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The Services Marketing Professional Program (SMPP) is a highly individualized
learning program that keeps services marketing professionals at their peak.
This self-paced 6-month program is flexible enough to accommodate people
at all experience levels. Participants follow a Personal
Development Plan which is based on their own goals and created in consultation
with a sponsor (usually the participant's manager) and a designated mentor
from the ITSMA staff. The SMPP allows professionals to gain new skills
in the context of their jobs, without requiring extensive time away from
their normal work responsibilities.
For a sponsoring organization, the program is an investment in its future.
As an adjunct to in-house training programs, the SMPP cultivates specialized
skills and knowledge that are both critical and in short supply industry-wide.
At a time when services are becoming an increasingly significant contributor
to corporate success, an investment in human capital may be the most important
one of all.
Program tuition is $5,000 (which covers all program components). In
addition, we recommend attendance at one of our workshops or conferences.
Please refer to our calendar for
details associated with each event.
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Personal Development Plan
The first step of the program is to create a Personal Development
Plan. Participants work jointly with their sponsors to identify individual
goals in the context of their larger organizations' priorities. From
there, they specify the skills and knowledge needed to achieve those
goals. A designated ITSMA mentor provides support and review throughout.
A Personal Development Plan can encompass as broad or narrow a focus
as needed. It can delve deeply into one area such as customer loyalty,
or broadly survey the entire range of services marketing issues and
functions.
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Individual mentoring
A designated ITSMA mentor is assigned to each participant/sponsor pair to provide
regular consultation. The focus of the mentoring is on tailoring the program
to the participant's needs. In particular, the mentor guides the process of
applying theory to practice in the context of the participant's company and
market situation. The nature of the mentoring varies with the needs and style
of the participant. Specific recommendations may include advice regarding on-the-job
action learning assignments or readings to build knowledge of the services
marketing discipline. Typically, a mentor spends about 10 hours advising a
participant/sponsor pair, either individually or together, during the program's
6-month period.
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Action Learning
Project
An Action Learning Project is an on-the-job assignment in which the participant
applies newly-learned concepts and skills to immediate business problems. It
is intended to stretch the participant's capabilities by presenting challenges
that go beyond the scope of current work responsibilities. In order for this
project to be successful, it is critical that the sponsor work closely with
the participant to design the project and provide coaching throughout. The
ITSMA mentor also remains in close contact as part of the coaching team.
Examples of Action Learning Projects include:
- Prepare a plan to "spend a day in the life" of an important
customer to identify unarticulated needs for new high value services.
Go on-site and execute the plan.
- Analyze and prepare alternate-pricing proposals for a new service using
cost plus, market based, value, and gain-sharing techniques.
- Interview a number of customers and non-customers to determine factors
contributing to wins and losses. Develop recommendations to improve win/loss
rates.
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ITSMA Events
ITSMA events provide opportunities to learn from and interact with
leading industry experts. All participants in the SMPP are encouraged to attend
at least one of our workshops or conferences. All ITSMA education programs
are built on real-world case studies and introduce practical skills that are
immediately applicable to IT services and solutions marketing jobs. Our workshops
are highly interactive and encourage peer learning through group discussions
and exercises.
 View ITSMA's
upcoming events.
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ITSMA online briefings
ITSMA regularly presents online briefings to highlight the latest research
findings. Recent briefings have covered topics such as Web marketing, building
the services brand, customer relationship management, marketing accountability,
and services sales effectiveness. Briefings are open to ITSMA members and SMPP
participants at no charge. Attendance at a minimum of 3 is required to complete
the SMPP.
View ITSMA's upcoming online
briefings.
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Directed reading
and research
An expert in any field must have a working knowledge of the theories and viewpoints
of its current thought-leaders. As part of the SMPP, participants are expected
to read at least one book from ITSMA's recommended reading list and study 1
or 2 reports from ITSMA's online
research library. To facilitate the latter, SMPP participants have access
to the password-restricted library - a privilege generally afforded only to
ITSMA members. The mentor is available to assist in choosing the most appropriate
books and research to pursue for this requirement.
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Peer sharing and
learning
The peer community created by SMPP provides a vital forum for professional
sharing and learning. Participants have many opportunities to network with
their peers, including at ITSMA courses, workshops, and online briefings. There
are also regularly-scheduled SMPP conference calls during which participants
are encouraged to engage in active dialog with each other and the ITSMA staff.
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Final program
review
In addition to the ongoing review provided by the mentor, the program requires
participants to prepare a final review of their own. In this paper, participants
are expected to summarize the key points learned from each item in their personal
development plan. It is also an opportunity to outline major accomplishments,
overall lessons learned, and any implications for longer-term professional
growth. Both the sponsor and mentor review this paper to evaluate whether or
not the participant has met the goals established at the outset of the program.
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Further
information
Find out more about how the SMPP can assist you in building your
services marketing expertise. Contact Robert Baginski, Senior Vice President,
at +1-910-933-9147 or rbaginski@itsma.com.
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