Annual Recertification Requirements
Each CABM and CBM must complete 20 hours of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credit hours per calendar year. The first calendar year starts in the year following the year in which a candidate becomes CBM or CABM. For example, if a candidate becomes a CBM or CABM anytime in the 2004 calendar year, his continuing education period starts in January 1, 2005.
Recertification is required to keep the certification active. The recertification period is one calendar year. The CABM or CBM holder must meet the following three conditions to be recertified every year:
• Must complete 20 credit hours of Continuing Education. Click here for the CPE Submission form.
• Must sign the Code of Professional Ethics document to demonstrate commitment.
Click here for the 2006 CABM Code of Professional Ethics document.
Click here for the 2007 CABM Code of Professional Ethics document.
Click here for the 2008 CABM Code of Professional Ethics document.
Click here for the 2006 CBM Code of Professional Ethics document.
Click here for the 2007 CBM Code of Professional Ethics document.
Click here for the 2008 CBM Code of Professional Ethics document.
• Must sign the Use and Misuse document to demonstrate commitment.
• Must pay the CABM/CBM annual certification maintenance fee of US$48.
Failure to meet any one of the above three conditions will make the certificate holder’s status inactive. Inactive status means the certificate holder’s resume information will not be available to prospective employers, his name will be excluded from the APBM Membership Directory, and at the same time the inactive status provides an exit point from the profession.
An individual receives an active status when all of the following four conditions are met:
• Fulfill outstanding CPE hours
• Sign the Code of Professional Ethics document for outstanding years
• Sign the Use and Misuse document for outstanding years
• Pay the outstanding annual certification maintenance fee of US$48 per year
If the CABM/CBM holder is inactive for a period of three or more years, he will need to take the CABM/CBM Exams respectively by paying the full price of the exams and achieve the passing score. In other words, this is similar to taking the exams for the first time. After passing the exam, the inactive status will be changed to active status.
Individuals who are retired from the workforce are not required to annually submit CPE documentation. However, they still need to pay the CABM/CBM Maintenance Fee of $48.
The CPE credit hours can be earned in many ways including seminars, classes, corporate training programs, etc. The CPEs earned to maintain other certifications could be transferred to satisfy your CPE requirements for the CABM or CBM. Professors can earn the CPE credit hours for teaching a course for the first time only. Teaching the same course repeatedly will not earn any hours unless the course syllabus or books changed. APBM retains the right to conduct random audits of the CPE hours earned outside of the APBM’s own continuing education sources.
The CABM or CBM can also earn the CPEs through APBM’s own continuing education program, which is based on online quizzes developed from Harvard Business Review articles and is organized by the ten Learning Modules tested on the CBM and CABM Exams. Each quiz based on one article earns two CPE credit hours and costs US$20 per article for APBM Members and US$25 for non-members. This translates to an annualized cost of US$200 for APBM Members and US$250 for non-Members. The passing score for the online quizzes is 70 percent. There is no limit on the number of retakes of the quizzes.
APBM suggests that you take one quiz from each Learning Module per year to get a well-rounded perspective in business management. Our goal is to maintain an inventory of 200 current articles and quizzes at all times.
An individual with an MBA degree and who does not want to become a CBM can earn the CPE credits from APBM’s own continuing education program. This will be a reflection of his proactive and progressive mind in keeping up-to-date with issues and trends in business management.
