Emeritus CMPs

Betty E. Garrett, CMP
Irving, TX

What the CMP Means To Me

Almost 20 years ago, I applied for the CMP certification when I was an MPI staff member and CMP certification was just beginning to unfold. It was my belief MPI needed to have a staff member with this designation if we were going to advocate the program. Even though I had only three years’ experience, I really wanted to pass this exam. It was a very happy day when the envelope arrived with the good news.

There are three things I contribute towards my CMP certification:

Credibility
Membership into a select professional community
Personal growth

This certification is the best thing that has happened to my career. It immediately established credibility within my peer group. It placed me into a different playing field; I was viewed as a strategic person vs a logistical one. It caused me to stretch outside my comfort zone. While I did not have all the answers, I now had resources at my finger tips to help me find answers. When I changed jobs, I was able to increase my salary by 15% due to the CMP certification. The new boss was aware of the criteria and knew I had the credentials to move the organization forward.

The CMP allowed me to become a member of a select professional community. My business relationships soared because of my new found “celebrity” status. Due to my connections with planners and suppliers in and out of the hospitality industry, it helped grow my business. The networking opportunities afforded me as a CMP grew, as did my exposure within the hospitality arena. I have been asked to write articles and speak to various professional groups on meeting planning and working with speaker bureaus. I served as an officer and President of the MPI D/FW chapter. I was awarded the Marion Kershner Leadership Award and received the Colleen Rickenbacher Leadership Award. One of my greatest professional honors was being given the Meeting Partner of the Year Award from National Speakers Association. Certification played a tremendous role in being selected for these stellar awards.

Thirdly, the CMP has given me the opportunity for personal growth for my self confidence; my communication skills have been improved due to the CMP. The certification boasted my confidence by allowing me to stretch beyond my comfort zone with my communication skills. This confidence helped me establish a support group for cancer caregivers at a major Dallas hospital. Due to my meeting planning knowledge, I was able to establish, develop and implement a support group for cancer caregivers. When my husband was diagnosed with cancer the second time, I needed support because I could not go through another hurdle without assistance.

When I went to the hospital for support, I realized there was not such a program. There was a support group for patients and caregivers together but I needed one to serve my needs. I did not want my husband to see how overwhelmed and frustrated I was and I wanted to be strong when he physically was so weak. So the mission began to help myself and others in the same situation. Within three months, our first support group for caregivers by themselves met with great anticipation. We met twice a month and the attendees were so appreciative of the assistance afforded them. This has developed into articles, a future book and a web site, www.cargivers4cancer.com. This has developed into continuing professional growth I received throughout the CMP journey; I do not know how I could have started these groups or communicated the mission.

Should anyone decide they do no need their certification, remind them of the three attributes I gained through the certification: credibility, membership into a select group of professional and my personal growth. I am now asking for another step on my journey, that of Emeritus status. In being granted Emeritus status, I can spend even more time spreading the mission of Caregivers4Cancer, extend its outreach and continue representing the CMP on an even larger scale.