I have expressed my views on the value of the journey of professional development leading to the CRM certification, and the marketing value of the CRM credential many times on this listserv over the past thirteen years.  Approximately ten years ago a RIM colleague expressed interest in becoming a CRM.  I wrote a project plan to help that person apply, prepare, and successfully test for the CRM exams.  That person was successful in a very timely basis.  That project document (PROJECT CRM) has subsequently been published on many websites.  I updated it a time or two, the last time about five years ago.  Some of the references to books, costs, etc. may be outdated. 

Here is the verbiage in PROJECT CRM.   I hope the suggestions and methods help some candidates become CRMs.
(This is not an official document of the ICRM; I wrote it.  I am no longer on the ICRM Board either.)

<snip>
P R O J E C T     C R M

(NOT AN OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE INSTITUTE OF CERTIFIED RECORDS MANAGERS)

Steven D. Whitaker, CRM   
ICRM Board of Regents; Regent - Legislation & Appeals
WORK: [log in to unmask]     

A RIM Professional should view the process of earning CRM certification as a professional and personal development project.

A project is comprised of four phases: 
1.	Conceptual  
2.	Organizational 
3.	Operational 
4.	Completion 

In the case of a CRM certification project, here are definitions of how I view each phase of the project: 
1.	Conceptual  (considering undertaking professional development activities leading to the CRM)
2.	Organizational (documenting education/experience, application, purchasing study materials)
3.	Operational (studying/testing-CRM examinations)
4.	Completion (ICRM/RIM Professional activism; defining, guiding, promoting the RIM profession; recruiting and encouraging potential CRM candidates, mentoring candidates, serving on an ICRM committee, serving on the Board of Regents, grading Part VI, etc.) 

The CRM candidate, RIM colleagues, ARMA Chapter colleagues, ICRM mentors and ambassadors, the ICRM, and family and friends all have a vested interest in the candidate's successful completion of this project.  Therefore, all should have an interest in this project being designed and operated in an efficient manner, as those are vital elements of any successful project. 

The most important activity in PROJECT CRM is to get started NOW with documenting qualifications to sit for the exams, and to get started NOW with acquiring study materials and implementing the study plan. 

Application & Supporting Documentation of Education and Experience:

*	ICRM application to sit for the exams; fill out the application with appropriate detail.
*	Official organizational job description.
*	College transcripts-even if you have not completed your undergraduate degree (give the committee plenty of reason to approve your application.)
*	Detailed list/outline of specific responsibilities; timeframes, dates, number of years, use similar terminology as outlined in the ICRM brochures or on the website.   You may want to create this list/outline as a document, and have your management sign and date it.
*	If a consultant, statements and project listings from clients.
*	HR position matrix-compares your position to other company PROFESSIONAL positions; examples: accountancy, budget analysts, business analysts, managers, and supervisors, HR professionals, other supervisors & managers, etc. 

DO NOT include how long you have been a member of ARMA, NIRMA, AIIM, BFMA, PRISM, etc., that you have been a leader of your chapter, or that you have served on ARMA Int. committees, etc.  The liaison or mentor should review these materials before submission to the ICRM.  Provide copies to the liaison or mentor, not originals.

Study Materials (suggested)

Preparing For The CRM Examination: A Handbook (ICRM Study Guide; available on the ICRM website)  Generally read the first part.  Go to the sample questions for Parts I - V, and find the correct answers in the back.  Use a highlighter to highlight the correct answers only in the sample questions part; do not pay any attention to the wrong answers.  Do not bother with Part VI yet.  Get a cassette recorder (or CD recorder) and find a quiet room where you will not be disturbed for a couple of hours.  Record via voice onto the cassette or CD each of the sample multiple choice questions and the correct answer.  Do this for each of the five parts.  Listen to this cassette (or CD) in your car on the way to and from work, and any other time you may spend driving, especially if you go on a car trip of more than an hour.   

November test cycle:  From April through September listen to this tape three nights per week while visually following along with the study guide.  In October and November, listen to this tape every night except the night before you test.  

May test cycle:  From October through March, listen to this tape three nights per week while visually following along with the study guide.  In April and May, listen to this tape every night except the night before you test.  (More about this in Testing)

Information & Records Management Textbook (Robek, Brown & Stephens; ARMA bookstore catalog # B4570; $58)  
Information & Image Management; A Records Systems Approach (Ricks, Swafford, & Gow; ARMA bookstore catalog # B4514; $63) 
Along with the ICRM Study Guide, These may be your best sources of information for Exams I - V.  Read and become familiar with the terminology and definitions in that section.  Then read one chapter per night.  Take a ten minute break every hour. Then go back and highlight important passages and key concepts.  The next night following the night you read a chapter, use your workstation at home or at the office and start a word document titled RIM Concepts Study Guide.  Referencing the text, in this word document outline the chapter you read the previous night, capturing key points and concepts.  Do not rewrite the whole chapter.   You should be able to complete one chapter in two evenings.  Make a copy of your outline (chapter by chapter) and send it to your mentor via e-mail or snail mail.  Send the outline for each chapter to your mentor as you finish it.  Your mentor should review it and send it back with any personal comments and RIM opinions.  Of course, the mentor's opinions are for the candidate's consideration only, and should not be taken as gospel for the whole of the RIM knowledge base.  It is very important to complete this as soon as possible, as these will be important study/review aids for you.

Go back to the terminology/definitions section of this textbook again.  Create a word document titled RIM Terminology & Definitions. In this document, enter all the terms and their corresponding definitions.

Managing Electronic Records, 2nd Edition (Saffady) (ARMA bookstore catalog # A4609 $35)
Electronic information management (tools) and life-cycle information management (process) are the future of records & information management. 

Harvesting Experience: Reaping the Benefits of Knowledge (Duffy) (ARMA bookstore catalog # A4615 $25)  Knowledge management (KM), or content management, may be buzz words, and we may not hear much about it in five years, based upon the costs of the systems and initiatives.  Nevertheless, there will be KM questions on the exams.

Introduction To Electronic Imaging (Avedon; ARMA bookstore catalog # B4360; $35) Whitaker has very strong opinions about imaging, and how this is usually not implemented in a manner consistent with intelligent information management lifecycle concepts.  Nevertheless, there will be questions on this subject. Read and study the terminology section.   Do the same for this text as for the other (read, highlight, outline).  Use your judgement on this; there may be chapters in this text that simple reading and familiarization is sufficient for your purposes

Go back to the terminology/definitions section again.  Enter all the terms and their corresponding definitions  into your  word document titled RIM Terminology & Definitions.


Computer science:  Find a relatively basic textbook on computer science.  Perhaps look in the local college or community/junior college bookstore.   Select a textbook that is recent and includes the client-server environment.  Hopefully it will include something on electronic document management systems (EDMS). Read and study the terminology section.   Do the same for each chapter of this text as for the others (read, highlight, outline).  Study the terminology.   Read the terminology/definitions section and enter all the terms and their corresponding definitions  into your  word document titled RIM Terminology & Definitions.

Principles of Management:  Locate and purchase a textbook.  You will need to know basic principles of management theory and logic.  Read this book and become familiar with theories X & Y.  Learn who Frederick Taylor is and that for which he is known.  Same for Charles Deming, and others.  Remember, "Manager" is part of "Certified Records Manager."

ARMA IMJ, and other RIM publications.  Read them.  Some articles may not be of interest to you, but read them anyway.  

Leveraging Attendance At The ARMA Annual Conference, Regional Conferences, ISG Mid-Year Conferences
Sign up for a couple of "preparing for the CRM exams" sessions.  Choose other sessions with topics and session descriptions matching where you think you need more work.  Since ARMA's annual conference is usually held in September or  October before the CRM exams in November, it is an excellent opportunity for tutoring and review of your study materials.  The same logic applies for Regional and ISG mid-year conferences.  Most Regional and ISG mid-year conferences are convened in the spring a month or two prior to the May test cycle.  Bring your study notes.  Ask your mentor, or another CRM to review each topic in your outlines and discuss.  Be assertive in finding help in this review.  Review the terminology and definitions. Team efforts are very effective on projects.  And, this is a project.   


Testing
Parts I - V:
The night before you test, do not review any of the sample questions.   Use that night to review your terminology/definitions document.  Review this document only one time.  Then relax.  Go to bed early.  

Relax going into the testing.  Eat something for breakfast, even if it is only cereal and/or fruit.  Take an aspirin; it may help you relax.  You have plenty of time in each section. By this time you are 'showing off' what you know.   However, it is important to WORK HARD while you are taking the tests.  Focus on the task at hand.  Visualize your success.  In each exam, answer all the questions you know first.  Your "first instinct" for the answer to a particular question is probably right.  Leave the questions about which you are not sure and come back to them later. Use the process of elimination for the tough ones.  If time is getting short and you still have a few questions you have not answered, guess.  It is multiple choice.  You will be so well prepared that you will not see too many for which you do not know the answer. 

Part VI:
This is a completely different examination from exams I - V.  Ask your mentor to locate some sample case studies.  There should be one in the back of the Preparing For The CRM Exam Guide.  Part VI should be considered an excellent opportunity to showcase your experience, knowledge, and judgement.  

If you need some practice writing, contact a local college or community/junior college that has an evening program.  You should consider taking a business communications or business writing type of class.  Start taking the class in the semester beginning approximately six months prior to sitting for Part VI. Perhaps you will have time to complete Business Communications I & II (2 classes) before you sit for Part VI.  There are also some books and videos available in the ARMA Bookstore.

Part VI (case studies) is the exam where a lot of candidates stress.  They should not.  Word processors/PCs are allowed now for Part VI.  This is a big advantage because you can be searching for and entering key points into your case study document while you are reading the case.  Then you can go back and finish developing your case in the EXACT MANNER as specified in the ACTION REQUIRED section.

When you sit for and write Part VI, you will have one 60-pointer that you will have to write, and two 40-point cases from which you choose one.  You will have four hours.  Do the 60-point case study first.  Leave yourself at least an hour for the 40-point case study.  Choose the 40-point case study that contains elements with which you are most familiar by knowledge or experience. 

My recommendation on writing a case study is to first read the ACTION REQUIRED section that is printed after the case.  The ACTION REQUIRED is the most important part.  You must do exactly what is required in the ACTION REQUIRED section.  Read and become familiar with the ACTION REQUIRED.  Then start your word processing case study document.  Read the case and enter the key points from the case presented.  Remember, you have already read and you understand the ACTION REQUIRED.  All of your actions from this point on should be focused on satisfying the specific instructions in the ACTION REQUIRED section.  Go back and reference the ACTION REQUIRED section numerous times to ensure you are writing what is required.

One more tip, put on your "management hat" when you go in to write the case studies.  An analyst can devise and communicate a solid solution.  A manager must be able to do that and more.  A manager must also be prepared to account for public relations, safety, corporate/business interests, meeting client and customer commitments under all circumstances, regulatory interface, etc.  You are ready for it.  It is just a matter of following through.   

Certification
You will receive a letter from the ICRM congratulating you on your accomplishment.  They will also send an interest and experience form.  This is to see if you are interested in serving the ICRM and the RIM Profession.  You will be recognized by the ICRM, ARMA, and your chapter.  Your Name, CRM will be published on the ICRM website and on the RECMGMT listserv.    You will be individually introduced as a new CRM at the ICRM's annual meeting held in conjunction with the annual ARMA conference.  

You will also receive e-mail notes and phone calls from your friends and colleagues congratulating you on your accomplishment.   You deserve it. 

Maintenance
Start documenting your certification maintenance during the year you sit for Part VI.

ICRM Activism
All CRMs should continue their RIM professional development, and help guide, advance, and promote the profession. All CRMs should also help recruit and develop potential candidates.  It is good for our profession
<snip>  



Best regards, Steve
Steven D. Whitaker, CRM
Records Systems Manager; City of Reno

>>> "Carol E.B. Choksy, Ph.D., CRM, PMP" <[log in to unmask]> 2/12/2007 8:20 AM >>>
For Part 1 study try:
   
Management Basics for Information Professionals, 
by G. Edward Evans, Patricia L. Ward, and Bendik Rugaas 

This books is like it was written for the exam. If you really want to learn management read Drucker's big book on management.

Best wishes,
Carol
<snip>

List archives at http://lists.ufl.edu/archives/recmgmt-l.html
Contact [log in to unmask] for assistance