12/19/2001 -- On Oct. 15, Compaq Chairman and CEO Michael Capellas sent all certified ASEs a letter to reassure them about the future of their certification program in light of the company's proposed merger with Hewlett Packard.

The letter gives no details on what specific changes may happen with the program, but in it Capellas says that the company will "remain committed to the high standards you have come to expect of us."

"I am writing to personally assure you that the Compaq Accredited Professional community remains absolutely fundamental to us," Capellas wrote.

Despite the nature of the letter, two ASEs we talked with said that it did little to assuage their concerns. "I was unimpressed....It said little to nothing about the status of our certification and what requirements would be heaped upon us when Compaq no longer exists in name," said one ASE, who wished to remain anonymous.

Another ASE posted his take on the letter as: "....a very vague statement saying that we are valuable...If you ask me personally, no [to the] merger. It will take the uniqueness out of both companies and create a monster no good for anybody (except for
institutional investors)."

Both ASEs said that did not want to be quoted by name for this story because they value their titles and didn't want their comments to be seen as a slap on the current certification program. In fact, "The ASE program office staff is one of the best parts of Compaq," one commented. " I have never asked a question and gotten an 'I don't know 'answer. It is always, 'I will find out for you,' and have never been disappointed."

"The support that I get using my ASE hotline is nothing short of amazing," this ASE continued. "No hold, third-level support to start, never a busy signal. I hope that it continues."

We contacted Compaq's ASE program managers to see what kind of reaction they received to the letter and the merger in general.
Marketing Program Manager Barbara Sandro responded to our request, but said that the program was not allowed to comment on the issue because it is related to the merger.

The complete text of the letter is available here. (Wait for the page to load, then click on the scrolling item: "What happens to my certification after the merger?" ) CertCities.com will bring you more on this story if/when it develops. -B.N.