As of June 20, CSIA has been receiving special support from a smart MBA candidate from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. David Huffman is deploying both his brains and energy to help our association get closer to cracking the code on our certification program. David will be with us for a 10-week internship assignment.
David is tasked with determining the impact of Certification on company performance. Prospective Certification candidates have been asking CSIA about its benefits for a long time. We know from Certified member companies that getting Certified has proven invaluable for them and this is why they continue to renew their Certification multiple times. But can we prove Certification’s value? The first challenge is to explore various pools of data, both internal and external. The plan is to simultaneously collect quantitative and qualitative testimonial information. In addition, we also want to look at other certification programs, including those in other industries, to extend our evaluation beyond our traditional borders.
I’m thankful for the extra help we are getting from David and ask all of you to make yourselves available should he need support from you during this important project.