COMMENTS

 What individuals have to say about APICS certification...

Somnath Manna, CPIM, CSCP
SAP Practice, Tata Consultancy Services

domain. Along with Supply Chain, today's complex business domain calls for Supplier and Customer Relationship Management understanding and the CSCP program covered all these areas. The best part was the reference to SAP Application Components to these business fundamentals which helped me to relate better. The study material and exhaustive list of web references are an asset and provide solid reference material. While preparation for CSCP enhanced my domain knowledge, the certification is the best recognition of the hard work put in.

Anantha Ram Rudrapaka, CSCP

Sudhir Shenoi, CSCP

Mr. Sachin S. Mariguddi, CPIM
PGDIE- 35, NITIE

I am pleased to inform you that, APICS CPIM certification helped me lot during my recruitment in campus placement program. I got placed in a company called Glenmark - Pharmaceutical Major. APICS helped me at every stage of my academic career to tackle with different case studies and competitions. I wish to continue this relationship to next level my creating awareness among my college as well as outside. APICS has also provided me a lot of networking opportunities and new friends.

Gyan Prakash Puri, CPIM
Supply Chain Sourcing Manager - Asiapac Company: Chevron Corporation in Singapore

Supply Chain comes". To capture the opportunities which Globalisation & Today's Supply Chain's will bring, we will need a lot of Supply Chain Professionals who understand the essence of a Robust Supply Chain & can be instrumental in capturing its benefits.

That's where the Role of APICS comes in. APICS Body of knowledge is dedicated to meeting that need & bridging the Knowledge gap which exists & spreading the knowledge of Supply Chain. It provides the right Tools & Skills which can enable today's Supply Chain Professionals to compete with the Best in the world. The course is just apt for everyone who is connected with Value Chain, right from professionals on the Shop Floor to the people who are involved in designing the Supply Chain structures or the Managers who run the Supply Chain function.

Mr Anantharam
Earlier I was with Satyam and now working with HP. I am based out in Chennai. I am currently working for a project pursuit in Europe. I have been given a lot of responsibilities besides consulting. One of the reasons, why I got selected for this assignment is APICS certification. I have already started reaping benefits for my CPIM exams. Still, I have to complete ECO and SMR.

Sachin S. Narke, CPIM
Today when I can add CPIM designation in front of my name, I feel I am successful 'cause I can feel good in my heart. I remember when I had decided to go for this certification; I was more concerned about the 'ROI' i.e. return on my investment. After all Rs. 35000 was a big investment! But when I passed out the exam, to my surprise I realised that I had already got the returns....returns in terms of knowledge, which is invaluable! I am now least bothered about worries that I had like "whether my HR will consider this degree at the time of promotion?", "whether my market value will increase?" etc. But at the same time, I am more than delighted to tell you that most of the organisations (including Big ones like IBM) are now treating CPIM as an added advantage over the other guys competing with you as they also believe that CPIM definitely gives an in depth knowledge of the subject.

Balaji R, CPIM
As far as the CPIM course is concerned - Ah! Its been one of the best courses that I have ever taken in my life. No course can help one in improving the fundamentals of SCM other than CPIM. The curriculum is simply superb and its made me very strong in my Basics. I took up BSCM just for the sake of taking and my interest took me this far. I now look to take up the CIRM and enhance myself in that field as well.

Narikimilli Srinivasa Rao, CPIM
CPIM certification has really enriched my knowledge and helped to understand some of the concepts not gone through in academics. Concepts are practical in nature.

I feel this will definitely help to do my profession better in terms of quality of work and decisions,
which in turn benefit our customers for better products.

It will definitely be a Plus for the ones in Mfg, ERP, supply chain domain. This will keep the professionals in a network of knowledge. We encourage our colleagues, teams for this certification.

A Vijay Bhaskar Reddy, CPIM
... Based on the CPIM certification and my functional experience, I was selected in Baan Info Systems India Limited as a Functional Test Engineer. I was attached to the Product Test Group of Baan R&D and the job gave me a good exposure to the Baan ERP Package. My Knowledge of CPIM gave me the edge in better and easy understanding of the integrations and the functioning of other modules apart from the one assigned to me. CPIM certification also gave me a good recognition in the organization. With the ground set, I am in contact with Mr. Ravindra Kumar Tulsyan and other resource management professionals to understand more about the development opportunities, activities and assignments that I could take up for learning and contributing to the area of Resource management profession.

The amount of satisfaction that I have today for the subject knowledge gained, working in the area of my interest and the scope I have for tremendous development in the resource management profession would have been a very difficult task without the CPIM Certification.

Ajay Chavan, CPIM
Some benefits of APICS certification:
-- Builds confidence
-- Keeps abreast with latest practices & provides knowledge of the best practices
-- Improves knowledge-base & understanding of business process, hence
    communication with clients
-- Builds customer orientation
-- Promotes continuous learning
-- Adds value (Many organisations consider CPIM certification as a good qualification 
    and value to organisation/clients.)

Anil Gupta, CFPIM, CIRM
I qualified CPIM. While going through the body of knowledge and concepts from APICS, I learned fundamentals of entire manufacturing system. This education has provided me ability to think and integrate my experience in industry towards discovering the pitfalls and provided me insight in to how to implement better business processes. Further with this knowledge I become SAP consultant and presently consulting in USA since last 3 years. I used APICS body of knowledge expertise in most of my presentation and knowledge sharing with my clients. APICS has also certified me at fellow level CFPIM. Presently I am continuing my learning by contributing to Austin APICS Chapter Board as Company Coordinator.

Anil Khatavkar
The study of Basics of Supply Chain Management of APICS certification is giving me the following benefits-
-- While going thru' the ERP systems many issues like lot handling, MRP / MPS calculation part etc.,
    were not clear from functional point of view. Those issues are now clear.
-- APICS is helping a candidate in forming a sound background regarding various systems namely,
    MFG, SOP, PURCHASE, INVENTORY etc.
-- If read properly the recommended books & if try to explore any ERP system, the exploration will
    become easy.
-- APICS is helping a candidate in understanding/imagining the integration of various functional
    systems in a company.

There are a lot many benefits of APICS it is not possible to explain here.

Dinesh Mundhra, CPIM
Its great to let you'll know that CPIM not only is one of the best courses I could have done and acquired during my working days, but it also does have a global recognition. The course tries to give the required theory with lots of real life solutions with the right depth to appeal to a thinking mindset which I found it great since I am in the consulting world!! I am now working with PWC Holland.

Gopal Madnani, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: About 50%.

Q: What is the percentage difference between your earnings and earnings of a non-APICS-certified individual with similar profile as yours?
A: About 50%.

Harish Kumar
Being an ERP consultant, APICS certification gives me required knowledge. I really enjoying my work after going through APICS study material. I also strongly recommend people to go through APICS who are practicing manufacturing, planning and inventory control. It really helps them to excel in their work.

Ivaturi Raja Mohan, CPIM
I have been working as an ERP consultant. I am satisfied with my work since October 1999 because of the ability to use my knowledge of CPIM. The way I handle the problems has completely changed. Most of my trouble shooting is done with focus on the elimination of problem based on fundamental principles of CPIM. On many occassions the solutions are not software specific.

In a heavy equipment manufacturing company in UK, I explained the client about why to run their business in certain way rather than about how to use their ERP software (BaaN). With another manufacturer of architectural hardware in UK, users started liking ERP after they understood why they have to change their business processes which is rare in the initial stages of implementation. Because of this, implementation went very well without resistance from users and in fact users came out with many suggestions and participated actively. For a bar coding solutions provider I proposed a solution with in 4 hours of listening their problem with as many as 3 alternatives none of which could be derived in the previous week by their team members representing their sites in 17 countries.

A person with knowledge of CPIM can explain WHY a certain step is to be performed in addition to HOW it can be performed . Most of the times users are not happy because they don't get convincing answers to WHY.

But at the end I would like to say that the knowledge we gain from CPIM is totally in our hands. A person can read just one book and still may clear the certification. He/she must concentrate on gaining knowledge and not just get certified for a career growth.

Jada Prasad Rao, CPIM
CPIM has really given a definite advantage. Because it is know internationally, I being CPIM, do not find a need to introduce myself to new clients.

Though, I have been formally trained in Materials Management (MM) module of SAP, because of CPIM, I became so flexible and confident even to configure other SAP modules like Sales & Distribution (SD) or Warehouse Management System (WMS).

Jithesh Panicker, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: I would say around 15-20%.

Q: What is the percentage difference between your earnings and earnings of a non-APICS-certified individual with similar profile as yours?
A: 30%.

I think the biggest advantage was to understand better the practices in the industry and to apply during our implementation cycle. Definitely APICS certification gives an edge over non certified professional.

Nishant Gupta, CPIM
…it helped me securing the job in supply chain at NESTLE through campus placement at NITIE.

Pradeep Deshpande, CPIM
MAPICS is one of the many organizations that value the APICS certification to a great extent. They not only would provide support to the employees wishing to take the exams, but encourage them with special rewards / increase in salary after successfully completing the course. I am one such beneficiary after completing my CPIM course and have received a handsome amount in appreciating my efforts. As you know, the kind of the business that MAPICS deals with, a professional knowledge as is provided by bodies like APICS, is a basic necessity.

Prantik Chakraborty
……I have been placed in an US firm……We were thorough with our operations fundas (courtesy CPIM) and that helped a lot……

Rajesh Acharya, CPIM, CIRM
I got a job offer from an IT company. The company is involved in ERP and SCM solution. The salary package is really handsome. I am sure CPIM papers helped me a lot as they did not ask anything technical during the interview. When I asked them about why they did not ask anything technical, the reply was - Do you want us to re-certify a person who has been certified by APICS? I realized the importance of knowledge and resources invested for CPIM.

I can not contribute this phenomenal rise only to CPIM certification, my studies at NITIE and prior work experience of seven years have helped a lot in this also. However, I can say that major contributor was CPIM as I was not asked any functional or technical questions and I was given a SPOT offer!

Nitin Raizada, CPIM
The CPIM certification has helped me in multiple ways and surely this has been a very enriching experience. The certification has added immensely to my knowledge of Supply Chain Management and as it stands applied in the industry. Of course, with its worldwide recognition the certification has added a lot to my resume and has helped me in my job. I would recommend the uninitiated to give it a try ..even the BSCM ..the first paper itself can give you a flavor of the rest of the certification program and the immense learning that comes along with it.

Jayant Kumar Sinha, CPIM
Actually CPIM is more to do with getting a decent job. It actually gives a chance to reinforce the business understanding and getting that modelling done with the aid of technology. So I personally say get the business understanding clear either thru CPIM or by any means to be a real techno-functional Professional in carrier. CPIM certification really helps in understanding Business as well as System.

Sangeet Kumar Dadwal, CPIM
Since the day i took decision to do CPIM certification the journey had been a great learning experience. Definitely it goes without saying that in the field of SCM/ Operations the APICS certifications have high quality.

Sanjay Kumar Gupta, CPIM
It feels great to be CPIM certified professional. Strong determination and consistant effort are the key things to complete this certification on time. It has broaden my knowledge base. It gives me the competitive advantage in professional growth and helps me in doing my job better.

Amit Kumar Saxena, CPIM
The preparation for CPIM certification has helped me to gain a better understanding of the complexities in the manufacturing environments & supply chain as a whole. I believe that this certification is a must for individuals opting for a career in supply chain.

Rakesh Patange, CPIM
I am a Production Engineer with 4 years of shop floor experience in a reputed manufacturing organization. CPIM has helped me to identify the flaws in our existing manufacturing system and introduced me to the best industry practices.

The carrier benefit that I had from this certification was beyond my all expectations. CPIM has opened up doors of many opportunities for me in the software industry. This certification is recognised by all top level software companies and serves as a basic qualification for a person to be a functional consultant.

Really this certification has changed my life to a great extent. I am very much thankful to Mr. Ravindra Tulsyan and all his team members for the help they have provided me in the process.

Rishi Menon, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: There has been more than 100% increase in my earning after becoming APICS certified, but more importantly the rate at which my earning is likely to increase is much higher.

Q: What is the percentage difference between your earnings and earnings of a non-APICS-certified individual with similar profile as yours?
A: The percentage difference is something like 25% at entry level and the likely rate of increase is also higher.

I would also like to mention three other things which are not covered in the context of salary.
1. I work in the Enterprise Applications Systems area and the CPIM body of knowledge has been
    immensely helpful for my work.
2. It has given me an overall picture of the industry much beyond production or even manufacturing.
3. It has helped me establish my credentials with our clients and within my organization as a
    professional.

To conclude I would definitely recommend CPIM certification to anyone working or studying in the relevant areas.

Saumit Mandal, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: 50%. CPIM helped me get a dream job with a US software giant.

Sunil Ganapa
APICS has helped me in a great way...being a distribution specialist, I never had a chance to test my functional experience, like people do after every course gets over for them....it was really thrilling to pass the exams where the pass percentage is around 91% which when its cleared gives really a big confidence and boost mentally.

T Raghu Raman, CPIM
After APICS certification, IBM recognised my potential and gave additional responsibilities and thus I got wider exposure. Today I end up heading delivery operations from India for a software firm.

Umesh Shinde, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: 120%.

Q: What is the percentage difference between your earnings and earnings of a non-APICS-certified individual with similar profile as yours?
A: 90%.

Vadaga Ravi Kumar, CPIM
Q: What is the percentage increase in your earning due to APICS certification?
A: 5-10%.
Q: What is the percentage difference between your earnings and earnings of a non-APICS-certified individual with similar profile as yours?
A: 15-20%.

Balaji N, CPIM
I would definitely recommend this certification program for all those both in the manufacturing industry as well as IT professionals working with Product and Service companies. It gives them a chance to understand their specific function in the overall scheme of things. It is imperative to have a broader picture to do a specific job well and the CPIM program helps one achieving this objective.

Anurag Bahadur, CPIM
I think it is an excellent way to get a rounded view on Supply Chain Planning and gives a good managerial perspective to the subject. For someone who has done an MBA, this was a good refresher course on Operations Management.