How I Became the First HCIE-Datacom Expert in the World

In May 2022, I finally received my long-awaited HCIE-Datacom certificate, becoming the first Huawei Certified ICT Expert (HCIE)-Datacom in the world. I was bursting with excitement. At the time, I already had 14 years of technical experience in IT networking and had previously obtained HCIE-Routing & Switching, HCIE-Security, and HCIE-Cloud Computing certifications. To an outsider, the HCIE-Datacom certification might have seemed like just another box to tick. But the truth was, obtaining this certification was way harder than that.

How I became connected with HCIE

Why am I talking about HCIE? Because this program guided my ICT journey.

In 2007, I took my college entrance exams and was offered a place on a fine arts program. My family's financial situation at the time was not great, so I decided to pursue better career opportunities in the promising communications industry and went off to study at a network technology training school in Beijing. After graduation, I had a variety of jobs, everything from community network maintenance to enterprise network engineering. But I still was not satisfied with what I was taking home. I watched the careers of my colleagues and realized that the best way to expand my own was to first work on myself. So, I started my journey into the world of technical certifications. This was why I joined YESLAB in 2011 and became an ICT lecturer.

In 2014, I was invited by Huawei to participate in a one-month HCIE workshop. HCIE is a high-level ICT certification program that is part of Huawei's certification system. I saw that the HCIE program was rigorous, specialized, and highly valuable, so I began to pursue HCIE certifications in multiple technical areas. Not only did I pass the HCIE-Routing & Switching, HCIE-Security, and HCIE-Cloud Computing certifications, but I was also able to train 200,000 ICT trainees, more than 1,000 of whom later became HCIEs themselves. In addition, I co-authored the Huawei ICT certification series of books, Routing and Switching Technologies, to help pass on my ICT knowledge and skills to more people.

A checkered HCIE-Datacom certification journey

Then in 2020, Huawei announced its datacom certification program, representing a comprehensive step up from the existing routing and switching certification. In addition to mastering traditional routing and switching technologies, you have to master Huawei's data communications network solutions and emerging network technologies to receive this certification. The program was designed to help trainees build capabilities in network planning, deployment, O&M, and optimization across different network scenarios, and help foster the data communications talent required for the intelligent cloud-network era.

The datacom certification was met with significant enthusiasm. As one of Huawei's authorized training partners, YESLAB set up physical lab environments and SD WAN and cloud campus racks. I led the development and delivery of the related training courses, which was a very helpful experience as I later worked to obtain my own HCIE-Datacom certification. It helped me master the comprehensive basic knowledge required and get a hands-on understanding of the entire architecture.

On November 30, 2021, Huawei officially launched the HCIE-Datacom certification. I started to prepare for the exam, which was set to take place in February 2022, but the exam was postponed several times due to the pandemic. I eventually ended up in Beijing, flying up early so I would have extra time to prepare. I failed on my first attempt. But despite that failure, I left the exam with the exam room setup, pre-configuration, and more etched deeply into my mind.

That failure did not discourage me. Instead, it motivated me to start running more experiments and practice every operation in detail. I even dreamed about solving exam problems. That extra month of intense preparation boosted my confidence. However, once again, the exam schedule kept changing. I finally managed to take the exam in Hangzhou, and on this second attempt, I passed. I had finally gotten my HCIE-Datacom certificate.

Luck favors the prepared

Even though the road was tough and a bit chaotic, I am proud to be the first HCIE-Datacom expert in the world. My success is proof that luck favors the prepared.

For those preparing for the HCIE-Datacom exam, I want to share some advice. First, you will need comprehensive basic knowledge to understand the entire architecture. Second, you have to run a large number of experiments before taking the exam to help improve your operational skills. Third, you need a complete experimental platform to verify the accuracy of your operations. Finally, you will need to persevere. You will need to be patient, courageous, and confident. The younger trainees are often clever and act fast during experiments. I believe you all have a good chance of passing the exam as long as you prepare carefully.

This year, 11.58 million students are expected to graduate in China. That's 820,000 more than last year, and unemployment is a clear concern for all. However, there is still great promise in the ICT industry. Today's booming digital economy is creating new jobs every day. Since 2019, various authorities in China, including the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, have officially recognized 56 new occupation categories. Most are found in the high-tech sector, emerging industries, and modern service industries, especially those closely connected to digitalization, intelligence, and informatization. HCIE is a perfect opportunity for people looking to demonstrate their talent in ICT.

The HCIE certification was created to nurture comprehensive technical experts that excel in seven areas: enterprise application analysis, product skills, protocol insight, logical thinking, network fault diagnosis, network architecture design, and ICT project organization. HCIE certifications do more than just prove your professional skills, problem-solving capabilities, and the breadth and depth of your technical knowledge. They also earn you industry recognition and trust, and significantly improve your competitiveness in the job market.

Today, I am a gold medal lecturer at YESLAB's training center laboratory. The most valuable experience I can share is that the key to a promising and rewarding career is continuously learning and improving your technical skills. I encourage all young graduates to join the ICT industry, so we can all contribute to a more prosperous digital economy.