my career I was hired because I was certified, and the other final candidate was not. In both instances, I learned about a year after getting the job that the other finalists and I had similar backgrounds, educations, abilities, and experiences. But the other guys had not given anything back to their profession, and had not given anything back to themselves. They didn’t belong to professional societies like AST&L, they hadn’t shared their knowledge with other practitioners, and they hadn’t furthered their own educations. In the first of these interview situations, the hiring manager didn’t know what a CTL was. When I explained the body of knowledge it represented, and compared it to the C.P.M., with which he was familiar, the interview was essentially over - I had an offer the next day. In the second instance, the hiring manager not only knew what the CTL was, he had listed it as a “preferred” qualification in the job description. That credential, and my current active membership in AST&L and other organizations, gave me an advantage that carried through the entire interview process, up to the offer I accepted.