There seem to be two fears at play here, at either ends of the spectrum.  One 
is the fear that there will be so many CRM's (because it's so easy to get) that 
it means nothing to prospective employers.  Two is the fear that there will be 
so few CRM's (because it's so difficult to achieve) that awareness of the 
designation disappears and ceases to be meaningful as a result.

With some exceptions, I believe that awareness of the CRM designation is 
very low outside of the RIM community.  In fact to most people CRM stands 
for Customer Relations Management.  I often have to explain what those 
initials after my name stand for.  If that's the case, then the difficulty of 
obtaining the designation is moot - those making hiring decisions see "CRM" 
merely as an additional tick on the "pro" side of the equation if it means 
anything at all, and not as a process frought with difficulty and achievement.

If this change creates greater awareness of the credential, the results are 
ONLY positive, because its value is more widely known.  If the exams were 
changed so that the only requirement was a 50% pass on 20 multiple choice 
questions, I'd be concerned - but the exams cost a lot of money (no one 
takes it just on a whim) and they are difficult to pass.  It is unrealistic to 
expect that we're now going to get a flood of 25-year old dummies with no 
knowledge of records management into the field.

As to the question of experience:  if I hire a lawyer with 2 months of 
experience, I'm going to expect an amateurish result despite the fact that the 
person has a law degree and passed the bar exam.  I'd be stupid to expect 
otherwise.  With the designation, though, I can at least be assured that the 
lawyer knows the basics and can help me with a certain standard of 
knowledge.  Conversely, I'll look for a lawyer with the same designation but 
years of experience in the specific area of law I need if I'm facing a very 
serious legal matter.  My friends would scold me if I didn't.  Why would we 
expect it to be any more different with the CRM designation?

To conclude:  given that the exam process is still very strenous, the first end 
of the spectrum - too many CRM's - is simply not going to happen.  We 
elected the board to make decisions to advance our profession and 
designation, and I think that's exactly what they've done here.

Wayne Hoff, CRM
Calgary, AB

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