Pilot Proposals Presented to GRAPA’s 2010 Certification Committee
Submitted to Solicit Initial Recommendations, as well as Committee Approval
As required for a preliminary meeting of GRAPA’s 2010 Certification Committee, the proposals below are respectfully submitted. The Certification Committee is charged with the responsibility of making initial recommendations regarding the pilot proposals described in this document. These recommendations should culminate in approval or rejection of said proposals.
All meetings and recommendations, as well as a tally of approvals, abstentions and rejections, are to be recorded with the Chair of the Certification Committee (Chris Yesulis) and made available for review by GRAPA’s membership. These findings will be published as the “Initial Recommendations of GRAPA’s 2010 Certification Committee.” This will constitute a plan of action to obtain sufficient data and member feedback during the execution of pilot programs for the committee to make final recommendations regarding GRAPA’s 2010 Certification Program.
GRAPA members who want to be considered for the committee, or who wish to submit recommendations, should contact us.
I would like to be considered as a member of the Certification Committee.
I would like to submit recommendations regarding the proposal below.
Proposals for Consideration Before the Committee:
1. That the principal basis for certification is to verify both member competency in revenue assurance, as well as ensure their ongoing community participation. Doing so will eventually nurture a self-sustaining group of expert peers responsible for updating the community’s understanding of a changing discipline. To achieve this, certified members cannot just be competent, but must be actively involved in offering value back to the community. The committee will be responsible for defining appropriate levels of participation, as well as member competency in relation to the body of knowledge.
2. As a result of proposal 1, that certified Masters of Revenue Assurance for 2009 be deemed to have met both requisites of competency and participation for that year through attendance in 80hrs of community training. During this training they received knowledge that was verified by testing, while also contributing expertise specific to their individual organizations that was of practical use and interest to other attendees.
3. That certification of members be tied to the GRAPA standards ratified for that specific year. So that members who are certified during 2009 are certified only according to the 2009 GRAPA standards.
4. That as a result of proposal 3, all certified members be required to maintain their certification for each new year where standards are issued—institutionalizing community-based continuous education as a necessary part of GRAPA’s mission.
5. That a member’s certification be maintained based on criteria similar to the original accreditation—ie: a combination of competency and participation. So certified members seeking to maintain their status must provide proof of expanded competency in revenue assurance based on GRAPA’s updated standards for that year, and do so in a way that still contributes to the community’s needs. It is proposed that the committee consider this requirement for maintenance be met by attendance and active participation in a GRAPA User Group© during the 12 month period when a new set of standards is released. The committee should also provide other equivalent means of maintenance that meet the above criteria. These may include extensive committee participation, benchmark authorship and participation, as well as production of intellectual property such as articles, presentations, scholarly writings etc. to be published on the GRAPA website or otherwise distributed to the membership.
6. That a program be piloted to offer members an intermediate Bachelor’s certification. This intermediate certification is designed to verify a candidate’s understanding of revenue assurance fundamentals in line with the body of knowledge. This would require 40hrs (5 days) of training, and be accompanied by testing as well as verification of experience and employment . This certification would have to be maintained as described above.
7. That a program be piloted to offer members an entry level Associates certification. This entry level certification is designed to ensure a basic understanding of the vocabulary utilized throughout the GRAPA standards document as well as to verify a candidate’s adherence to the principles, practices and structures defined within it. This would require 24hrs (3 days) of training, and be accompanied by testing as well as verification of experience and employment . This certification would have to be maintained as described above.
8. That in addition to the course laid out in proposal 7, the entry level Associates certification also be awarded to members who participate in a 3 day (24hr) GRAPA User Group© (GUG), where the first day is an intensive introduction to GRAPA’s standards, followed by 2 days of community-based continual education. Previously certified members need not attend the first day of instruction, though they may do so in order to refresh their understanding of GRAPA’s updated standards.
9. That promotion between the various levels of certification be based specifically on a significant expansion of verifiable competency according to the body of knowledge, while maintenance of certification at any level be based on participation that simply demonstrates updated and expanded competency. And as a result, that members certified as Associates or Bachelors of Revenue Assurance be allowed to ascend towards higher certification through attendance of subsequent training events, so long as they maintain their current level of certification.
10. That members who have previously attended GRAPA training be allowed to receive retroactive certification as Bachelors or Associates of Revenue Assurance by a) taking tests to ensure a retention of knowledge and b) receiving updated community-based instruction on current standards. The level of retroactive certification will depend on how extensive a member’s previous GRAPA training experience was. It is proposed that GRAPA User Groups© be considered the most appropriate venue for such retroactive certification.
I would like to be considered as a member of the Certification Committee.
I would like to submit recommendations regarding the above proposal.