For starters, it is hard to determine how this certificate differentiates itself from, say, the Insurance Institute of America's Associate in Risk Management (ARM) program or the Certified Risk Management (CRM) program offered by The National Alliance for Insurance Education and Research. Differentiating the certificate program from these other existing risk management-oriented courses would be a good sales tactic. At first blush, Kaplan's program seems to delve into enterprise risk management. As such, its focus is broader than the ARM texts with which many students and professionals are familiar.

Busy and cost-conscious risk managers should know that they can complete Kaplan's online self-study program in one year. The program's tuition is $3,295, with various payment plans available. Books and materials cost extra. At the completion of this course, students receive a certificate in risk management.

Caveat: the program seems designed more for aspiring risk managers than for practitioners who are already working in the field. The program's web site takes pains to explain what risk managers do and the salaries they can expect to command. None of this will be news to seasoned risk managers.

Organizationally, the Kaplan program may need to get it together if it wants to attract enrollees. When I phoned Kaplan to ask about the courses, first I was told there was no such CE program. (This the day after its press release announced it in Business Insurance!) After quoting its own press release back to Kaplan, I was transferred to someone in charge of the course. The next Kaplan representative seemed unfamiliar with the program and was vague when pressed for the number of students enrolled. Finally, he took my e-mail address and promised to send follow-up information on the program. Months later, that information has never arrived. Perhaps, by now, Kaplan has worked out the organizational kinks, but if not, program matriculation may be recommended only for the most intrepid and determined risk professionals.

The cost is not insignificant, especially if one plans to complete the course over a 12-month span. In today's budget-conscious times, one wonders how many CFOs and vice presidents of finance would approve a $3,200 line-item for continuing education in order for the risk manager to pursue a “certificate in risk management.” One can readily anticipate the boss' question: “Hey, I thought you were supposed to already know risk management; wasn't that why we hired you in the first place?!”

Another potential drawback exists for some risk managers. Earning a certificate is not the same as earning a designation. From a business standpoint, it is tough to see why Kaplan did not launch a new risk-management designation. As the National Alliance knows (and CPCU/IIA have not seized on), having a designation that requires annual updates makes for consistent cash flow.

Enterprise Risk Management Designation

Another relatively new offering comes in the form of the Enterprise Risk Management Professional (ERMP) designation offered by the Insurance Educational Association (www.ieatraining.com). The designation requires completing the three ARM courses offered by the Insurance Institute of America: Risk Management Essentials, Risk Control, and Risk Financing. Additionally, the designation mandates three other courses offered by the IEA. These are:

• ERMP 701 – Overview of Enterprise Risks
• ERMP 702 – Financial Issues and Enterprise Risk Management
• ERMP 703 – Organizational Development

These courses each have their own textbooks and a weekly conference call at a designated time. There is no physical classroom. Such flexibility appeals to many risk managers who would have difficulty getting to class after an already busy work day. Each class lasts between 12-14 weeks. IEA offered ERMP 701 for the first time in the fall of last year. It will roll out ERMP 702 and 703 sometime this year.

It remains to be seen how widely recognized the ERMP designation will be within the risk-management industry. As yet few people have it, referring to it may cause some people to scratch their heads, and the web site has course descriptions and content only for the first two courses. Overall, the program advertises that it covers leading-edge technology risks, global thinking, financial, market and consumer risks, and reputational risks.

Each ERMP course costs either $355 or $375, depending on whether or not you are a member of the Insurance Educational Association. In addition, the designation is not for perpetuity. To keep it, you must have at least six hours of continuing education per year in a field related to risk management.

Between ARM, CRM, and ERMP, some risk managers will need to run the printing around to the backs of their business cards. Will the letters start to run together in a continuing-education version of alphabet soup?

CE: What's It all About?

Before pursuing any continuing education program in risk management, examine your aims. What do you hope to accomplish by taking this course or program? Focusing on the answer will help you maximize the return on investment, for you are investing both time and money. There also is an opportunity cost. Every hour spent in a continuing education course or program is one hour you cannot devote to other projects or tasks. Do you hope to break into risk management from a related discipline, such as claims? Do you want to know more about a specific subject area, such as corporate governance or Sarbanes-Oxley?

Are you looking to expand your scope of risk management responsibility and influence by learning more about employee benefits? Are you baffled by reinsurance and want to shore up a weak spot? Are there soft skills (e.g. negotiation or project planning) in which a short-course seminar would boost your professional effectiveness? Do you wish to add more letters and designations to your business card to enhance your job mobility? Is there an area that simply interests you, with no obvious extrinsic reward?

No right or wrong answers exist to parry these questions. The point is to be clear in your aims; do not just sleepwalk into a continuing education program in risk management (or any other field) simply because it seems to be the hottest thing or the current rage. Risk managers pondering continuing education in 2006 or beyond should consider these two new programs.

Getting Approval for CE: Timing is Everything!

To boost the odds of getting a new CE course approved for payment or reimbursement, consider the timing. Most corporate budgets are set annually each fall and some as early as September. Get into the hopper at that time any CE program that has a price tag associated with it. Put differently, if you make a request for a risk-management course three months after the annual budget has been set and the course cost exceeds what has been allocated to CE, do not expect favorable answers. If a risk manager wants to embark on an ARM program, CRM designation, or certificate of risk management from Kaplan, he should make his pitch to upper management in August and September so that the cost of these programs can be factored in at that time.

Just because your employer won't pick up the expense for a continuing education course doesn't mean you should abandon plans to pursue it. Yes, it would be nice for your company to pay or reimburse you. If the knowledge, credentials, or content is sufficiently important, though, bite the bullet and take the course. If it's worth taking, it's worth taking, regardless of whether or not your employer covers the expense. By all means, try to get your company to help you, but don't let a “no” dictate your decision on pursuing a particular risk-management course or program.

Kevin Quinley CPCU, AIC, ARM, is senior vice president of Medmarc Insurance Group in Chantilly, Va. He can be reached at [email protected].