SOMETHING TO PONDER 

What is your definition of a professional? Is it a person engaged or qualified in a profession? Is it a person engaged in a specified activity or discipline? Is it a person competent or skilled in a particular occupation? Whatever it is, I am sure you have had several specific needs in your life where you have consulted with a professional. 

Have you sold a house, had someone do your personal or business taxes, had a simple or complicated surgery or medical issue? These are just a few examples of Industry Professionals and how they may differ in certifications or professional standards. 

Who do you prefer?

• A real estate agent helps someone buy or sell property.
• A Realtor^® is an active member of the National Association of REALTORS ^® (NAR), has gone through coursework, passed licensing exam and adheres to NAR’s Code of Ethics.
  
  
• An accountant is a person whose job is to keep financial accounts. 
• A Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is an accountant who has met state licensing requirements. 
  
  
• Doctors are required to have a state medical license to practice medicine.
• Board Certification is a higher standard that doctors must choose to attain and maintain. 
• Doctors demonstrate their desire to practice at the top of their profession and deliver high-qualitycare to their patients.
  
  Our clients can trust the future of their company to anyone but why wouldn’t they trust it to a Certified Management Consultant^® (CMC^®)?
  
  
• A consultant is a person who provides expert advice professionally in many different disciplines.       
• A Certified Management Consultant^® is a higher standard that consultants choose to attain and maintain showing commitment to ethics and demonstrating proficiency in consulting skills. 
• A Certified Management Consultant^® demonstrates their desire to stand out at the top of their profession and deliver high-quality solutions to client problems.

IMC USA is one of the best kept secrets out there! We must do more to educate the business world about who we are and what is means to work with a CMC^®. We are the certifying body for management consultants with a purpose of supporting our members through certification, continuing education, and ethics. It is what separates us from other associations. We are an association for all consultants whether they are independent consultants or work with small or large firms. Membership in IMC USA is a path to certification. 

If you have been thinking about pursuing certification, now is the time! As mentioned in our last newsletter we have two sprint teams working on our CMC Application and CMC Panel processes. These teams have done a fantastic job to make the process more efficient while keeping the standards in place. Over the next month the board will be reviewing and implementing recommendations submitted recently from the CMC Process Sprint Team. Once we complete revisions from both sprint teams, we will be launching a marketing sprint to begin promoting Certification and our Certified members on social media. Stay tuned as we roll out a new campaign! 

Don’t miss this great opportunity to take advantage of special incentives during our membership renewal campaign for 2022!

Looking for an ETV (Easy to Volunteer) opportunity working with others promoting Certification? Please reach out to Gregory Brooks, Executive Director at [email protected].

Welcome October - November New Members!

Member Stories: What IMC USA Means To Me

A series of stories by our members. Add your story here: https://imcusa.org/testimonial-form

“As management consultants, each of us is challenged to stay on top of our game. I have found that there is no better opportunity to learn from the profession's greatest thought leaders than that provided by IMC USA. Add to that the chance to connect and network with the best management consultants in the world and joining IMC USA is a no-brainer. I am eternally grateful to everyone I have met through IMC USA and treasure the contributions they have made to my success. IMC provides so many opportunities for growth, service, and learning that it makes it easy to sharpen our skills and excel at our chosen profession. Thank you, IMC USA!"

Don Matheson, CMC®
CEO
NorthStar Management

Membership

Our Reason for Being

To provide a community for

ethically grounded management consultants who

deliver transformative value to clients.

Our November Membership Matters Town Hall was full of information, conversation and excitement about new things for IMC USA in 2021.

Key Takeaways:

• Attendees shared key experiences and learning points from the Virtual Annual conference
• The membership renewal campaign is in full swing with an all-time high of 21% of members renewing in October. Fourteen (14) members renewed the first day!
• Announcement of the October “Free membership” drawing winner

How we’re building Communities within IMC USA

• The current At-Large community is being renamed. Instead of one large group, it will be broken into 3 smaller groups:  Northeast, East and Central-Mountain. We’ll announce “Happy Hour” video meetings in January for each community so members can get to know each other better
• Introduction of Omega Notes Community platform. Attendees saw a demo of this “one-stop-shop” new platform offering ways for members to form communities for conversation and knowledge sharing.
   

Our Continued Focus on Member Benefits

• We continue to listen to your input and are adding new offerings to help you grow your practice. Our December Membership Matters Town Hall will share more about new Affiliates, Member PERKS and Learning Partners
• SAVE THE DATE: Wednesday, December 1st – 2pm ET / 11am PT

Creating Easier Pathways to Your CMC^®

• I can do it on my own. Renew in November and save $50 on your CMC^® application fee
• I’m thinking about it. Save $50 on the Management Consulting Course CMC^® Study Guide AND be enrolled in a Study Group
• I want support and accountability. Purchase the CMC Boot Camp for $500 (a $2500 value). Four (4) sessions that include all you need to get through the process:
  Study materials, application support, application review and a mock panel.

If you have already renewed... THANK YOU! If not, LAST CHANCE Reasons to Renew before 11/30

• November Dues Drawing for FREE membership
• Those who renewed in October get a SECOND CHANCE!
• Management Consultant Assessment and Debrief Class Download Sample here
• CMC^® Pathway Savings
• Special “Invitation Only” Webinars in 2022
   

Great things are happening at IMC USA in 2022!

RENEW TODAY to make sure you’re a part of it.

IMC USA FOUNDATION

Message from the IMC USA FOUNDATION Chair, David Norman, FIMC, CMC-AF

Reflection Forward

Seemingly contradictory title – Reflection Forward.  Yet it sums up where I am in November. Reflecting on the past year and its changing vectors of how consultants do business (even holding a very successful National Conference several weeks ago virtually), I naturally thought forward and began making plans for a good 2022. Perhaps you are as well.  This is annual planning season, a time to reflect backwards and a time to plan forward.

IMC USA is about community, certification, ethics and education and your membership supports your practice and growth. IMC USA Foundation is also about ethics and education.  Most recently, we offered several scholarships for Student members to attend the National Conference, as an example. Your tax-deductible donations (see your tax advisor for additional information) support the expansion of ethics among consultants; IMC USA’s Code of Ethics, alone, is a major differentiator in a crowded marketplace. Stand out from the crowd. Support ethics and education, funds are used to develop and disseminate resources to improve integrity with which business is done.

If you have donated in the past, thank you for your support of ethics and education. If you haven’t, please make IMC USA Foundation part of your annual stewardship giving. I’ll suggest that a $100 annual pledge to support your community is a reasonable place to start. Join your other peers at this level.  

Simply go this this page: https://www.imcusa.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=54:foundation&catid=20:site-content&Itemid=138

And, do not forget that the stock markets are at all-time highs and that the Foundation will accept securities so you may avoid paying capital gains. (Again, the IRS or your tax advisor can provide appropriate guidance.)

Consult-Con Virtual Conference 

Our second annual all-virtual Consult-Con was, once again, a huge hit! Many comments on the survey reflected the notion that this year's version was even better than last year's (which had also produced rave reviews). Most evaluations of this year's speakers, networking, special segments, panels etc. were heavy on the 4 and 5 side (1-5 scale), the top two choices for excellence. 

The specific question of "overall experience of this virtual event" earned 44 out of 46 responses in the 4-5 zone and the same was true of the all-important question "Would you recommend this conference to others?"

Another crucial question was "How likely would you be to attend a virtual conference in 2022?" earning 91% (45 votes) in the 4-5 Likely zone, four votes for Unlikely and zero for Very Unlikely. As to its companion question, "How likely would it be for you to attend an in-person conference in 2022?",  scores were 14 Very Likely, 23 Likely, 10 Unlikely   and 2 Very Unlikely.

So one needle is moving cautiously toward a return to in-person albeit offset by the overwhelming success of the virtual format. What that means for Consult-Con 2022, given that societal and/or virus changes both good and bad may be popping up in the near-future, makes a return to traditional in-person, or even to hybrid, a hard decision at this moment.

What do YOU think? Your reactions and comments are welcome, just send them to Ken Lizotte CMC^® at [email protected] so he can collect them into a "post-survey survey."

Special Thanks to this Year's Conference Sponsors 

Diamond Sponsors 

It’s Not Too Soon . . .

During the IMC USA’s Annual Awards Ceremony at our recent National Conference, we recognized dozens of members for their contributions. That said, we could have recognized many more. When you can, please take a look at https://www.imcusa.org/awards-overview and start thinking now about who you would like to recognize next year. No, it is not too early! 

We have awards on the Chapter, National, and International levels, and we even have the Student Management Consulting Awards (SMCA) to recognize the outstanding work of our student members.

On Small Step to Ensure IMC USA’s Future 

As an IMC USA member, do you know students who are studying management consulting? Whether they are relatives, chapter student members, or perhaps students in class, your Student Management Consulting Awards Initiative would like to reach out to them. We have opportunities for mentorships and internships, leading to the chance to submit their work for awards. Please send these students’ contact information to our student representative Liz Kemker. We thank you and so will your students!

Leave a Legacy: Become a Student Mentor

Your SMCC (Student Management Consulting Committee*) wants to support our student members with mentorships. These mentorships will be a first step and precursor to help students to apply for the IMC USA Student Management Consulting Awards. We are looking for mentors in a wide variety of fields.

There are many benefits to being a mentor, including . . .

• Enjoying the fulfillment and satisfaction of contributing to the development of young people
• Extending your network and building community
• Supporting the use and development of key competencies leading to professional growth---yours and your mentee’s
• Encouraging consideration of alternative possibilities
• Discovering the value of connecting with today’s young people
• Renewing your ideas and perspectives on your leadership role.
   

To express your interest in being an SMCC Mentor, please email John Anderson. You will discover that there is a non-financial payoff that makes volunteering to be a mentor worthwhile, and you will enjoy feeling like you are leaving a lasting legacy.

* Formerly Student Management Consulting Awards Committee

Finally, if you are interested in becoming a member of the Recognitions and Awards Committee, please drop an email to [email protected] or call Joyce at 336-210-3548. Get involved today.

Meets on Zoom - Thursday, November 4, at 5 PM Eastern for our monthly discussion. The purpose of the Women Consultants Group is to highlight IMC USA women consultants and facilitate a community that supports the success of all. For more information or to attend the event, contact Jennifer Beever CMC^®, MBA by email [email protected] or phone 818-347-4248.

There are 10 chapters throughout the United States that serve members on a local basis – including programming and networking. Please click here to determine the closest chapter to your vicinity.