In this episode, the Size Matters crew discusses training in the SMB and offer tips for maintaining and gaining new skills for any budget.

 Self-directed Research - it's never been easier to learn about technology without spending a dime. Blogs, Twitter, YouTube, vendor white papers & documentation - there is a wealth of information available for the searching. Find a blog where a fellow IT Pro has documented her experience researching, selecting, purchasing, and standing up a new platform or technology. Buy a book published by your favorite IT blogger.

     Pros:

Free or inexpensive
Enormous variety of content, both in kind and depth

     Cons:

You take what you can get

Hands-on Lab Time - nothing beats real time with a product itself. Any other training method should be supplemented by time using it in a test environment of your own, be it physical or virtual.

     Pros:

Real experience installing, configuring, using, breaking, and fixing the product
A home or test lab today is cheaper and easier to build than ever before
Studying for certification exams

     Cons:

Time - both in building / setting up the lab and working with the products
Justifying expense to management (test lab) or significant other (home lab)

Self-paced training - best bang for the buck and sometimes the only option. Companies like Pluralsight and CBT Nuggets have all you can eat subscription plans at fairly reasonable prices.

     Pros:

Not expensive, learn at your own pace/schedule
Easy (in my experience) to get your boss to fund it
But even if not, $299/499 for Pluralsight (more expensive gets you offline viewing and assessments) per year isn’t onerous as an investment in your career

     Cons:

Lonely (this may be a plus for introverts, but it drives this extrovert nuts)
No interactivity with trainer or fellow students
Finding time to focus on just training at work sometimes difficult

Instructor-led classes - either in-person or online

     Pros:

Discussions/networking with other IT Pros
Depending on quality of trainer, access to a real expert in the product during, and sometimes after the course
Ability to focus on training when away from work

 
     Cons:

Expensive - usually thousands of dollars for a 5 day course
Quality of trainers varies greatly from SMEs all the way down to glorified book readers
For small shops, getting a week away for training can be hard, if not impossible

Conferences - major vendor conferences (Cisco Live, VMworld, Microsoft Ignite) or independent conferences (BriForum)

     Pros:

Outstanding networking opportunities for current/future projects, and even future employment
Ability to get both the big picture and dive deep on certain topics
Ability to focus on training when away from work

 
     Cons:

Typically very expensive, especially with flight, hotel, meals plus conference pass
Many conferences are huge - easy to miss things, and if alone, feel out of place
Endless sales calls / emails depending on how naive you are about letting every vendor scan your badge just to get a t-shirt

For many folks, if you have a “travel budget” at all, one conference every year or other year can blow it all. That’s why we recommend getting and maintaining something like a Pluralsight subscription as a base, then making the case for either a vendor class or conference.  A year of Pluralsight is almost a rounding error compared to the cost of a 5 day class or conference, so I’d go Pluralsight + conference each year if I had the choice.