INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMMERS GUILD

1996-07-15                                  

TO:   

Warren H. Schmidt, Guild Master             6535 Millcreek Drive, Unit #44

The International Programmers Guild     Mississauga, Ontario, L5N 2M2

             email: warren@ipgnet.com            Tel. No.: (905) 812-1717

             Fax No.: (905) 812-1953

FROM: 

Zack Bajin, Education Director IPG                           284 Hickory Circle

            email: zack@ipgnet.com                                  Oakville, Ontario, L6H 4V1

           alternative e-mail: zack_bajin@cmac.org      Tel. No.: (905) 338-0608

           AppleLink: LEXIS.CORP                                 Fax No.: (905) 338-0609

Now that COMDEX and the Northeast Conference of User Group Leaders is over, in which I had to take an active part as a long time UG ambassador, I can finally  sit down to summarize my voluntary work of the past four moths as the Education Director of the IPG Academy, which I helped establish in the Spring of this year, and outline possible directions which would be beneficial to the IPG and the profession.

First, I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to explore, develop and implement a framework for a modern approach to professional competence upgrading and assessment of members of the International Programmers Guild. It is very much needed in the world which is rapidly shrinking due to the explosion of communications and information technology.

Unfortunately I am no longer able to carry on with my participation in the developmental process of the IPG Academy. Your proposal to consider assuming the Academy development and administration role as a full-time occupation and as a partner, as well as the challenges and the potentials of the IPG Academy are very intriguing. However, after long and careful consideration of all the parameters, including my other professional and long term commitments, I regret having to decline.

Following is a summary of all the established mile stones:

• the IPG Academy  and the ground rules for its operational procedures were established.

• the primary mandate of the IPG Academy was identified to act as an information clearing house of global training opportunities. Its secondary role is to initiate, negotiate and/or implement training opportunities where needed.

• the forming of an IPG Academy Education Advisory Council, the IPG EAC, was initiated. The IPG EAC is to be composed of top representatives of public and private training institutions. This voluntary Council will implement a self-evaluation/ accreditation process of all training member-institutions seeking IPG certification of their graduates.

• a directory of accredited institutions, their courses and their web links to be maintained by the IPG on the IPG Web site. - Upon joining the IPG EAC and peer accreditation of at least one of its training seminars or courses, the training institution is to be included in the IPG directory.

• the establishment of an IPG Accreditation Task Force, IPG ATF, was formulated. The Accreditation Task Force is to be composed of the IPG Academy staff and leading professionals invited by the Academy Director to join the ATF as consultants in return for a nominal honorarium. The IPG ATF is to offer management services and administrative assistance to the IPG EAC in its accreditation process.

• a framework of policies and procedures for the IPG Academy and the IPG EAC and ATF was developed, the essential components of which were posted on the IPG Web site under the IPG Academy section.4 • a registration and processing fee structure was developed, with your cooperation, to cover administrative and operational expenses of the IPG Academy within the IPG.

One of the important components was a review of the existing IPG certification procedures. All the related activities of an educational section of the IPG could then be developed. I have had the privilege to, without altering the traditional IPG certification methods, update the content of the IPG certification procedures to reflect the fact that IPG's principal communication channel now is the World Wide Web.

Below is a proposed path for IPG Academy to follow if it is to establishing itself as the international professional standard. Note that prior to mass e-mailing to training institutions, invitations to join the self-accreditation Council, the IPG EAC, these steps should be undertaken immediately:

• recognition should be sought by  one or both local governments, the country in which IPG was established (Switzerland) and the country/province where its central office is seated (Canada/Ont.)


• synergy with leading national professional organizations such as the British Computer Society  (BCS),  IEEE Computer Society, CIPS, etc. should be initiated and their recognition of the IPG as an international umbrella organization should be aspired.


• UNESCO recognition of the IPG Academy should be applied for.


All the above implementation steps need to be undertaken carefully and in a professional manner. To that end, establishment of a full time team is mandatory.  Consequently,


• an immediate establishment of and IPG Academy department, with fully salaried staff of at least six staff members is indicated, with  well defined job description and the following chain of commands:

                         Academy Director

                         Administrative Assistant

                         Accreditation Administrative Coordinator

                         Convenor of Governmental Training Institutions

                         (Colleges and Universities),

                         Convenor of Private Corporate Training Institutions

                         Convenor of Private On-line Training Sites

                         Other full-time roles reporting to the Director should be projected

                         (e.g.: IPG on-line Training and Testing Coordinator/s)


• the IPG certification procedures and its point system differ radically from the certification procedures of other national and international professional organizations, and should be reviewed to, e.g. appropriately acknowledge the BCS certification. It must be realized that any major omission in or correction of the IPG certification process may, in the very near future,  put the professional competence of the existing certified membership in question.


Finally, to meet the approval of national and international bodies and organizations concerned with professional development and standards, a radical restructuring of the existing organizational framework of the IPG, perhaps even a re-registration as a new independent corporation would have to be considered. 


In closing, I would like to wish you much success in promoting international standards of professional competence. If you require further input regarding the re-organization of the IPG, please, do not hesitate to contact me.

IPG EDUCATION DIRECTOR'S FINAL REPORT