[en] How to get the Google Cloud Certified Cloud Digital Leader certification?
Introduction
The Google Cloud Platform Cloud Digital Leader certification is designed for those who are taking their first steps in the world of Google cloud. This certification is considered essential and does not require prior experience. Next, at the next level, is the Associate Cloud Engineer certification, and finally, at the professional level, we find a variety of specialization certifications, such as Data Engineer, Cloud Architect, Cloud DevOps Engineer, among others.
You can find detailed information about the other certifications at the following link: https://cloud.google.com/certification
Since this exam is relatively recent, online information about it is limited (January 2022). Therefore, I would like to share my experience to help those who are interested in obtaining their first Google Cloud Platform certification or adding a new achievement to their set of existing certifications.
The Cloud Digital Leader certification is designed for an audience with a more business than technical focus. Those who obtain it are expected to be able to discern the various capabilities of Google Cloud Platform’s key products and services, as well as understand how to use them to achieve the company’s desired business objectives.
Let me admit that I am not a newcomer to this field, as I have more than three years of experience working on data projects in the Google Cloud public cloud (January 2022), holding various roles such as Data Engineer, Technical Lead , Project Manager, Data Architect, among others. Despite my experience, I must admit that there were questions that made me hesitate in the exam. Therefore, my constant recommendation is that you invest time in reading, studying and intensive practice to obtain a solid mastery of the necessary content.
About exam
Duration: 90 minutes
Registration fee: $99
Languages: English and Japanese
Exam format: multiple choice questions with one or more answers
The exam to certify as a Cloud Digital Leader evaluates knowledge in 3 areas of interest, which are:
✓ General Knowledge of the Cloud (between 15% and 25% of the exam)
✓ General Knowledge of Google Cloud (between 25% and 35% of the exam)
✓ Google Cloud Platform Products and Services (between 45% and 55% of the exam)
The exam can be taken online supervised by webassessor or at a center authorized by Google.
You can register, schedule and pay for the exam from this link:
https://webassessor.com/googlecloud
IMPORTANT: when you register your personal information, make sure that your name appears exactly as it appears on your ID, Passport or Driving License that you will use to validate your identity, otherwise you will have problems validating the data and will not be able to take the exam.
On the day of the exam, it is essential to join the call at least 15 minutes before the scheduled time. During this period, you will need to complete some verifications with the exam instructor. The instructor may usually ask to see your surroundings, so it’s important to make sure your camera is enabled and you can move it if it’s external, or that your laptop (if it has a built-in camera) is ready for use.
In my case, they asked me to show the entire room, so I turned my laptop around so they could see every wall and corner of where I was standing. These instructions were given in English over the chat while they watched me. It is also important to remember that electrical devices are not allowed in the room. Be sure to check this before starting the process so that everything is more efficient and you don’t get distracted before taking the exam.
During the exam, it is important to keep your focus exclusively on the test, without getting distracted or trying to do other activities such as going to the bathroom or talking. The camera must remain on, and supervision will be constant throughout the duration of the exam. Any unusual behavior may result in cancellation of the exam. Therefore, it is advisable to plan ahead for the exam and manage anxiety effectively. It is essential to remember that it is not unusual to face challenges in these types of exams, so don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Courage and perseverance are key to overcoming these obstacles, always keep that mentality in your head.
Exam Preparation
For my preparation I used the official Google Cloud preparation track that is available on Coursera.org Google Cloud Digital Leader Training Professional Certificate, which is divided into 4 courses that I describe below:
Introduction to Digital Transformation with Google Cloud
This course defines fundamental terms such as cloud, data and digital transformation. It also explores examples of companies around the world using cloud technology to revolutionize their businesses. The course provides an overview of the types of opportunities and challenges that companies typically encounter in their digital transformation journey and aligns them with the pillars of the Google Cloud solution. But digital transformation is not just about using new technologies. To truly transform, organizations must also be innovative and scale an innovation mindset throughout the organization. The course offers best practices to help achieve this. Really very entertaining to get started in the Google cloud.
Innovating with data and Google Cloud
In this course, you’ll learn what data is, the historical ways companies have used it to make decisions, and why it’s so important for machine learning. This course also introduces students to technical concepts such as structured and unstructured data. database, data warehouses and data lakes. It then covers the most common and fastest-growing Google Cloud products around data, including BigQuery.
Infrastructure and application modernization with Google Cloud
This course explores the challenges of an outdated IT infrastructure and how businesses can modernize it using cloud technology. Start by exploring the different computing options available in the cloud and the benefits of each, before moving on to application modernization and application programming interfaces (APIs). The course also considers a variety of Google Cloud solutions that can help businesses better develop and manage their systems, such as Compute Engine, App Engine, and Apigee.
Understand Google Cloud security and operations
This course examines cost management, security, and cloud operations. First, explore how businesses can choose to maintain some or none of their own infrastructure by purchasing IT services from a cloud provider. Below, it explains how responsibility for data security is shared between the cloud provider and the enterprise, and explores the defense-in-depth security built into Google Cloud. Finally, it covers how IT teams and leaders need to rethink IT resource management in the cloud and how Google Cloud resource monitoring tools can help maintain control and visibility over your cloud environment.
Another equally valid option is to take these same courses under the CloudSkillsBoost.Google or pluralsight.com.
After completing all the courses, I decided to research and review the documentation of those products that I had not fully understood, with the aim of deepening my knowledge. I highly recommend exploring the official Google Cloud website, where you will find a complete list of all their available products.
Finally I supplemented my study with the practice exam that is available for free from here.
Good luck in your exam and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to write to me.
👍 Good luck in your exam! Let me know with a 👏 if this article was helpful to you and tell me if you passed the test.
