Mentoring Committee: Who will be No. 23?

By Bill Herman, CPM
townadmin@townofauburnnh.com

In 2005, the American Academy of Certified Public Managers® welcomed three new societies to expand the number of CPM societies to 22.

The Idaho Society of Certified Public Managers®, Virginia Society of Certified Public Managers® and Washington Society of Certified Public Managers® became the newest societies to be chartered by the AACPM since three others (District of Columbia, New Hampshire and Ohio) joined the CPM ranks in 2000.

With the addition of Idaho, Virginia and Washington, the AACPM had realized CPM Societies in 22 different jurisdictions from coast to coast.

One of the efforts of any organization like the American Academy of Certified Public Managers® is to be looking at opportunities on where or how to expand its membership base. Beyond merely attracting new members through our existing state societies, for the Academy that also means working at opportunities to help establish new member societies in jurisdictions where there are currently no societies.

That is a bit trickier than simply trying to go stake a claim somewhere. In order for there to be a CPM Society, there needs to be an established CPM Program which is graduating “Certified Public Managers®” who might be willing to take up the challenge.
As a result, the partnership between the American Academy of Certified Public Managers® and the National CPM Consortium is essential to the success the Academy can have in expanding the base of member societies.

For the immediate future, the prospects for the Academy appear to be quite bright in this area. And, ironically perhaps, the trend of possibly a group of three is as bright as it was in 2000 and 2005.

The National CPM Consortium is actively pursuing the establishment of CPM Programs throughout the country. The Consortium has a goal of having a CPM Program in all 50 states. And the Academy Board has committed itself to working to establish CPM Societies in each of those jurisdictions where a CPM Program produces graduates.

Where might we see our next CPM Society? The Academy’s best prospects at this time appear to be in Nevada, where a CPM Program was established in 2003; Michigan, where a CPM Program anchored at Saginaw Valley State University earned active status this year; Illinois, whose CPM Program was given active status in 2006 and is anchored at the Institute for Legal and Policy Studies at the University of Illinois at Springfield; Iowa, whose CPM Program began in 2000; Alaska, where a CPM Program was established in 1996 and from where the Academy gained an “unaffiliated” individual member this year; and California, where a CPM Program offered by The Centre for Organization Effectiveness in San Diego was approved for active status within the past few months.

Other jurisdictions where the CPM Consortium is actively working with local entities for the establishment of CPM Programs include Maryland, Massachusetts and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The potential of successful expansion of the Academy is also tempered with the struggles several of our current member societies are experiencing in retaining and increasing their membership. In 2007, the Alabama Society of Certified Public Managers® received the AACPM Board’s approval to go into “inactive” status for a period of up to five years.

Following the earlier path of the Georgia Society of Certified Public Managers®, our colleagues in Alabama have requested a chance to potentially re-group and re-energize their organization. Although the Alabama Society will be inactive, the existing Academy members from Alabama will remain members of the AACPM.

The Academy Board is committed to working with all of our current societies to sustain and grow our current membership. Efforts to provide an enhanced “Member Benefits” package will hopefully help in that effort, and be able to provide a more substantial answer to the age old question of “What’s in it for me?”

And during 2007, the AACPM Mentoring Committee will also be reaching out to our prospective areas where local CPM societies might be established.

Who will be No. 23?

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