I’ve always held the belief that certifications are important, but there are quite a few people who make the argument that certifications aren’t relevant today. A case can be made either way based on empirical data and anecdotal stories.

Some say that there is real data to show that the relationship between training, certification and the functional performance of teams of IT professionals. The results of this study are in the November 2009 report by Cushing Anderson called “Impact of Training on Network Administration: Certification Leads to Operational Productivity.”
IDC’s 36-month study involved surveying more than 1,100 IT managers who are responsible for more than 3,000 teams. The survey asked for details about more than 80 IT performance metrics in 26 different functional domains, which include deployment, development, management, security, storage and support. Having analyzed all that data, IDC has come to the conclusion that certification in relevant areas matters, and here’s why.
Increasingly, companies are relying on their IT departments to go beyond simply deploying and operating IT systems. IT departments are often included in business transformations and process improvements that will help the business grow and become more profitable. This means the department needs to have a staff of people with both business acumen and IT knowledge and skills. In many companies including the one I work in this is something that is expected although certifications are not really pushed or suggested. So again the argument I guess remains open ended and subject to upper management interpretation 