Karen Kotowski
This summer, in a move to advance globalization of the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) program’s body of knowledge, the CMP Board of Directors announced its approval of a revised CMP Blueprint, hereafter to be known as the CMP International Standards. The new standards define and categorize a comprehensive summary of the competencies, skills, and abilities a certificant must possess to be successful in the meeting and event planning profession, according to the Convention Industry Council (CIC), the industry body that administers the program and awards the CMP certification.
“Our standard practice is to update the blueprint every five years,” Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, chief executive officer of the CIC, stated in the announcement. “The last blueprint was revised in 2007, so this update is right on schedule.”
“Our standard practice is to update the blueprint every five years,” Karen Kotowski, CAE, CMP, chief executive officer of the CIC, stated in the announcement. “The last blueprint was revised in 2007, so this update is right on schedule.”
This time, the CIC partnered with other major organizations to take a broad-scale approach toward globalizing the CMP competency standards. This phase of industry efforts surrounding standardization embodies the CIC’s outgoing CMP Blueprint along with Meeting Professionals International’s (MPI) Meetings and Business Events Competency Standard (MBECS), released for public distribution in June, as well as the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council’s (CTHRC) recent Event Management International Competency Standard (EMICS).
“These standards are arguably one of the most important resources we have ever had in terms of professional development and career enhancement,” stated Bruce MacMillan, MPI president and CEO, in the MBECS release. “By using the MBECS as a field guide to success, professionals in any role and at any stage of their career can now follow a reliable path to career advancement by developing key skills and mastering competencies that will get them to the next level.”
By combining and building upon these resources in its latest update to the previous CMP Blueprint, the CIC has produced a more complete body of knowledge upon which to base the CMP program in the future.
“We conducted an additional job analysis to validate the resulting body of knowledge and ensure alignment with the CMP,” Kotowski stated. “The resulting CMP International Standards are much more detailed than the previous blueprint, so it was really a matter of re-weighting the topics and adding updates that have occurred in the industry over the five years since the previous analysis.”
According to the CIC, alignment with the CTHRC’s competency standard, which has been adopted by several nations, is an important strategy for the CMP program moving forward, as other countries look to the CMP certification as a means to qualify their workforces.
“The process of making the CMP globally applicable has been under way for some time,” stated Martie Sparks, CMP, chair of the CMP Board. “The first major change was implemented last year with the introduction of the new CMP application. The new application places the emphasis on industry experience and education. The next step was to conduct an international analysis of the skills and competencies required of today’s meeting professionals. That has been completed and is embodied in the new CMP International Standards. Now that we have the new standards, there is additional behind-the-scenes work that needs to take place before they go into effect.”
The action plan for implementation includes the development of updated exam questions and the addition of new study materials, according to Kotowski. Therefore, officials note, candidates who plan to sit for the CMP exam through January will test against the previous CMP Blueprint. The last major test day for the current CMP written exam will be at the Professional Convention Management Association’s (PCMA) Convening Leaders event in San Diego on January 7, 2012.
In fact, the PCMA is another major industry player on board to support the globalization process. In light of the new CMP International Standards, in a separate announcement, the PCMA stated it is working with the CIC to align its CMP Online Prep Course and its Professional Meeting Management textbook with the revised standards.
“We couldn’t be more supportive of the good work of CIC and the CMP Board of Directors in updating core competencies and globalizing the CMP designation,” stated Deborah Sexton, PCMA president and CEO. “We’re looking forward to working with them to update our industry resources to represent the new content areas and organization of the new CMP International Standards.”
On the horizon: more changes to the program and exam process in terms of accessibility.
“The CMP Board has initiated the process to move to computer-based testing in the second quarter of 2012,” Kotowski stated. “This will truly open up the CMP certification to the world with a global testing platform. Access to the exam and convenience for candidates will multiply exponentially.”
Industry professionals who have long anticipated a unifying set of core competencies have lauded the recent updates and actions centered on globalizing standards.
“It is one thing to call ourselves professionals and another thing altogether to be regarded and respected as professionals by organizations and employers outside the meetings industry,” stated Carol Krugman, CMP, CMM in MPI’s MBECS release. “Having recognized standards will provide the necessary framework and increased credibility we have been seeking for decades.”
“I believe the EMICS devised by the CTHRC could be the tipping point for bringing more professionalism and credibility throughout the entire events industry around the world,” stated Julia Rutherford Silvers, CSEP, author of the Event Management Body of Knowledge (EMBOK) project. “I also believe that, just as MPI did for the MBECS that will inform the new CMP blueprint, the EMICS will be adopted by industry associations and be customized to meet the needs of each sector’s unique circumstances. This will facilitate parity of esteem for certification credentials as well as career development and mobility. This is what everyone who has been working on ‘body of knowledge’ projects has hoped for.”
When released, the new CMP International Standards will be available from the CIC website as a free download.
“These standards are arguably one of the most important resources we have ever had in terms of professional development and career enhancement,” stated Bruce MacMillan, MPI president and CEO, in the MBECS release. “By using the MBECS as a field guide to success, professionals in any role and at any stage of their career can now follow a reliable path to career advancement by developing key skills and mastering competencies that will get them to the next level.”
By combining and building upon these resources in its latest update to the previous CMP Blueprint, the CIC has produced a more complete body of knowledge upon which to base the CMP program in the future.
“We conducted an additional job analysis to validate the resulting body of knowledge and ensure alignment with the CMP,” Kotowski stated. “The resulting CMP International Standards are much more detailed than the previous blueprint, so it was really a matter of re-weighting the topics and adding updates that have occurred in the industry over the five years since the previous analysis.”
According to the CIC, alignment with the CTHRC’s competency standard, which has been adopted by several nations, is an important strategy for the CMP program moving forward, as other countries look to the CMP certification as a means to qualify their workforces.
“The process of making the CMP globally applicable has been under way for some time,” stated Martie Sparks, CMP, chair of the CMP Board. “The first major change was implemented last year with the introduction of the new CMP application. The new application places the emphasis on industry experience and education. The next step was to conduct an international analysis of the skills and competencies required of today’s meeting professionals. That has been completed and is embodied in the new CMP International Standards. Now that we have the new standards, there is additional behind-the-scenes work that needs to take place before they go into effect.”
The action plan for implementation includes the development of updated exam questions and the addition of new study materials, according to Kotowski. Therefore, officials note, candidates who plan to sit for the CMP exam through January will test against the previous CMP Blueprint. The last major test day for the current CMP written exam will be at the Professional Convention Management Association’s (PCMA) Convening Leaders event in San Diego on January 7, 2012.
In fact, the PCMA is another major industry player on board to support the globalization process. In light of the new CMP International Standards, in a separate announcement, the PCMA stated it is working with the CIC to align its CMP Online Prep Course and its Professional Meeting Management textbook with the revised standards.
“We couldn’t be more supportive of the good work of CIC and the CMP Board of Directors in updating core competencies and globalizing the CMP designation,” stated Deborah Sexton, PCMA president and CEO. “We’re looking forward to working with them to update our industry resources to represent the new content areas and organization of the new CMP International Standards.”
On the horizon: more changes to the program and exam process in terms of accessibility.
“The CMP Board has initiated the process to move to computer-based testing in the second quarter of 2012,” Kotowski stated. “This will truly open up the CMP certification to the world with a global testing platform. Access to the exam and convenience for candidates will multiply exponentially.”
Industry professionals who have long anticipated a unifying set of core competencies have lauded the recent updates and actions centered on globalizing standards.
“It is one thing to call ourselves professionals and another thing altogether to be regarded and respected as professionals by organizations and employers outside the meetings industry,” stated Carol Krugman, CMP, CMM in MPI’s MBECS release. “Having recognized standards will provide the necessary framework and increased credibility we have been seeking for decades.”
“I believe the EMICS devised by the CTHRC could be the tipping point for bringing more professionalism and credibility throughout the entire events industry around the world,” stated Julia Rutherford Silvers, CSEP, author of the Event Management Body of Knowledge (EMBOK) project. “I also believe that, just as MPI did for the MBECS that will inform the new CMP blueprint, the EMICS will be adopted by industry associations and be customized to meet the needs of each sector’s unique circumstances. This will facilitate parity of esteem for certification credentials as well as career development and mobility. This is what everyone who has been working on ‘body of knowledge’ projects has hoped for.”
When released, the new CMP International Standards will be available from the CIC website as a free download.
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