Management is considered a profession. One characteristic of a profession is that it certifies when its members have attained a particular level of proficiency. So why don’t we certify managers?
Yesterday I met Marcia Reynolds, a former president of the International Coach Federation (ICF). She was telling me that one of the concerns executives have in hiring coaches, either for themselves or other managers in their organizations, is getting someone who is qualified. Lots of people call themselves coaches (e.g., life coach, leadership coach, executive coach, etc.) no matter what their background or capabilities. So how does an executive know whether a coach is qualified? One way is by getting a coach who is ICF certified. As she was talking, it got me thinking “Why don’t we certify managers?”
Certification is not new. Lawyers take the bar, physicians take boards, accountants take the CPA, and engineers take specialized exams. Project managers are certified by the Project Management Institute, teachers are certified, and people can be certified in Six Sigma. But there is no certification for “managers”. We don’t have, for example, a “professional manager” or a “professional leader” certification. As a result, we have no independent way to determine whether someone who represents themselves as a manager is, in fact, a qualified manager. Anyone, regardless of qualification or background, can be a manager.
What about an MBA? Doesn’t that certify something? Yes, it certifies that the person completed a program of study, but it does not certify that they can manage or lead. It would be nice if we had some way of knowing if people have some basic management capability. If management is going to be a profession like law, medicine, accounting, etc.. we should certify managers. And someone who is in a position to do that is the American Management Association.
My dad was a board certified pathologist, and when I told physicians, they were generally impressed. They knew the exam was very tough and few people passed it. Board cerfified meant something. I don’t get the same reaction when I tell people a friend of mine is a manager. It would be nice if I did.
Hi Jeff,
Your argument is good, but I have a question about your premise, namely that “management” is a profession, and that it has an identifiable body of skills and practices that can be learned and certified.
I wonder if “management” is not one of those words that is the result of nominalizing a verb. In other words, management is the act of managing or conducting a business (according to my dictionary). If we accept Drucker’s maxim that managing is “producing results through others,” then I think it would be hard to codify in the way that medical specialties are codified and tested. Perhaps it’s more of an art, and arts are notorious for resisting certification.
As to certification in coaching, as a lifelong coach who trained many of the people who then started certifying organizations, I find it odd. Mostly I think what certification means is that a coach has completed one or another program and satisfied their requirements, but I don’t find any consistency between the various programs that would make certification meaningful.
Ed,
My premise is based on points: (1) Business schools are considered professional schools and claim they train people in management, and (2) the often heard (yet as you point out questionable) claim by those in management that it is a profession. If we accept those as valid (and some may not), then certification of managers (as professionals) based on their demonstrated proficiency is a valid thing to consider.
Your point about “an identifiable body of skills and practices” is a good one since they don’t currently exist. But that is the point. Establishing some form of certification would produce an intense debate as to which “skills” and to what degree of proficiency are needed for someone to certified a manager.
I don’t think management is any more art than other professions, such as teaching and law, which also have to produce results through others. Invoking that justification persists the problem. Besides, certifying some basic level of proficiency doesn’t take away the art that may be involved in its production unless one assumes there is a one best way to do things (which would be a mistake).
If we take your advice, and use Drucker’s definitiion, then one way to certify managers could be by testing their ability to produce results through others without diminishing the social capital employed. Indeed, higher levels of ceritification could come with “bigger” results and “expanded” social capital.
Hi Jeffrey, I did a project at CNA to create certification programs for Underwriters, Risk Control and Claims…more technical certifications. We worked with Judith Hale and you might want to have a conversation with her about your thoughts.
http://www.haleassociates.com/abouthale.html
Personally I think getting an MBA is a “certification” for managers.
Terry