Certification - Starting Again!

[rgarzon1]

After 7 years working with Dynatrace, being certified twice as Associate and once as Professional, I’ve seen how the certifications have evolved. This year, for example, the Master certification disappeared and now you need 7 different certifications just to apply for the Ambassador program.

But beyond adding a new badge in Credly, I keep asking myself: how meaningful is this really for those of us who have been contributing for years with projects, extensions, and community support? Personally, I always thought the Professional certification would create a stronger connection with the brand and other teams, but in practice it felt more like a commercial hook than an opportunity for real integration or recognition.

To make things even more interesting, I now have to retake the Associate certification again, and soon my Dynatrace Partner Sales Engineer badge will expire. While I do appreciate the training that came with it, I honestly never understood the real value of having it — in the end, it felt like just another badge to show.

On top of that, after working with more than 60 clients across 3 countries, and even being recognized as a partner, we still have to deal with the egos of local Dynatrace leaders. If they’re in a good mood, they can be great allies — but if not, they become the biggest barrier. And here’s the key difference: as a customer, the experience is one thing, but as a partner, you would expect to have more influence on changes, greater collaboration, and a more open relationship with the brand. Unfortunately, Dynatrace remains quite closed in that sense.

And yes, I understand that perhaps part of this is because I am not in a major economic region, and maybe the focus is naturally stronger in areas where other brands are more inclusive. But honestly, that shouldn’t be a limitation.

What I’d really like —and I share this as an invitation to the conversation— is for certifications and partnerships to be more than just a visual badge or a commercial agreement. They should be a real bridge to collaborate more closely with Dynatrace, to access specialized support groups, to share field experiences, and to truly feel like part of a living community that is close to the brand.

What do you think? Have you experienced something similar, or has your journey with Dynatrace certifications, partnerships, and community been different?