LPI Launches Open Source Professional Recruitment Service

[Will.Spencer]

LPI Launches Open Source Professional Recruitment Service
(San Francisco, California, USA: August 16, 2006)

The Linux Professional Institute (LPI), (http://www.lpi.org), the premier Linux certification organization announces the launch of an employment and contract matching service for Open Source Professionals who are registered on LPI's internal exam candidate database. This program will match IT professionals with Open Source skills with listing employers and contract opportunities. The program will be piloted in North America, Latin America, Germany, China, and India.

Jim Lacey, President and CEO of LPI, said that the program was developed due to overwhelming demand from Fortune 100 IT companies from around the globe: "LPI is recognized globally as having highly qualified, skilled and accredited IT professionals. Our certification program is respected for its dedication to skills development and professionalism as opposed to being a tool to sell software and training services. As a result through the dedicated work of our partners on our Regional Engagement Initiative we are receiving numerous and frequent requests from enterprise customers for referrals for highly skilled Open Source professionals. This program addresses this growing need." Mr. Lacey also added that although the program would be piloted in select markets the internal infrastructure had already been developed at LPI to rapidly address new market opportunities in other regions.

Mr. Lacey went on to state that this is the first skills databank of its kind devoted entirely to Open Source professionals. Although the program will focus on LPI's certified Linux Professionals (LPIC) it also welcomes other Open Source professionals to register, obtain an ID number, and provide their skills profile for this matching service. The program is entirely voluntary and is intended to serve recruiters, employers, and contracting organizations in their need to place highly skilled Open Source IT professionals.

Open Source professionals and existing LPI candidates may participate in this voluntary program by "opt-ing" in through a series of questions provided on the LPI exam registration system. Enterprise customers, recruiters, and others providing contract opportunities should contact Glenn McKnight, Director of Operations, for details on pricing for employment and/or contract listings and learn in greater detail how the program will identify qualified and skilled Open Source professionals for potential assignments.

The Linux Professional Institute (LPI) is a vendor-independent organization advocating and assisting the professional use of Linux, Open Source and Free Software, through the certification of Linux professionals. LPI was established as a non-profit organization in 1999. LPI’s certification program is delivered worldwide in several languages. LPI has delivered over 120,000+ LPIC-1 and LPIC-2 exams and 35,000+ certifications, globally, since the program’s inception.