MissionThe Association's mission is to organize and conduct the certification of persons working in management capacities (for example in project and process management and in other specialist areas serving management). The VZPM promotes development in the field of management and contributes new findings to the requirement profiles for certification.
The Association's mission also includes the accreditation of the certifications it issues and the maintenance of that accreditation by the Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS). It aims to secure international recognition for its certificates in compliance with key national and international guidelines and ISO standard ISO/IEC 17024 for bodies that certify persons.OrganizationThe VZPM has an office in Glattbrugg in the canton of Zurich and employs a team of eight people for its organizational and administrative operations. The certification assessments are handled by over 100 trained assessors employed on a freelance basis.
HistoryThe VZPM was founded in 1996 as an organization for the certification of project management personnel. Over the years, it has consistently expanded its services. It has carried out all four levels of IPMA certification since 2004. A further stage in its expansion took place in 2009: as part of its move toward focusing on other process certification services, the VZPM has since also offered certification in process management as a Certified Business Process Professional (CBPP).
Validation and AccreditationTo ensure compliance with the highest quality standards, the VZPM has its operations continually verified by the IPMA and the Swiss Accreditation Service (SAS). The IPMA confirms certification on the basis of internationally recognized standards and their validation. The Swiss Accreditation Service corroborates certification, in particular on the basis of ISO standard ISO/IEC 17024.