IS IT MONEY, or the milk of human kindness that makes the world go 'round? Trick question: Information technology (IT) makes the world go 'round. And successful IT requires smart people who have a high degree of expertise. IT pros don't gain all of that breadth and depth of knowledge just by snapping their fingers, of course. Education, experience and personal aptitude all play a role.

So does certification. As technology evolves, certification helps skilled professionals stay abreast of the changes. And increasingly, as teachers and professors look for the best means of educating high school and college students and preparing them for real world IT jobs, certification lays the foundation for a lifetime of IT learning and growth.

While money may not actually be the medium that transmits new technology into every corner of the globe, money is certainly involved. And certification is one way for you to get more of it. Or maybe it's not. Are your certifications helping you find success in the job market? One way for all of us to find out is CertMag's annual Salary Survey.

After you, and (almost) everyone else like you, gives us the answers to a few simple questions, we'll crunch the numbers and tell you what we find. We are asking for a small chunk of your time: The Survey has about 75 questions (answering a certain way in a couple of spots may skip you ahead) and probably takes about 20 minutes to complete.

We know that taking any survey requires patience and time, so we're giving back to everyone who participates. If you take the survey all the way to the end, we'll thank you with either (or both!) or two incentives. You can get a free digital subscription to Certification Magazine for one whole year. Or you can get a one-year print subscription at 40 percent off the normal cost. (Hate making decisions? Get both! We don't mind.)

You can see the results next year in January, when our first quarterly issue of 2017 rolls around. (Why not subscribe? No really, we promise you'll love it.)

BIG THANKS to everyone who participated in our annual Salary Survey. Watch for the results to appear the forthcoming 2017 Winter Edition of Certification Magazine.