Professional certification, trade certification, or professional designation, often called simply certification or qualification, is a designation earned by a person to assure qualification to perform a job or task. Not all certifications that use post-nominal letters are an acknowledgement of educational achievement, or an agency appointed to safeguard the public interest.
An accountant is a practitioner of accounting or accountancy. Accountants who have demonstrated competency through their professional associations' certification exams are certified to use titles such as Chartered Accountant, Chartered Certified Accountant or Certified Public Accountant, or Registered Public Accountant. Such professionals are granted certain responsibilities by statute, such as the ability to certify an organization's financial statements, and may be held liable for professional misconduct. Non-qualified accountants may be employed by a qualified accountant, or may work independently without statutory privileges and obligations.
Certified Public Accountant (CPA) is the title of qualified accountants in numerous countries in the English-speaking world. It is generally equivalent to the title of chartered accountant in other English-speaking countries. In the United States, the CPA is a license to provide accounting services to the public. It is awarded by each of the 50 states for practice in that state. Additionally, all states except Hawaii have passed mobility laws to allow CPAs from other states to practice in their state. State licensing requirements vary, but the minimum standard requirements include passing the Uniform Certified Public Accountant Examination, 150 semester units of college education, and one year of accounting-related experience.
Certified Management Accountant (CMA) is a professional certification credential in the management accounting and financial management fields. The certification signifies that the person possesses knowledge in the areas of financial planning, analysis, control, decision support, and professional ethics. There are many professional bodies globally that have management accounting professional qualifications. The main bodies that offer the CMA certification are:
- Institute of Management Accountants USA;
- Institute of Certified Management Accountants (Australia); and
- Certified Management Accountants of Canada.
The Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), formerly known as the National Association of Cost Accountants (NACA), is a professional organization of accountants.
Founded in 1904, the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants(ACCA) is the global professional accounting body offering the Chartered Certified Accountant qualification (ACCA). It has 240,952 members and 541,930 future members worldwide. ACCA's headquarters are in London with principal administrative office in Glasgow. ACCA works through a network of over 110 offices and centres in 51 countries - with 346 Approved Learning Partners (ALP) and more than 7,600 Approved Employers worldwide, who provide employee development.
Credit management is the process of granting credit, setting the terms on which it is granted, recovering this credit when it is due, and ensuring compliance with company credit policy, among other credit related functions. The goal within a bank or company, in controlling credit, is to improve revenues and profit by facilitating sales and reducing financial risks. A structured credit policy ensures that the credit team uses a standardized method for managing a customer’s credit risk. This leads to consistent credit decisions and eliminating compliance issues because there is an audit trail.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to finance:
The National Board for Certified Counselors, Inc. and Affiliates (NBCC) is an international certifying organization for professional counselors in the United States. It is an independent, not-for-profit credentialing organization based in Greensboro, North Carolina. The purpose of the organization is to establish and monitor a national certification system for professional counselors, to identify certified counselors, and to maintain a register of them. NBCC also certifies Coaches through its affiliate Center for Credentialing and Education. Individuals may earn the Board Certified Coach credential through third party programs, including online programs in Life Coaching and Psychosynthesis Coaching.
Following is a partial list of professional certifications in financial services, with an overview of the educational and continuing requirements for each; see Professional certification § Accountancy, auditing and finance and Category:Professional certification in finance for all articles. As the field of finance has increased in complexity in recent years, the number of available designations has grown, and, correspondingly, some will have more recognition than others. Note that in the US, many state securities and insurance regulators do not allow financial professionals to use a designation — in particular a "senior" designation — unless it has been accredited by either the American National Standards Institute or the National Commission for Certifying Agencies.
The Certified Treasury Professional (CTP) is a certification awarded by the Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) of Bethesda, Maryland to individuals who meet eligibility criteria and demonstrate current competency standards measured through the CTP examination. More than 30,000 individuals have earned the credential.
A Certified Government Financial Manager (CGFM) is a professional certification issued by the Association of Government Accountants (AGA) in the United States. It was created in 1994 to provide a professional standard of financial expertise and ethics in government and a standard by which government financial management professionals are measured. Its education, experience and ethics requirements have served to elevate the most seasoned financial professionals.
Nacha, originally the National Automated Clearinghouse Association, manages the development, administration, and governance of the ACH Network, the backbone for the electronic movement of money and data in the United States, and is an association for the payments industry. The ACH Network serves as a network for direct consumer, business, and government payments, and annually facilitates billions of payments such as Direct Deposit and Direct Payment. The ACH Network is governed by the Nacha Operating Rules, a set of rules that guide risk management.
The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) is the umbrella professional body for bankers in Nigeria. The CIBN was incorporated in 1976 as the Nigerian Institute of Bankers. It was chartered in 1990, and is now covered by the CIBN Act 5 of 2007. The Institute is authorized to control entry into the banking profession, to set standards for bankers and to maintain professional ethics through sanctions of erring members. Corporate members include the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation and all Deposit Money Banks, Development Banks, Mortgage Banks, Micro Finance Banks and Discount Houses in Nigeria.
The Credit Institute of Canada (CIC) is a not-for-profit organization created by a special Act of Parliament on June 11, 1928. The CIC provides credit management resources, education and certification to its members and is the only organization that grants official designations to professionals in the Canadian credit management field.
The Credit Managers' Index(CMI) is a monthly economic indicator of financial activity reflecting credit managers' responses to levels of favorable and unfavorable factors. The measure has been sourced in stories from publications such as the Wall Street Journal, CFO and Bloomberg.
A credit analyst is a person employed by an organization to analyze the credit worthiness of customers and potential customers, and to assist in the ongoing management and modeling of credit risk thereafter. See Credit analysis § Role and Financial analyst § Corporate and other for discussion. In May 2015, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 70,840 people employed as credit analysts. The salary for this position ranged from $40,250 to $134,080 with a mean average wage of $79,720.
A credit assistant is a person employed by an organization to provide support services to credit managers, credit analysts and other members of the credit department. This position is often entry level. Job responsibilities may include:
A director ofcredit and collections is a senior-level employee in an organization's credit department. Job responsibilities may include:
