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Becoming a YPP means you were chosen out of a group big picture. CLFP certification broadens their perspective,
of your peers, Gibbs noted, but it doesn't actually give you which is why these practice exercises are really helpful.
that certification. It just sets you in the right direction.
"YPP provides the tools and support to get CPP certifica- "One of the challenges I see in my consulting work is when
tion," he said. "After attaining CPP certification, there is people don't understand how their role fits into the larger
a little bit of maintenance to retain the credential, which picture," she said. "That's where we see breakdowns. A
involves attending seminars or ETA events. I think that's program like this helps people to expand their under-
great, because the industry is always changing." standing of the broader picture to see just where they fit
in. And then you can understand how your role and what
Communal knowledge you do impacts those downstream and how these inter-

Gibbs pointed out that YPPs and CPPs have access to col- related activities impact your customers."
lective industry knowledge, a key membership benefit.
"The ETA is our guiding star and a really big deal in the Gibbs observed that professionals can similarly feel a bit
industry," he said. "But the other really great part for me is silo'd in the payments industry. "I work on the technology
that I meet other young people in similar scenarios, who providing side, so my whole world is payment terminals
have a similar set of credentials and aspirations to apply to and software," he said. "But I know there are others who
this program. We're not only in the same industry, we're in are working in the merchant services space or in the fraud
the same swim lane, working together on special projects and risk space. And if it weren't for these kinds of pro-
and speaking engagements." grams, I wouldn't have access to those young people, shy
of just like walking up to them on a tradeshow floor to
Reuben also drew from her industry's communal knowl- make a direct introduction."
edge base as she developed the study guide. "It was amaz- Future generations
ing to have access to those brilliant minds and to organize
the entire body of knowledge into a framework," she said. Perhaps the best benefit of certification programs is their
"We reframed the whole book by chunking topics into cat- capacity to bring together industry stakeholders with
egories, the same way I did when I was studying. We built varying backgrounds and expertise and help them find
the book around the body of knowledge – all the things common ground. As the pace of innovation accelerates,
that a professional in our industry should be aware of and the programs are becoming more flexible and scalable. Re-
understand." cent changes in the PCIP, CLFP and YPP programs reflect
a warm, communal spirit.
Cline has found that the PCIP knowledge base saves time
and improves efficiencies by providing all the information Raykovich has seen CLFP holders across the country regu-
he needs to do his job professionally and effectively in one larly get together to network. "We've [mastered the exam]
place. "I read a ton of PCIP articles, white papers and case together and we've done some myth-busting too," she said.
studies to stay up to date with emerging security trends," "We no longer say things like, 'risk is there to kill my sales.'
he said. "The council is constantly publishing newsletters I have not looked for a job since I got my certification."
with updates and changes to compliance variations and
suggested timelines for changes. Being kept up to date on Gibbs had expected a rather formal YPP welcome call and
changes that are happening in real time at the council is was pleasantly surprised by the open and spontaneous re-
another benefit and a kind of mindshare." ception of incoming YPPs. Event organizers gave us a re-
ally wide open platform for input and strategy to make the
Big picture program more valuable, he stated, adding that he didn't
Reuben mentioned that sample pricing problems have expect them to ask for feedback.
been added to the lease and finance study guide. These
practice examples are designed to test responses to finan- "I thought it was really cool that they weren't treating ev-
cial statement analysis and scenarios involving business erybody with kid gloves; instead, they were saying, you've
owners who want to lease different types of equipment. made it into this program; how can we shape it into some-
Participants practice analyzing financial statements and thing that provides value for everyone?" Gibbs said. "We're
coming up with ratios to gain a better understanding of all at very different levels, doing very different things. And
what it means and what it looks like in practice. I think that's a great way to make sure these programs stay
relevant for future generations."
Reuben went on to say that finance professionals tend to
be narrowly focused in their jobs. They may be respon- Dale S. Laszig, senior staff writer at The Green Sheet and managing
sible for credit or documentation or accounting. They don't director at DSL Direct LLC, is a payments industry journalist and content
necessarily get involved in other aspects of the business. development specialist. She can be reached at dale@dsldirectllc.com
Even if they don't deal with these scenarios every day, and on Twitter at @DSLdirect.
certified lease and finance professionals need to see the

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