Much of my expertise was built in the trenches, through practicing, building, and learning directly from the field. However, I've come to appreciate the value of structured learning. I see pursuing formal courses and certifications as solidifying my hands-on experience, mastering a clearer vocabulary, consolidating concepts and frameworks that allow me to better align with teams and collaborators. This are more than simple skills.
I enjoy collecting badges from the web. Either from online courses or from events.
Here are some of them:
AI fluency course that teaches practical skills for effective, efficient, ethical, and safe AI interaction.
Claude Code 101 is designed for developers who are either new to software engineering or experienced engineers who haven't yet explored AI coding agents.
Claude Code for software development tasks, covering the underlying architecture of AI coding assistants, practical implementation techniques, and advanced integration strategies
Build on the Claude Developer Platform from the ground up, whether you've made a few API calls or have only used Claude through a chat window
Cowork is Claude working directly with your files, folders, and apps — reading, editing, and producing real outputs on your machine.
Earners of the LFEL1008: Migrating AI Workflows Across Platforms badge can export, translate, and recreate AI workflows across ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and Grok. They can document system prompts, configurations, and memory elements, and build a portable prompt vault to support consistent and transferable workflows across platforms.
Earners of the LFEL1010: XSS Exploits and Defenses badge understand the key concepts and practical applications of XSS vulnerabilities. They have hands-on experience identifying, exploiting, and mitigating reflected, stored, and DOM-based XSS using Arduino-based hardware setups.
Earners of the LFS146: Introduction to Cilium badge excel at implementing Cilium as a Kubernetes networking plugin. They use Hubble for network observability and configure secure, scalable networks with eBPF technology. Badge holders are skilled in connecting, monitoring, and securing Kubernetes environments, utilizing advanced features like L7 policies, transparent encryption, and cluster mesh networking. They can also optimize Kubernetes networking for enhanced security and performance.
The Pimcore Senior Developer certification validates advanced expertise in engineering, customizing, and scaling the Pimcore platform. It proves mastery over complex data modeling, custom bundle development, performance optimization, and the implementation of Pimcore's enterprise-grade E-Commerce and Customer Management Frameworks (CMF).
The Pimcore Consultant certification validates expertise in leveraging the Pimcore ecosystem to solve complex digitization challenges. It bridges the gap between technical capability and business strategy, proving the ability to architect, position, and deploy Pimcore’s unified data and experience management platform.
Claude foundations and the different ways to access Claude.
Earners of the SKF100: Understanding the OWASP® Top 10 Security Threats badge understand key concepts and best practices in web application security. They are proficient in identifying/addressing common vulnerabilities. They can assess potential risks and implement appropriate security measures, have knowledge of secure coding practices, and are aware of the importance of confidentiality, integrity, and availability in web application security.
Earners of the LFC108: Cybersecurity Essentials badge can apply security practices and precautions during online activities to minimize risks and securely protect personal and professional information from exposure and compromise. They can also identify what to do if a data breach occurs.
Earners of the LFS183: Introduction to Zero Trust badge have grasped the fundamentals of Zero Trust with open source tools like SPIFFE and SPIRE. They understand different trust models and can implement Zero Trust Networks using technologies such as Open Policy Agent and Istio service mesh, ensuring robust network security through a 'Never Trust, Always Verify' approach.
Earners of the SKF200: Mastering Infrastructure Security - Strategies, Tools, and Practices badge have a solid understanding of all hacking phases, from reconnaissance to access acquisition, along with executing web/API attacks, exploiting backups, performing SQL and command injections, and system vulnerability identification for privilege escalation. They employ these skills ethically to enhance system security and prevent infrastructure hardening and configuration errors.
Earners of the SKF201: Threat Modeling - The Essentials Toolkit badge have demonstrated the ability to identify, assess, and address threats in system design using frameworks like STRIDE, DREAD, and PASTA. They have learned to map security requirements using the Requirements Traceability Matrix (RTM) and explored AI-driven threat modeling. Through hands-on labs and case studies, earners applied these skills to mitigate potential threats in complex systems.
Earners of the LFS118: Ethical Principles for Conversational AI badge understand and address the ethical challenges of conversational AI. They evaluate privacy risks, data collection issues, and consider the needs of vulnerable groups, including children. Badge holders can distinguish between different types of AI agents and apply ethical principles to ensure responsible use of AI, enhancing accessibility and well-being while minimizing potential harms.
Earners of the LFS120: Conversational AI: Ensuring Compliance and Mitigating Risks possess the knowledge and skills required for AI roles in risk management, including applying the EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, and ISO/IEC 42001:2023 standards. They can identify, analyze, and mitigate ethical, technical, and regulatory risks associated with conversational AI systems. They promote ethical AI practices and compliance, making them valuable contributors to trustworthy and responsible AI implementations.
Earners of the LFEL1011: OpenAPI Fundamentals badge have the skills to apply OpenAPI in the design and development of their APIs. They understand why OpenAPI is important in the context of the API economy, the features of the OpenAPI Specification, and how OpenAPI describes the APIs they build. They understand, through examples, how OpenAPI is applied in the API lifecycle and have the means to find the tools they need to help them utilize OpenAPI in the most effective way possible.
Earners of the LFEL1009: Getting Started with OpenTofu badge understand the benefits of Infrastructure as Code (IaC) tools and workflows and can use OpenTofu to provision and manage basic infrastructure with simple configurations.
Earners of the LFEL1012: Secure AI/ML-Driven Software Development badge can use AI code assistants securely in development environments, apply secure coding practices in AI-assisted development, and review AI-generated changes effectively. They are proficient in mitigating risks such as the “lethal trifecta,” developing secure MCP servers, countering slopsquatting, and managing low-quality AI-generated contributions (“AI slop”).
Earners of the LFS262: Implementing DevSecOps badge know how to transform existing DevOps-based software delivery to incorporate Security Practices for cloud native applications. They incorporate continuous and automated analysis of the software and third party components using practices such as SCA, SAST, DAST, etc. They understand how to secure various layers of the application infrastructure, including Kubernetes, container runtimes, cloud, as well as underlying host operating systems.
Earners of the LFS170: Blockchain - Understanding Its Uses and Implications badge understand blockchain technology and its applications across industries. They are familiar with key concepts such as cryptography, smart contracts, and governance models, and recognize how blockchain addresses challenges like the double spend problem. Earners are prepared to participate in discussions and make informed decisions about blockchain technology in their organizations.
Earners of the LFC104: Ethics for Open Source Development badge can work comfortably and productively on ethically sensitive open source technology. They have a good understanding of the ethics journey cycle and can practically utilize the methodology in any open source use case. They can operationalize ethics as a decision-making tool, work collaboratively with open source communities to develop ethically sound technology, and lead a team through the ethics journey cycle.
Earners of the LFC111: Open Source Technical Documentation Essentials badge are ready to evaluate the state of their product documentation. They can initiate the development of a strategy aimed at enhancing and expanding their documentation, ensuring it achieves maximum effectiveness in attracting users, providing a clear learning path for new users, and fostering success for users of all kinds.
Earners of the LFS140: Feature Flagging with OpenFeature badge can confidently apply feature flagging techniques in their codebases using OpenFeature. They can explain the varied applications of feature flagging and enumerate what's required of a flag management system to power these different applications. They have hands-on experience in writing maintainable feature-flagged code and avoiding "feature flag debt".
Earners of the LFS151: Introduction to Cloud Infrastructure Technologies badge are well-versed in key cloud concepts such as virtualization, IaaS, PaaS, and container management. They have skills in deploying and managing containerized applications, utilizing tools for configuration, build and release, and monitoring. Additionally, badge holders understand software-defined networking and storage, DevOps, CI/CD practices, and the basics of service mesh, IoT, and serverless computing.
Earners of the LFS162: Introduction to DevOps and Site Reliability Engineering badge are familiar with DevOps and SRE practices. They understand the role of cloud computing and Kubernetes in enhancing software delivery and infrastructure management. Badge holders have learned the basics of Infrastructure as Code, Continuous Integration, and Continuous Deployment, and can apply observability systems to maintain software quality.
Earners of this designation completed a series of eLearning courses which started with containers and Kubernetes fundamentals, and moved to system monitoring, cloud native logging, and Kubernetes application management. The training covered advanced IT concepts related to cloud, containers, service mesh, monitoring, logging and more, and provided all the knowledge needed to move roles into cloud engineering. Earners completed the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) Certification exam.
Earners of the LFS241: Monitoring Systems and Services with Prometheus badge can set up and use Prometheus to monitor core system components and services. They implement query language, integrate alerting and service discovery support to gain better insight into systems and services and define actionable and precise alerts. These candidates can also use Prometheus to monitor various metrics on a Kubernetes cluster, and are able to integrate Prometheus components with other monitoring systems.
Earners of the LFS242: Cloud Native Logging with Fluentd and Fluent Bit badge can install and configure instances of Fluentd or Fluent Bit in cloud-native environments to process log data from multiple inputs, filter and transform data, and distribute log data to various backends. They can also configure Fluent ecosystem deployments for high availability, high performance, and security.
Earners of the LFS243: Service Mesh Fundamentals badge can install, configure, and use service meshes to establish distributed systems for microservice-based applications. They know the basics of the Service Mesh Interface specification. They have a good understanding of common resilience strategies for distributed systems, and they can select and implement those strategies through a service mesh for cloud-native apps. They can also implement an ingress controller for a service mesh.
Earners of the LFD141: IT Specification Basics for New Developers badge have demonstrated the ability to gather and document requirements, write clear and precise specifications, validate accuracy, and ensure alignment with industry standards, enabling effective IT development and collaboration.
Earners of the LFEL1004: Authentication & Authorization for Web/API badge can design, configure, and manage secure identity and access controls for web and API applications. They are proficient in implementing OAuth 2.0/OpenID Connect flows, Single Sign-On integration, Role-Based Access Control, multi-factor authentication, and token-based security to enforce least-privilege access.
Earners of the LFEL1005: Security Self-Assessment for Open Source Projects badge have worked to create a security self-assessment that will aid their project in planning, joint security assessments, and security audits.
Earners of the LFEL1007: Automating Supply Chain Security - SBOMs and Signatures badge have demonstrated the understanding and ability to leverage open source tools to sign and secure application packages and artifacts, and enable consumers of their packages to verify their integrity. Earners have also demonstrated their ability to assess software for supply chain security information and to verify release artifacts.
Earners of the LFS169: Introduction to GitOp badge can explain what GitOps is, along with its key principles, practices and technologies within the context of setting up Continuous Delivery on Kubernetes. They understand the two reconciliation models and three main tools used to implement GitOps on Kubernetes. They understand the benefits of GitOps: how to set up infrastructure, roll out applications and recover from a disaster, all using developer-friendly git-based workflows.
Earners of the Remote Work at Scale (LFC114) badge excel in delivering value, communicating effectively, and collaborating intentionally in distributed environments. They adeptly manage agency, strategically design their workdays, and use agendas and documentation for progress tracking, and building trust among stakeholders. They forge strong relationships, solidifying their reputation as expert communicators and collaborators.
Earners of the LFEL1002: Getting Started with Rust badge understand the importance of Rust, its main features, and how Rust integrates with other programming languages. They can write a simple program in Rust and use Cargo to build and manage their Rust program. Learners can also employ basic ways to fix and improve their Rust code.
Earners of the LFS101: Introduction to Linux badge have gained the skills to effectively navigate and manage configurations across major Linux distributions. They utilize both the graphical interface and command line proficiently. Badge holders are skilled in system startup, file operations, network management, and basic scripting. They have also developed a strong understanding of local security principles, including system updates, root privileges, and password management.
Earners of the LFS203: Linux for Cloud Technician Essentials badge can perform critical customization & configuration tasks for cloud and non-cloud instances. They can manage networking, system services, user account creation & administration, and more. They are familiar with virtualization, containers, and DevOps/GitOps concepts. They are skilled in text file processing, file operations, bash scripting, git, and troubleshooting and can efficiently administer multiple systems in the cloud.
Earners of the LFS258: Kubernetes Fundamentals badge possess a strong operating knowledge of Kubernetes, including how to deploy a containerized application, manipulating resources via the API, accessing the cluster, and configuring Secrets and ConfigMaps.
Earners of the LFW212: Node.js Services Development understand how to create web servers and leverage ecosystem frameworks for rapid composability. They know how HTTP works at a Node core API level, what the essential RESTful practices are, and what is needed to implement RESTful services. They also possess skills needed for server and service composition.
Earners of the LFC207: Collaborating Effectively with Open Source Projects badge know how to work most effectively with upstream open source projects and how to build sound contribution strategies in their organizations to get the maximum benefit from working with project communities. They can describe multiple common upstream project governance models, and explain how these governance practices affect an organization’s ability to make effective contributions.
Earners of the LFD259: Kubernetes for Developers badge can containerize, host, deploy, and configure an application in a multi-node cluster. They can also define application resources and use core primitives to build, monitor and troubleshoot scalable applications in Kubernetes using a simple Python script. These candidates have experience working with network plugins, security and cloud storage, and understand the many features needed to deploy an application in a production environment.
Earners of the LFW211: Node Application Developer badge have demonstrated proficiency with Node.js fundamental concepts and core APIs at an upper intermediate level. It has been established that this developer has the key transferable skills required to be an effective Node.js programmer regardless of framework/libraries used or use cases involved.
Earners of the LFS244: Managing Kubernetes Applications with Helm badge can successfully deploy and manage container-based applications on the Kubernetes platform using Helm. They have a good understanding of the various Helm commands used for managing an application’s lifecycle. They are familiar with the various components of Helm charts, and how to build, maintain, configure, and install them.
Earners of the Leading High-Performance Working Group Meetings (LFC120) badge have gained skills in leading effective Working Group meetings. They can manage discussions dynamically, utilize time efficiently, and drive clear outcomes. This badge acknowledges their understanding of group dynamics, their strategies for handling conflicting agendas, and their ability to foster collaboration. It signifies their readiness to conduct productive and engaging meetings as a Working Group Chair.
Earners of the LFS180: Introduction to DevSecOps for Managers badge understand DevSecOps principles and recognize basic concepts such as value stream management, platform optimization, and Continuous Delivery. Recipients have also learned about setting effective metrics, cybersecurity fundamentals, and agile contracting within government frameworks. Equipped with this knowledge, they are prepared to introduce secure software delivery practices in their organizations.
Earners of the LFD254: Containers for Developers and Quality Assurance badge understand the open container ecosystem and know how to run, operate and troubleshoot containers. They build container images and use tools such as Buildah, Podman and Skopeo. They know the basics of container networking and different storage concepts. They also know how to build and deploy a microservices stack with Docker Compose and how to deploy containers in production. They are familiar with Kubernetes and Tekton.
Earners of the LFS207: Linux System Administration Essentials badge have the tools and concepts they need to efficiently build and manage an enterprise Linux infrastructure. They know how to work with Git and perform essential collaborative tasks, and can use state-of-the-art system administration techniques in real-life scenarios.
Earners of the LFEL1000: Introduction to FDC3 badge have an understanding of the FDC3 Standard and how it provides a common framework for defining and sharing contextual information within the financial industry. They are aware of the FDC3 landscape and the underlying components of the standard. Have an understanding of the Open Source project and how they can actively participate in contributing to the Standard.
Earners of the LFEL1001: Understanding the EU Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) badge have the skills to navigate CRA requirements and support organizations in meeting cybersecurity obligations. They can define core terminology, distinguish key roles and responsibilities, and apply essential cybersecurity requirements. Earners can assess user information needs, recognize required markings, and evaluate the implications of non-compliance, contributing to more secure and compliant systems.
Earners of the LFS253: Containers Fundamentals badge have a good understanding of container technologies. They are able to do container and image operations with different container runtimes, manage network and storage (volumes) with containers, as well as build and run multi-container applications with Docker and Docker APIs.
Earners of this designation demonstrated the skills, knowledge and competencies to perform the responsibilities of a Kubernetes Administrator. Earners demonstrated proficiency in Application Lifecycle Management, Installation, Configuration & Validation, Core Concepts, Networking, Scheduling, Security, Cluster Maintenance, Logging / Monitoring, Storage, and Troubleshooting
Earners of the LFC112: Creating Effective Documentation for Developers badge can identify diverse API types and grasp elements needing reference documentation. They differentiate between high-level conceptual content and low-level technical details for API references and other documents. They collaborate with technical writers, creating a documentation plan and coordinating processes within software development workflows.
ITIL® 4 Foundation demonstrates this individual understands the key concepts of IT and digital service delivery including the key concepts, guiding principles and practices of ITIL® 4 for service management. They have a fundamental understanding of the modern organisation’s end-to-end operating model for the creation, delivery and continual improvement of technology-enabled products and services. They have an awareness of how cultural or behavioural principles benefits the wider organisation.
Badge earners have knowledge and understanding to contribute within organizations applying the TOGAF Standard. Individuals have the following competencies: 1) A common language with TOGAF practitioners. 2) A basic understanding of the TOGAF approach for Enterprise Architecture. 3) The prerequisite qualification for becoming a TOGAF® Enterprise Architecture Practitioner.
Earners of the LFS248: Cloud Cost Monitoring for FinOps with OpenCost badge have a strong understanding of the capabilities and cost monitoring data provided by OpenCost. They are familiar with the basics of FinOps and how to apply the cost and billing data for cloud and Kubernetes infrastructure towards improving efficiency and reducing costs. They can deploy OpenCost to support a wide range of infrastructures.