SEPTEMBER 2009 - Association of Marina Industries

Training & Certification
By Kayce Cashill Florio
IMI® Updates CMM Qualifications
IMI continues to set the standard of professionalism in the
industry
IMI has been certifying marina professionals since 1992 and
in these 18 years, the landscape of the marina industry has
changed considerably. In an effort to stay current with the
expectations of the industry, IMI revisited the expectations
of its CMMs. The first step in ensuring the high quality of
the graduates of the CMM certification program was the
creation of the CMM re-accreditation process. This process
requires those who have received their CMM certificates to
stay current with their training and education. IMI has set
the expectation that each CMM must obtain ten contact
hours of development in their field annually, in order for
their certification to remain “active” and to continue to be
recognized as such by IMI and the industry.
Another decision IMI made to stay in step with the industry
was to revisit the qualifications that one must have for
CMM Certification. Two key qualifiers have been updated.
These conditions must be met in order for a candidate
to be considered for their CMM certification. The first
review point was the definition of management experience.
Previously to qualify for a CMM certificate, one must have
been a high-level manager of a marina, for an aggregate
of five years, as defined by meeting 16 of the 26 points of
management experience as per the CMM application. This
qualifier has been updated so that currently one must meet
18 of these 26 points to qualify. Second, a candidate must
have had the aggregate of five year’s experience managing a
marina with at least 100 slips, wet and dry combined, AND
gross revenues of at least $800,000 annually. Currently
a manager must continue to have five year’s aggregate
experience managing a marina, but now that marina must
have at least 100 slips, wet and dry combined, OR at least
$1.0 million in gross revenue annually. This change is
important to recognizing those marinas that may cater to
super yachts. These facilities may have less than 100 slips
but still have tremendous expectations placed upon them
by the industry and their clients and professionalism and
service is critical.
IMI has set the standard for professionalism within the
marina industry and it continues to hold high expectations
of its CMM graduates. IMI’s programming is consistently
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reviewed and updated to ensure that it continues to offer
marina professionals high-quality and relevant training.
This is critical in supporting the overall goal of educating
marina professionals to ensure the industry remains vital.
ICOMIA Endorses IMI® Programming
International marine association gives nod to “leading
trainer”
The International Council of Marine Industry Associations
(ICOMIA) has endorsed the International Marina Institute®
(IMI) training and certification program, including IMI’s
internationally coveted Certified Marina Manager (CMM)
program. IMI is a subsidiary of the Association of Marina
Industries (AMI). Citing IMI’s teaching standards and ability
to reach the marina industry’s professional audience on a
global scale, ICOMIA officials suggested their endorsement
offers the organization an opportunity to reach out to its
many national marina associations’ membership. “IMI’s
training has proven itself to be universal and appropriate
for marina professionals around the world,” says Tony Rice,
the Secretary General of ICOMIA, which seeks to improve
recreational boating through the global exchange of relevant
technical, environmental, and marketing information to
marina professionals. “We are pleased to endorse a program
that has remained so successful for over 20 years and look
forward to alerting our marina associations’ members
about these valuable training opportunities.”
“This endorsement firmly validates IMI as a leading
trainer worldwide,” says Jim Frye, chair and president of
AMI. “The Institute strives toward offering a consistent
global standard to ensure marina operators, managers, and
owners have the most up-to-date training and certification
available, and continue to represent the highest level of
professionalism in our industry.” IMI’s courses are offered
globally in Australia, Europe, and Singapore through the
institute’s franchise partners.
IMI’s upcoming training program includes the Intermediate
and Advanced Marina Management classes that lead to the
highly respected Certified Marina Managers’ designation.
The training institute also offers a Marina Operator Course
as well as yearly theme conferences that focus on such topics
as emerging applied technologies and drystack, along with an
annual Southeast Florida Marina and Boatyard Study Tour.