In my last blog I talked about 2009, and the many great things that happened.  Now I would like to take a few minutes to tell you about some of the things that we currently are doing and will be starting in 2010.  The list, where it is not inclusive, is representative of how IMC is growing and will continue to do so, and where we are going.

• ISO 17024 Accreditation. We will undergo the 17024 ISO certification accreditation process for our certification in mid-March.
• This will give us / our certification process recognition by ANSI, the American National Standards Institute, which is a member of the International Accreditation Forum and ISO. This will raise the visibility of the CMC with the US government, as well as with companies / managers who hire consultants.
• Government Relations. In 2010 we will begin an aggressive government relations campaign to raise visibility of the CMC to further their using CMCs for consulting projects. PMI did this a few years back with the PMP, and we feel that the CMC is due this same level of recognition.
• Already, several countries give preference in hiring CMCs or having CMCs on the project team (UK, Canada and Austria, for example), and UAE and other countries currently or will be requiring consultants practicing in their countries be CMCs. It is time that we did the same here in the US (and we are working to get it done);
• Consulting Standards. The EU, through a committee on standards, is creating a standard for management consultants for 2011 which is based on the CMC certification; this will become an ISO standard in 2011.
• This standard will be coming to the US through the ISO recognition in 2012, and IMC USA and our CMCs are and will be well positioned to take advantage of this.
• Protecting the IMC / CMC^® Brand. Some time ago we registered the CMC® through the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), and are in the process of doing the same for "Certified Management Consultant.”
• This will both raise the visibility and protect our brand in the marketplace.

And this is just the short list. The visibility, and thus marketability, of IMC and the CMC is increasing and will continue to increase, and while many of them are not for general dissemination due to the sensitively of the initiative, there is much happening.

If you want to talk about these things, pls feel free to give me a call at (760) 723-0022 or email me at drumm@imcusa.org. 

Happy holidays to you and yours,
Drumm McNaughton, Ph.D., CMC