Professional development programs and certifications are important elements of industry associations’ member value. Your members are looking to you for guidance in what they should know to excel in their careers. That’s a lot of pressure! If you’re just starting to build or rebuild a certification program, it’s hard to know where to begin.
At the most basic level, every certification program needs a body of knowledge to assess against. This body of knowledge will ultimately set the foundation for your certification’s success. While it is a significant undertaking, there’s no need to worry. We’ll break the development of a body of knowledge down into five manageable steps.
Step 1: Determine the Target Audience and Minimum Certification Requirements
Who should earn your certification, and what do they need to know? Defining these basic parameters will help shape the breadth and depth of your body of knowledge and provide guidance for the knowledge level required in test questions and prep materials. It is important to be deliberate in this step; even more so if your association offers other certifications covering similar topics or if there are competing certifications in the market. Now is the time to ensure your body of knowledge is focused and unique.
We’ve seen the negative effects of certifications that insufficiently executed this step. Certifications that use nearly identical bodies of knowledge face increased development and marketing costs down the line, as the creation of unique training materials, test items, and market positioning will be unmanageable.
Step 2: Assemble Subject Matter Experts and Conduct a Job Task Analysis
Once the target audience for the certification has been determined, it is time to conduct a thorough review of the knowledge, skills, and abilities that competent individuals must exhibit to be successful in their field, known as a job task analysis (JTA).
This requires the use of subject matter experts (SMEs), who are selected to create a team that is diverse across many dimensions, such as industry, geography, and others. The selected group should collectively cover the entire universe that the body of knowledge covers. This group is typically led by a psychometrician.
Conducting the JTA can be a time-consuming process that examines every aspect of the certification’s intended scope. Whenever possible, use quantitative data, such as survey data from members in the field. The JTA should examine the necessary knowledge and skills that individuals must possess to competently perform at the level that the certification intends to focus on. Crucial terminology may be identified to create a dictionary or glossary of terms. Emerging trends should also be examined, though with careful consideration to avoid including fads that will not last or concepts that are not fully developed, understood, or implemented.
Step 3: Categorize and Organize the Results of the JTA
Using categorizing techniques like mind mapping, take the concepts and tasks identified in the JTA and begin the process of organizing them into groups and subgroups. Perform an analysis of the concepts and tasks and conduct a comprehensive review to ensure that any duplicated or unnecessary items are omitted. This should ultimately result in the creation of clusters or domains, all of the same relative level and importance.
Step 4: Create the Body of Knowledge with Domains, Sub-Domains, and Goals
Using the categories developed in step three, you can now create the body of knowledge. One method that’s helpful when organizing the domains and sub-domains is to think of the body of knowledge as a table of contents for a book. What domains are the most important? Which domains rely on information contained in other domains?
Below the domain level, work to create, associate, and order logical sub-domains. Write specific tasks or competencies for the sub-domains associated with, or required for, adequate performance. Do not lose focus of the intended audience of the certification and ensure that the tasks or goals are appropriate for the role.
Using a framework such as Bloom’s Taxonomy may be helpful. If your certification is targeting new entrants to the industry, you may use lower-level verbiage such as “recall” more often; if it’s targeting experienced professionals and leadership, you may use higher-level terms such as “analyze” instead.
It is unlikely that all tasks in the body of knowledge will be at the same level, regardless of your certification focus area. Concepts foundational to the day-to-day operation of a profession may feature higher-level terms, even for a certification targeting new entrants to the field, for instance.
The verbiage used in the body of knowledge will ultimately guide future test writing and content development efforts. If a candidate is being asked to “recall” something, basic information and definitions will be interpreted to be sufficient. If the candidate is being asked to lead a process, specific and detailed information will be required to demonstrate that the candidate can perform the task to satisfaction.
Step 5: Determine Domain Weighting and Specify Resources
Consider the relative importance of the information and tasks covered by each domain and assign it a percentage value (typically based on validation survey results) so that the total of all domain weights equals 100. This will determine how many questions associated with each domain are included on the certification exam and help guide content development efforts as well.
If desired, you may want to examine, select, and specify informational resources for exam question writers, content developers, and candidates to utilize. A list of resources can help all interested parties avoid scope creep and better understand the specific information necessary to adequately demonstrate competency regarding the body of knowledge requirements.
Building a unique, up-to-date, and relevant professional body of knowledge is a strong first step to offering a successful, in-demand certification program. By following these steps and assigning adequate resources to the process, you’ll be ready to begin exam and preparation resource development.
If you don’t have the expertise, time, or resources to take this on yourself, HC has an experienced team ready to help. Visit us online at HolmesCorp.com or contact us directly at [email protected].
