CHOOSING TO BECOME CERTIFIED PUTS YOU IN THE COMPANY OF LIKE-MINDED PROFESSIONALS
The Category Management Association (CMA) is a global category management community, enabling professionals to connect with peers around the world and further their careers with the latest in best practices and certification. The CMA also serves as an unbiased, central source for industry information and is unparalleled in its sole focus on category management. Founded in 2004, it is the only organization certifying coursework and individual category management professionals according to recognized industry standards.
While Category Management Knowledge Group (CMKG) can provide the required training to prepare people for certification, we ourselves cannot certify individuals or organizations. Only the CMA provides certification, for an initial cost of $800 per person, which includes a one-time evaluation fee and a 3-year Active Status Fee. That amount is paid directly to the CMA and is not in any way transferred to or shared with CMKG.
CMKG MAKES CERTIFICATION STRAIGHTFORWARD, SINCE 100% OF OUR CONTENT IS ACCREDITED.
We are the first training company in the world to be accredited by the CMA, with courses that meet all requrements for their three levels of accreditation. Below is a description of each certification level, as well as the courses we offer that fulfill CMA requirements.
There are two paths that individuals, teams, entire organizations can take to certification:
- TRAIN WITH CMKG FIRST, THEN APPLY TO THE CMA FOR CERTIFICATION. Individuals or teams can successfully complete specific CMKG Industry- Standard programs and then apply to the CMA for certification. Organizations may choose this path if they want to ensure a foundational set of training courses or programs to align their category management approach.
- APPLY FOR CERTIFICATION, THEN FILL IN KNOWLEDGE GAPS WITH CMKG. Individuals submit specific credentials for evaluation by CMA’s Certification Evaluation Board. A combination of formal training and work experience is considered. The Board will assess the applicant, confirm the current level of certification, and determine any requirements or gaps that need to be rectified to attain the next level of certification. Once this assessment is complete, CMKG can create custom programs to include the courses based on gaps noted by the CMA requirements.
CMA'S CERTIFICATION LEVELS
The professional designation levels are described below. To get more information about CMKG's parallel training program, click on the respective designation level description.
