Introduction

This article discusses my impressions of the CERM Boot Camp I attended from February 29 to March 4, 2016. The presenters were Greg Hutchins and Ed Perkins. At the outset I need to note that I have known Greg for more than 30 years. We also bid on a couple of jobs together. I met Ed a couple of times prior to the Boot Camp.

Presenters Background

By way of background, Greg has over forty years’ experience in Quality and Risk Management. He is the CEO of Quality + Engineering. He has also authored a number books and articles on quality and risk related topics. Ed is a Certified Internal Auditor. He has fifteen years’ experience in auditing. He is also on a number of IEEE Technical Committees and running for the presidency of IEEE. Both have experience conducting Risk Based Auditing in a variety of sectors. Those sectors include: Federal and State Government, Power Utilities, Banking, and Software.

Boot Camp Content

The Boot Camp is generally tailored to the attendees. In this case, most of the attendees had experience in Quality and ISO Compliance Auditing. Three main topics were covered: 1. Risk Based Thinking and how federal and international standards are requiring firms to focus on their business and operational risk. 2. ISO 31000 and how it can be used to conduct a Risk Based Analysis and 3. Value Added Auditing (Risk Based Auditing).

The course material is well organized and progresses logically through the topics with each module building on and reinforcing the others. The topic in each module is thoroughly covered. The exercises are challenging and reinforce the modules. There is plenty of reading each night. The books are some of the best practice focused books I have encountered and by the initials at the end of my name, one can imagine that I have seen and used a substantive number of books. The interaction between instructors and the attendees was excellent. Further, interaction between attendees was both encouraged and facilitated. The final exam is comprehensive and well balanced. The discussion on the exam answers helped reinforce what had been covered over the preceding four days.

Issues

No course is perfect. The same is the case here. On a couple of the practice questions the attendees had questions. Unfortunately, the answers were not as clear as they could have been. Similarly, on the final exam there were a few questions which were not as well worded as they could have been. Since attendee feedback was sought and received, I expect that these concerns were heard and corrective action will be taken.

The CERM Benefits

There are a number of benefits to attending the Boot Camp. At the most basic level is a certificate of completion. This certificate can be applied to the education/training requirements for a number of professional associations. Having the certificate also looks good on a resume. Another benefit is a better understanding of how the federal and ISO emphasis on risk will affect both the public and private sector. The most important benefit is the presentation of a solid practice based methodology for the conducting of a Comprehensive Enterprise Risk Assessment.

In addition to the educational benefits noted above, CERM Academy graduates are being given free access to a number of podcasts, reduced rates on forth coming webinars, and an hour of free consulting time worth $250.

BIO:

James Kline PhD is an ASQ certified Six Sigma Green Belt and Manager of Quality/Organizational Excellence. He has over ten year’s supervisory and managerial experience. He has consulted on economic, quality and workforce development issues for the City of Corvallis, Benton County Oregon, the State of Oregon and the League of Oregon Cities. He has also published numerous articles related to quality in government. His dissertation examines criteria that assist academics in the receipt of National Institute of Health Funds.