Certification

To take your practice to the top tier you can apply to become a CMC (Certified Management Consultant).

The CMC mark denotes the highest level of excellence and professionalism in management consulting, gaining you:

• A competitive advantage over other consultants
• An effective way to address client concerns about ethics
• Proof of expertise and professionalism

In selecting management consultants, managers are well advised to seek individuals who meet the profession's standards of competence and ethics. The CMC designation is a valuable aid in this quest. Certification by the Institute of Management Consultants is the mark of excellence among management consulting professionals.

Twenty thousand consultants from over twenty nations have been awarded the CMC by one of the certifying institutes which comprise the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes. The CMC qualifications of all national institutes meet a minimum global standard recognized by all. IMC USA is a founding member of the Council, established in 1987 to advance worldwide certification.

When you see the initials CMC following a consultant's name, it means that he or she is a Certified Management Consultant and has met strict certification requirements of the Institute of Management Consultants.

The Institute was founded in 1968 by the principal associations in the consulting field to establish publicly recognized standards of competence and professional conduct for the individual management consultant.

Applicants for Institute certification undergo thorough investigation of their consulting experience; they are interviewed by a panel of senior consultants to verify their technical competence; and they must pass a written examination evidencing their familiarity with the Institute's Ethics Code, which they have pledged in writing to follow.

Qualifications

Every step leading to the CMC designation has been designed to verify the candidate's professional competence.

• A Certified Management Consultant must have had at least five years of experience in the full-time practice of management consulting, with major responsibility for client projects during at least one of those years.
• The CMC has had to provide multiple references, most of them officers or executives of clients served. These references have been investigated to assure that consulting relationships were satisfactory.
• The CMC has had to provide written summaries of five client assignments (disguised to protect client identity).
• The CMC has had to pass a qualifying interview by senior CMCs, demonstrating professional competence and currency in areas of specialization, application of experience, and understanding of the management consulting process.
• The CMC is examined to confirm understanding of the Code of Ethics and attests annually to abide by it.

The certification process is expressly designed to assure that those who bear it will uphold the highest standards in the consulting industry.

For more information or an application, see the Certification area of the IMC USA website.