| June 2005 • Volume 25 • Number 6 • The Meeting Professional |
The CMP at 20
The meetings industry’s past and future continue to shape the Certified Meeting Professional designation.
By Mitchell Beer, CMM
With more than 10,000 meeting professionals carrying the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) designation and a series of strategic initiatives taking shape to carry the program into its third decade, the Convention Industry Council’s CMP has a lot to celebrate in its 20th year.
In January, another 443 CMPs were added to the list, and in March the Convention Industry Council (CIC) announced that the program had certified 10,297 meeting professionals in 26 countries. The CIC, which administers the CMP on behalf of 31 member associations, is at the center of a flurry of activity designed to keep the CMP as current and vital as the industry it serves.
The list of new initiatives includes a comprehensive job analysis of the meetings, conventions and exhibitions industry aimed at revalidating CMP exam content; an international edition of The Convention Industry Council Manual; and efforts to educate current CMPs and future candidates about international meetings and catering to international attendees.
CIC President and CEO Mary E. Power, CAE, stresses the value of broadening the designation beyond North America.
“We’ve been working diligently for the last four years on the global expansion of the CMP program,” said Power, a member of the MPI Potomac Chapter. “It has become what our psychometricians refer to as a ‘country-neutral’ program.”
At this point, 70 percent of the 4,000 questions in the CMP item (or question) bank are considered country-neutral, and CMP-related study groups and exams are scheduled in locations as diverse as Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Africa and Germany.
“These are very bold moves to expose the meetings profession in the global marketplace and have companies and associations worldwide recognize that there really is something to this job and this profession,” said John S. Parke, CMP, chair of the CMP Board of Directors and president and CEO of Leadership Synergies LLC.
Power adds that you can talk about doing meetings internationally, but when you attend a meeting internationally, it brings a whole different perspective.
Power traces the change in the CMP back to the growing international character of meetings and events.
“Even planners doing meetings in Iowa will find that a lot of their attendees are from outside North America, and a true meeting professional should have an understanding of the expectations of those people,” she said.
The CMP is now either mandatory or highly preferred in job postings for meeting professionals, and if the designation helps you get a job with a global company, the expectation is that you have some knowledge of global meetings, Power says.
Susan Krug, CMP, CAE, a former CIC vice president and executive director of the Child Life Council, says some large supplier organizations are playing an active role in getting their staffs certified.
“There are existing training programs within the supplier community where they can very easily create their own CMP study groups around the world,” said Krug, a member of the MPI Board of Directors.
Krug and Power also underscore the CMP’s role in creating a baseline for education and professional development across the industry, including MPI’s Career Pathways program.
“The CMP designation establishes a basic competency in meetings management,” Krug said. “It has credibility because it is supported by all the major organizations within the industry, and by the commitment of the volunteers who help maintain its quality.”
Back to the Beginning
It’s safe to say that no one was thinking about a 10,000th CMP or an international designation on June 6, 1985, when the first 23 CMPs took their exam in Chicago. Howard Feiertag, CMP, CHME, CHA, a member of the first graduating class, recalls very little distinction at the time between meetings management and party planning.
“The meeting profession wasn’t really very well known, and most people who planned parties strictly took care of the details,” said Feiertag, an instructor at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Va., and an MPI life member. “Very little of the meeting content was prepared by the people who planned them.”
“The industry at the time was not really even recognized,” agreed Delia M. Chang, CMP, CMM, an MPI life member. “I couldn’t even explain to my mother what I did for a living. It was easy when you were a first-grade teacher, but a meeting professional?”
A Gradual Evolution
Chang was Hawaii’s first CMP when she earned the designation in the program’s second year. After moving to the eastern United States, she organized the MPI New Jersey Chapter’s first CMP study group. But it didn’t take her long to realize that universal recognition of the CMP would take a while to solidify.
She recalls her excitement the first time she saw “CMP” on a stranger’s business card.
“At that point, there were only 88 of us,” she said. “When I looked a little more carefully, the card said ‘Certified Massage Professional.’ That kind of put me in my place.”
Krug remembers the early emphasis on building a solid foundation for the CMP.
“It’s a credit to the program that it has always used best practices in certification,” she said.
When the program increased its profile and began generating significant revenue, the CIC reinvested in the designation by conducting job analyses and getting more people involved, Krug says. She cites the CMP’s 75 percent to 80 percent recertification rate as evidence of its value, adding that her own CMP studies have given her the foundation to move into a more senior position in the industry.
In 1995, the CIC instituted the annual CMP Conclave to maintain the program’s alignment with industry trends and meeting professionals’ needs. Each year, the conclave brings together a group of senior industry leaders to review, edit and validate the exam questions in the CMP item bank. The conclave itself has evolved, as well, with the addition of an educational component designed specifically for CMPs. This year’s CMP Conclave in Toronto, June 26-28, will feature a special commemorative dinner to mark the designation’s 20th anniversary.
Twenty years into the program, Parke says, recognition of the meetings profession is still an issue, but with one crucial difference.
“Back then, there was very little if any academic curricula to back up the job responsibilities,” said Parke, a member of the MPI Potomac Chapter. “There just wasn’t very much structure or rigor within the industry.”
In contrast, many colleges and universities now offer specific courses and degrees in meeting planning, and the academic community is engaged in building a solid body of knowledge and best practices, Parke says.
“The depth and sophistication of today’s CMP program support a new focus on strategic value, underscoring the place of meetings and events within an organization’s broader communication plan,” he said.
What’s Next?
Ask almost anyone involved with the CMP where the designation should go during the next five years, and you end up with a concentrated snapshot of the rapid transition facing the meetings industry as a whole.
Power says many of the ongoing changes in the CMP exam have to do with updating questions or shifting emphasis—technology, for example, receives more attention now than it might have in the past. She identified return on investment and strategic meetings management as two areas where the program will be adding content.
Technology may also reshape the CMP exam, depending on the CMP board’s review of the confidentiality, security and access issues involved in migrating to an online format.
“While it may seem like an obvious next step, in reality it’s not a no-brainer,” Parke said. “We’re looking at the best practices of other organizations that have moved in this way, we’re evaluating the financial implications and we want to be sure that if we move in this direction we do it thoughtfully and do it right the first time.” TMP
MITCHELL BEER, CMM, is president of InfoLink: The Conference Publishers in Ottawa, Ontario.
CMP: Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is the Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) program and why should I obtain the CMP designation?
A. For more than 15 years, the Convention Industry Council (CIC) has defined new levels of professionalism through its CMP program. CIC certifies individuals through an internationally recognized certification program that evaluates the competency of meeting professionals. The CMP designation represents a standard of excellence in the meeting and exposition industry.
Q. What do I need to do to become a CMP?
A. Visit the CIC Web site, www.conventionindustry.org, for the CMP Application Form and submission details. In order to apply, applicants must have 3 years of experience in the meetings industry.
Applications are submitted to the CMP Board for review and verification, and applicants will receive an e-mail in four to six weeks with application review results.
After taking the exam, it will take approximately six to eight weeks to receive results by mail from the testing agency. The notice will include a test report indicating areas of strength and weakness.
Q. How do I prepare for the CMP exam?
A. Information is provided in the CMP Candidate Handbook, to help candidates prepare for the exam, including recommended reading, an examination blueprint and a few sample exam questions. Candidates may also choose to join a study group or study independently for the examination. Many orgainizations sponsor study groups, but they are all independent of the CIC. Participation in a formal study group is not required. Candidates should also take the official CMP online practice examination.
Q. What do I need to do to qualify as an applicant?
A. Eligibility for the CMP exam is based on points derived from actual experience in several aspects of meetings management. Points are assigned within five specific areas of meeting management:
• Experience in meetings management
• Management responsibility
• Education and continuing education
• Membership in professional organizations
• Professional contribution to the meetings industry
Q. I’m a CMP and it’s not time for me to recertify yet, but I want to know what is involved in recertification.
A. Every five years, CMPs are required to recertify to maintain the CMP designation by documenting ongoing involvement in the meetings industry and continued employment and education. To be recertified, CMPs must complete a recertification application. Recertification requirements are consistent with those for the original application, but do not include an examination. Typically, the first recertification notifications are mailed to CMPs during the first quarter of the expiring year.
Q. I’m currently a CMP and I want to serve as a proctor for the next exam. What do I need to do?
A. Send the request in writing to the CIC office. Specify what areas and exam dates you are interested in along with your request.
For more information, visit www.conventionindustry.org.
Source: Convention Industry Council
The CMP by the Numbers
First CMP exam: June 6, 1985
Number certified, first graduating class: 23
North American cities in which January 2005 exam was administered: 21
Total CMPs worldwide, as of January 2005 exam: 10,297
Average new CMPs per year, as of 2005: 1,000
Countries with at least one CMP: 26
First CMP Conclave: 1995
Editions published, The Convention Industry Council Manual : 7