Rackspace surpassed its 2022 AWS Certification Goal through its RU AWSome Certification Program

Re-affirming our company-wide commitment as an Amazon Web Services (AWS) technology partner, Rackspace Technology met and surpassed its objective of new AWS certifications in 2022. The “RU AWSome Certification Program,” coordinated through Rackspace University, experienced a delayed launch in May. At some point during the summer, we started feeling the nerves; would we have enough time to reach our certification goal before the year’s end?

The answer was a resounding, “Yes.” Building on the foundation of our AWS partnership over many years, Rackspace Technology employees, known affectionately as Rackers, attained 575 new AWS associate, professional and specialty certifications, surpassing the goal well ahead of the December 31 deadline.

“It was a tight timeline and we wanted maximum participation,” said Travis Runty, Rackspace Technology CTO, Public Cloud. “Achieving certification sets us apart as sellers of expertise and is vital for our customers and prospects seeking superior AWS knowledge and services.”

AWS certifications demonstrate a commitment beyond the topic or duration of the course. With every new certification, Rackers boost their official expertise, fuel their ability to innovate and elevate Rackspace in the eyes of our customers and prospects. In fact, according to AWS Cloud research, 97% of IT leaders who employ AWS-Certified staff say doing so puts their company in a better competitive position to succeed over the next three to five years.

After the program kicked off at a smaller scale, and with some initial trepidation about whether the goal could be attained within the projected timeframe, Rackspace Technology spun up the entire program to ensure that, from C-level and BU-level, the company was driving awareness and getting optimal buy-in. “We leveraged the entire Rackspace Technology ecosystem; leaders, partners, our Rackspace University team, and Rackers were aligned on the goal,” said Runty. “We began tracking on a weekly basis and once we got rolling, everybody pulled together. AWS went the extra mile for us, supporting us every step of the way, providing resources to add excitement and swag to add motivation.”

All Rackers take the CliftonStrengths Assessment upon being hired, and “Learner” is one of the top strengths at Rackspace Technology. Because so many of us are learners, we strive to ensure that our top technical talent is always being challenged and has a path to expand their capabilities and marketability. This mentality contributed significantly to our attainment of the RU AWSome goal at the end of 2022— a full three months ahead of schedule.

Rackers find Rackspace University to be an invaluable resource in the development of their careers. Rackspace University offers a variety of training and development resources to help grow our internal skills and deliver the future for our customers. These programs are built to support sustainability across three areas: environmental sustainability, economic sustainability and equity. In total, Rackers hold 9,500+ technical certifications across AWS, Microsoft® Azure®, Google Cloud, Cisco®, Oracle®, Red Hat®, SAP, VMware® and other solutions.

“When you sell expertise, as Rackspace Technology does, what you know today is good, but it’s not going to be enough to create value tomorrow,” said Runty. “Without investing in our talent, there is no value to sell our customers. And this initiative demonstrates that everybody — our people, our partners, and our leaders — truly means it when they talk about investment in our team members as their highest priority.”

See how AWS training and certification helps us hone our strategy to build specialization and breadth of expertise across our teams in this short video.