Talked to an MSP last week who was frustrated.
“I just can’t get my team to go after certifications.”
So I asked, “What’s in it for them?”
He said, “Well… it’ll make them better at their jobs.”
Sure. That’s part of it. But if that’s your whole pitch, you’re going to keep getting blank stares and half-finished training modules. Let me break it down for you.
Why Training Actually Works (It’s Not Just About Skills)
Engineers who get certified don’t just get smarter—they get more done. More output = more progress. And progress is addictive. People feel better when they see growth.
You know what happens when your team feels good about their progress?
- They’re more productive.
- They stay longer.
- They’re happier—and so are your clients.
And here’s where it really gets interesting: Training increases their market value. They can prove what they know. They start knocking out projects faster. They’re worth more. And guess what—if you’ve got the right comp plans, you benefit from that increased value too.
But that’s not all.
Training Reduces the Need to Hire More People
More productive engineers means fewer gaps to fill. And fewer hires means less organizational complexity. Less complexity means less management overhead. And that means faster growth with lower costs. So yeah, training makes your engineers better. But it also makes your business more scalable, more profitable, and less chaotic.
Here’s How You Get Them Moving: Introduce the Bounty
Waiting for people to self-motivate on certifications? That’s cute. Here’s a better idea:
Put a bounty on it.
- First person to get the certification: $1,000
- Second: $500
- Third: $250
You just turned training into a competition. You created urgency. You made it worth their time now. It’s a win for them. It’s a win for you. And it drives exactly the kind of culture your MSP needs to scale.
Start with the GCSP
Want to build a real security culture inside your MSP? Start with a cert that teaches your engineers how attackers think, how to find weaknesses, and—most importantly—how to prove they fixed them. It’s called the GCSP. It’s built for techs. And it’ll change the way your team thinks about securing client environments.
