Weekly Blog by Philip King, CEO of the ICM - 'Being proud to be a professional'

I was at the fifth CCRi Conference this week and what an excellent event it was. With more than 400 credit professionals gathered at the Guoman Tower Hotel in London, it proved a great opportunity to network with colleagues, and provided plenty of learning to take away. I shared a quote I'd seen the night before in my brief comments at the beginning of the day that 'Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other'. How true those words are. Standing still is not an option because, if we don't grow and develop, the world moves on and leaves us behind!

Trevor Williams, Chief Economist at Lloyds Bank ended his keynote speech by observing that the future is impossible to predict because there are 'so many imponderables'. If that's true, and I believe it is, then all the more reason why credit professionals must build their skills and knowledge so they can continue to add value to their businesses and help them survive and prosper. What might have worked well a year or two ago won't necessarily work now and, if we assume it will, we could get seriously caught out. The new ICM CPD scheme currently being piloted, ahead of its formal launch for 2012, is well timed, and so is the continuing progress of our learning and development programme. We're demonstrating our commitment to providing the tools to equip people and make them truly effective, and feedback from our members and potential members attending CCRi on Tuesday was universally positive.

Credit management is a profession in just the same way as accounting or law are professions, and those of us working in it must not be afraid to make that point to our colleagues, peers and bosses. Credit management sits at the centre of the business and touches every aspect of the organisation; now is the time for us to stand up, be counted and show pride in our professionalism.

Weekly Blog by Philip King, CEO of the ICM - 'Pride in Professionalism!'

A couple of weeks out of the office and I'm back raring to go. I looked at only a few emails, turned off Twitter and was generally very well behaved - I think even Mrs K was surprised! While I was absent, I gave away my daughter on her wedding day which was as perfect as we could have hoped for, spent a few days in the North West of England, and watched the world going mad. Riots in London and elsewhere, the US economy being downgraded, and a possible European financial meltdown as just a few examples. So back to reality and I've decided not to join in the bigger debates that have been going on while I've been away since all the arguments have already been expressed and in better words than I can use.

I do want to share some thoughts on professionalism though. The Institute of Credit Management (ICM) delivers cash for business by empowering credit professionals working in those businesses to be more effective, and a couple of emails received from ICM members during my holiday reminded me of just how important the credit management role is. Members of the ICM are professionals working in the field of credit management who recognise the importance of what they do and are keen to develop their own knowledge and careers, whether that is through qualifications, training courses, keeping up-to-date through reading Credit Management magazine and ICM Briefings, attending regional networking events, participating in online forums, or engaging in other ways. In short, they are showing pride in being professional by belonging to an organisation that supports them, works for them, and encourages them.

And yet I meet many people working in credit management who, although they recognise the value they add, don't see it as a profession in its own right. Many of us would argue rightly that it is a challenging, rewarding and worthwhile profession, and needs to be seen as such. We have made significant strides in recent years in gaining recognition but we need to do more. The new Continuing Professional Development scheme the ICM is piloting is an example. More important though is getting those of us who do the job to make sure our peers and business colleagues (above and below) understand that we're working in a profession we're proud of and is vital to the sustaining and growth of business and the economy.

If you know someone who's working in credit management and hasn't yet got round to joining the ICM, give them a nudge or send me their details and I'll nudge them. The more members we have, the louder our voice will be and I'm on a mission to raise the volume - let's get all credit professionals to show Pride in Professionalism!