Here
we go again as another provider joins the self-created, self-administered, self-endorsed,
for-profit certification bandwagon using self-approved and self-determined standards.
No one should be surprised, but every
trade compliance professional needs to be concerned and fully informed. Do not get sucked in!
The latest comes from The World Academy with their International Trade Compliance Certification (ITCC) for Exporters and a separate ITCC for Importers. With a one-day course and $395, you too can be a certified expert and add an acronym after your name. Is that absurd or what?
The latest comes from The World Academy with their International Trade Compliance Certification (ITCC) for Exporters and a separate ITCC for Importers. With a one-day course and $395, you too can be a certified expert and add an acronym after your name. Is that absurd or what?
Invalid
certifications that do not meet true certification program standards with no
publicized, credible, external, independent, knowledgeable, unbiased,
third-party validation and testing by any reputable authority with no conflicts
of interest are becoming the norm.
Part
of the game is setting-up an organization or front company that sounds academic
and then creating bogus certifications to go along with it. Watch out for key words like global, international, academy and
institute and then look for the self-proclaimed certifications to follow. Keys here are revenue generation and creating
a steady money-making stream.
This
field is a lucrative marketplace as some practitioners have misplaced value in paying
money (in some cases lots of it) for adding an acronym or multiple acronyms
after their name. None of which makes a
credible expert. Additionally, some of
these for-profit vendors are collaborating and cross-marketing to maximize their
return on investment and not step on each other’s toes.
This
ongoing proliferation is a timely reminder about thorough due diligence anytime
you outsource anything. Do not spend a
penny unless and until you are absolutely certain you have all the relevant
facts to make the best and most informed decision possible. Invalid certifications are Red Flags for
savvy professionals.
There
are many out there (a growing number in fact) who are more than happy to knowingly
and willfully make false, misleading and unsubstantiated claims and
misrepresentations by any and all means, happily take your money and provide a
deficient product that creates an illusion of expertise and experience.
If
you really want to improve your position, reputation, skills and proven value
in the compliance marketplace and open more doors in your upward mobility, get
a law degree and by all means, make every effort to get what’s really
important--more real world experience.
FOOD
FOR THOUGHT/QUESTIONS: Is one invalid
certification any better or worse than another?
What impact do bogus certifications have on the trade compliance
community? Why not start your own and
share in the profits?
And
finally… JANE DOE, International Trade Expert, CCLS®, CES®,
CUSECO®, ECoP®, ITCC® and CITCP®. Are you impressed, depressed or it just
doesn’t matter?
This is a good post. Thanks for writing it.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, with there being no government-issued certification along the lines of Licensed Customs Broker from CBP, certification programs like these are the only option for many people to try to get ahead. As someone who has hired trade compliance professionals, I would look at one of these certifications as the mark of someone who wants to improve themselves. Obviously, I'd have to ask good questions during the job interview to assess how much the program was really worth, if I even care to find out. Not everyone can go back and get a law degree, even for those who think they can cut the mustard.
To solve the problem you highlight, could ICPA get involved? Why not bring together a brain trust of experienced people to create a set of uniform standards, i.e. the information everyone should know? Challenge the companies to come up with programs to meet the ICPA standard and then, for those that do, issue a stamp of approval of some sort. Heck, come up with the acronym too. My guess is that many companies, particularly training companies and schools that don't have a program, would jump at the chance to be part of it. It's easier than creating their own programs and competing for recognition against others, I would imagine. If not ICPA setting it up as a neutral third party (i.e. not out to make a profit), then who? BIS? DDTC?
Matt: There's no question a valid trade compliance certification that's properly constructed and actually meets standards as a certification is needed... perhaps long overdue.
ReplyDeletePlease note the LCB/CHB is not a certification.
As you note, there's a wealth of expertise and experience out there including in and across the ICPA. However, there's a great deal of time, effort and money required to create, develop, maintain and oversee a truly valid certification program.
One valid certification that's endorsed, recommended and used by the US Government (USG) is the Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP) credential offered by NASBITE International, a 501(c)(3) non-profit.
Unfortunately, only about 25% of the CGBP applies directly to the supply chain, customs, imports, exports and the related regulatory requirements. The CGBP is important as it's a model for how a valid certification should be put together.
In meetings with the USG over the years and more recently in the context of Export Control Reform, the USG has made it clear, they do not want to take sole responsibility for constructing such a program. They support the concept, but are not interested in tackling the costly, time and labor intensive project on their own.
One all-volunteer organization, the Coalition for Excellence in Export Compliance (CEEC), has focused on developing best practices, an important foundational piece of any such effort to establish and maintain a valid certification.
Without universally agreed on standards you end-up with the bogus certification proliferation we are confronted with. If there is no agreed on standard, everyone creates their own and goes from there. Worse yet, when a money making motive is involved, some are more than happy to say anything, do anything and claim anything to generate revenue and create recurring profits with minimum effort. It's unfortunate, but it's reality!
To date trade and professional associations have not proven to be neutral third-parties.
The problem now as you elude to, is many education and training entities are getting on the band wagon with bogus certifications. It's easy to take shortcuts. I have no doubt more will follow.
To do it right takes time and for-profit vendors consistently have priorities and conflicts of interest that get in the way. When speed and making money are imperatives, quality quickly goes by the wayside.
Our industry deserves and needs an open and honest dialogue on the issue, but many simply aren't interested in doing so. Others don't want to rock the boat, even if they bought into the lie and then discovered they were taken.