When it comes to what is going on in the world of credentialing and certification, there are few people who are more informed than Mickie Rops. Mickie has been helping organizations make the right credentialing decisions for nearly two decades, and she has a lot of lessons and learning to share.
In this episode, Celisa talks with Mickie about the relationship between learning and credentialing, the emerging trend in microcredentialing, and a range of other topics. To tune in, just click below. To make sure you catch all of the future episodes, be sure to subscribe by RSS or on iTunes. And, if you like the podcast, be sure to give it a tweet!
Listen to the Show
Read the Show Notes
[00:18] – Preview of what will be covered in this podcast with credentialing and certification expert Mickie Rops.
[01:55]- Introduction to Mickie Rops and some background information about who she is and what she does.
[04:48] – What are some key terms [around credentialing and certification] and how do they fit together? Mickie explains the importance of understanding the word “credentialing” as an umbrella term. She also discusses credentialing organizations (accreditation) and credentialing for individuals (certification, licensure, certificate programs) and she explains the differences between each term.
[09:01] – What is your take on digital badges and how are they being used today or how do you see them being used in the future? And how do they fit in to the big picture of credentialing? Mickie shares that she thinks they have great potential but that the digital badge itself is not a credential. She explains that a digital badge is the digital representation of a credential and discusses the importance of utilizing them properly in order to provide value.
[12:49] – In general, what is the actual/ideal the relationship between credentialing and learning? Mickie explains that credentialing isn’t always necessary for learning and there are times when credentialing can provide value and she shares examples of each.
[16:18] – What are organizations doing around ensuring competency throughout a certification cycle? Mickie says that this is an ongoing challenge and that it is impossible to ensure competency, which has caused certifying bodies to change their language. She also discusses retesting as one of the main ways to check for competency but that understandably, there is often pushback on this. Mickie explains that rather than mandate learning, organizations can provide tools to employees to help them be better learners.
[20:50] – What are smart/savvy organizations doing about learning? Mickie shares that smart organizations aren’t trying to offer everything. She says that they are identifying the body of knowledge that is needed and finding out what organizations are already offering it and only focusing on creating learning programs that don’t exist anywhere else.
[23:25] – Are you seeing organizations trying to collect data around impact and outcome regarding learning? Mickie says that overall she doesn’t see this happening but that employers are looking to the certificate model (with an assessment) to ensure employees are actually learning.
[26:16] – Do you think that part of the demand around outcomes is a result of learning and credentialing becoming more competitive? Mickie explains that it is based on the fact that more organizations are offering learning and credentialing programs. She also shares that it is becoming harder for the learning consumer to find the best program since there are now so many options. She further discusses the value of digital badge to help with this since it provides data beyond just a title.
[29:35] – What’s happening in credentialing (or learning) that’s exciting to you? Mickie reveals that she is currently fascinated with microcredentials and the potential they have to change/replace existing certification programs.
[35:05] – What threats or hurdles do you see in the current environment to credentialing or learning? Mickie says that the biggest hurdle is probably getting distracted by all the “shiny new objects” and explains that we have to get back to what the actual learning needs are.
[36:14] – How do you keep learning and growing your own skills/learning? Mickie talks about how she is fairly strategic in knowing what she wants to learn more about and then figures out how she will learn it.
[37:59] – How to connect with Mickie:
Website: https://www.msrops.com
[38:50] – Wrap-Up
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[40:14] – Sign off
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