When Meeting Professionals International (MPI)
announced changes to its prestigious Certificate in Meeting Management (CMM) program last year, meeting planners balked, claiming that changes “diluted” the designation.
Among the most vocal opponents was CMM holder Ann Rebentisch of Los Angeles-based Handshake Events, who runs a LinkedIn Group for 456 CMM-designated meeting professionals. “Our group was livid and devised a plan to quantify and convey our sentiment to MPI,” Rebentisch said in a statement released by her group last month. In mid-February, she launched an online survey of all CMMs, 20 percent of who responded. “Eighty-eight percent opposed the program changes overall.”
As originally envisioned by MPI — which has partnered with the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) to execute and administer it — the new CMM designation would be a collaborative designation for both meeting and travel professionals. It would include new content teaching both meeting planning and travel management skills, as well as business acumen, and would require 3.5 days of onsite education, versus a week in the previous program.
Along with new program content, MPI proposed eliminating the “Certificate in Meetings Management” name — making “CMM” a standalone trademark — and reducing the credential’s experiential requirements from 10 years of industry experience to five.
Rebentisch — who created an online petition that received 411 signatures in its first week — submitted her survey results to MPI CEO Paul Van Deventer, who promised to “review all the data and input” and “develop recommendations” in response.
MPI Responds
Van Deventer delivered on his promise Friday, when he sent a letter to the MPI community. In it, he said, “The bedrock of MPI is our members and chapters, so when you raised concerns with planned updates to the CMM program, we said that we would listen to your input … After aggregating, analyzing and synthesizing your feedback, we found a number of consistent recommendations, which if implemented, would strengthen the CMM program going forward.”
Based on feedback from Rebentisch and others, MPI has made the following changes to its original plans:
• It will retain both the Certificate in Meetings Management name and the CMM acronym.
• Eligibility criteria for the CMM will now include seven to 10 years of experience in the meetings or business travel industry; three to five years management experience, with two years of profit and loss responsibility; and a letter of recommendation from a colleague or supervisor.
• Future CMM participants must develop a business case in which they must apply the course materials learned.
• Current CMM holders will retain the designation, which will be supported going forward by both MPI and GBTA.
Concluded Van Deventer: “On behalf of MPI and GBTA, thank you for your interest in the CMM program. We recognize that it is your contributions, energy and support that are the foundation of MPI and, as such, we will always listen to your input and value your voice … We appreciate the feedback you have shared and believe these changes will strengthen the CMM program going forward.”