Pop quiz: What is SMPS’s mission? Our mission is to inspire, engage, and empower A/E/C professionals for leadership and lifelong learning. If you didn’t know it off the top of your head, that’s okay … together we’ll unpack one of the ways the mission is lived within SMPS.
The SMPS mission and our strategic priorities are solidly rooted in creating opportunities for members and future members to learn and grow personally and in the profession. Many of you reading this article know I earned a Ph.D. several years ago. What you may not know is my dissertation focused on active learning pedagogy in the built environment. According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, pedagogy is the art, science, or profession of teaching. In a practical sense, pedagogical techniques impart knowledge to learners and consider the interactions that occur during the learning process. So, what does this have to do with SMPS and its mission? Turns out, a lot.
At Amplify A|E|C this past August and in the September/October 2024 issue of the Marketer, we celebrated the newest Certified Professional Services Marketers (CPSM). These 121 individuals joined an experienced group totaling 1,219 CPSMs who are living the SMPS mission and promoting the domains of practice in their firms.
Many of those who sat for the CPSM exam started their journey toward certification as members of a CPSM study group. Study groups promote the ‘each one, teach one’ mindset by utilizing CPSMs who have successfully passed the exam as group leaders. Many study groups are virtual making it easier than ever to participate. Knowledge of the domains of practice is co-created between the study group participants, CPSM group leaders, and within the group through social and verbal interaction.
What if I told you there was a term for this process? Zone of proximal development (ZPD) was coined by Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky who is considered the pioneer of learning in social contexts such as study groups. His groundbreaking work and outcomes in the 1920s are still being implemented today. Vygotsky noted the optimal environment for learning is one in which the individual is in dialogue with others and exploring concepts at a level of cogitative development that is just beyond his or her current capacity, knowledge, or skillset. The goal is to eventually elevate our understanding of those concepts. This is the environment created within CPSM study groups. Those who have participated in a CPSM study group have benefited from the ZPD framework to learn the domains of practice outlined in the Markendium books, gained confidence, and mastered the material.
The next window to take the CPSM exam is March 2025. If you are considering sitting for the exam, consider also joining a CPSM Study Group or starting your own. For those who have done so, congratulations! For those who have not, what are you waiting for? Not only will you be building community with fellow SMPSers, but you will also participate in a tried and true approach to teaching and learning that is the cornerstone of SMPS’s mission of inspiring, engaging, and empowering A/E/C professionals for leadership and lifelong learning.
Article written by Dr. Paula Raymond Stamp, MBA, FSMPS, CPSM, who is CEO and principal of Geaux Consulting Group. She can be reached at paula@geauxconsultinggroup.com.
