CISA® is the globally renowned professional certification provided by ISACA. CISA stands for ‘Certified Information Systems Auditor’ and is considered amongst the top paying certifications consistently for the past many years, as per industry sources and surveys like Global Knowledge.

There is a growing demand for CISA worldwide, mainly because of the auditing and control aspects that it inculcates. With the rapid expansion in technology, organizations find it difficult to maintain and monitor the security aspects. Gone are the days where employees would be assigned specific work spaces/cubicles with connected desktops. Today’s organizations support a myriad of flexible work options including Work from home, BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), shared office spaces and more. And with this development comes greater concerns on the information security aspects. Who better to audit these aspects than a certified professional? That’s where the real value of CISA® comes in. CISA holders are able to demonstrate a combination of strong auditing with sound technical knowhow. Furthermore, a CISA designated individual is mandated to attend workshops and trainings to keep his/her knowledge abreast. So day-to-day technological developments are well understood by CISA professionals thereby proving their capabilities at their work places. Pure play auditors are seldom aware of technology and therefore find it difficult to audit or assure IT/ITES companies. While I am not a sceptic of traditional auditors, it’s important to understand the confluence of technology and thereby merge the roles of traditional auditing with IT knowledge.

Is the CISA demand just within America or is growing worldwide, even across countries like India? This is a common question I hear from many of our CISA participants. CISA® is growing globally. Take India for example. The ICAI (the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India) in a notification sometime in Feb 2016, requested all CA firms performing audits of PSU banks to have atleast 1 CISA designated individual within the firm. CERT-IN, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team, has recognized CISA as one of the requirements to be empanelled to conduct security audits. Furthermore, the Indian market regulator SEBI, the National Stock Exchange NSE and many other regulatory/governing bodies recognize/mandate CISA for conducting IS audits. So, it’s never a doubt that CISA® will only grow in recognition and CISA holders will enjoy more and more benefits worldwide.

Now that you know why a CISA designation is important, get yourself certified and stand out in the market. CISA exams are held 3 times a year across 3 test windows namely May-June, August-September and November-December. Get in touch with ApnaCourse, a leading CISA training institute and become a CISA professional. Jump start your career now!