Shelly Chandler, CCXP, has over 25 years of experience as a CX, marketing, and product development leader. In this post, Shelly examines certification options that are available to CX professionals.
Many people are searching for ways to bring internal credibility to the CX profession, sometimes, sadly, because the function is seen as an insights engine only. Some seek credentials and certifications, as CX has yet to be supported by university degrees. I don’t advocate certifications from any source as a way to stack up credentials of sometimes questionable worth or from a biased perspective, but there are a few worth checking out.
The Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA) maintains the standard for the industry—the Certified Customer Experience Professionals designation, or CCXP. With thousands of CCXPs and growing, CXPA has developed a rigorous and objective test for those who wish to demonstrate their CX knowledge. It was developed by senior CX professionals and doesn’t bear the stamp of any one organization, a big positive in my mind.
Forrester now sponsors a CX certification program, and while I have not taken it, I have heard from those who have that it may be helpful in studying for CXPA’s certification, as CXPA only offers guidelines for the test. Many industry sources offer training for the CCXP test, outside of the CXPA, and Forrester’s program could be one to check out.
As a board member for the Rutgers CX Certification Program in New Brunswick, NJ, I’m impressed with the content of this program. I attended a session as an advisory board member, and found the caliber of the attendees was high, including one CIO that now owns CX (an intriguing idea!) Most participants were quite experienced, and a few companies sent their CX teams, not just one individual. I’ve found this to be a hallmark of the profession of CX—companies who have an appetite to be even better work to improve their levels of CX knowledge/skill sets. In other words, those who do not incorporate CX into the fabric of their businesses, and support their CX teams at the highest levels, continue to struggle. Successful brands see the value of CX.
This relates directly to a webinar I delivered for CXPA earlier this year on the habits of successful CX leaders. Leaders must take care not to fall into counter-productive habits, one of which is to become too insular. It’s necessary that they continue their learning and sharing, and that’s the real value of certification programs (the certification being a by-product to acknowledge the achievement.)
Any training program or certification needs to be weighed against the value it will bring you personally or your organization. Sometimes learning on the job is going to produce the best outcomes. Spending more time understanding all of the elements of CX can be learned in a hands-on environment. Choose your programs wisely based upon what you already know vs. what you still need to learn, and consider all sources of ongoing education, such as the many online options available today. But most importantly, be a life-long learner!
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