What is the value of certification?

Having spent much of of my professional life in education, life long learning it a "core value".Beyond my own interest in promoting life long learning, think about the benefits among your co workers and employees. Anyone that is willing to take their own time to learn more, to better their understanding and approach to their industry is motivated. When you are building a team one looks at what someone will bring to the organization not just immediately, but the long term value that an individual will provide- to strengthen the organization or business. Committing to professional development and taking advantage of internal programs denotes an employee that is open to new ideas and modifying behaviors or systems for better overall performance. Individuals that seek out professional development on their own time such as certifications within their industry are conveying through their actions that they expect more from themselves, always seeking ways to better their performance.

 

PPAI, the Promotional Products Association International has a CAS and MAS program designed to provide individuals in this industry access to training across broad subjects that will directly benefit their ability to guide their clients to better choices for building their brand with ad specialty products. The CAS or Certified Advertising Specialties requires a minimum of 3 years of industry experience and 75 hours of rigorous course work on topics such as: 

 

1.      business ethics

2.      safety

3.      supplier distribution chain

4.      imprint and product options

5.      markets and programs

6.      sales and marketing processes

7.      small business issues

8.      legal issues

 

Only 5% of over 30,000 promotional consultants in PPAI are CAS certified. In the Apex area, I'm currently the only CAS certified consultant.

 

                                                                         Olivia Scott, CAS