DES PLAINES, IL -- The National Association of the Remodeling Industry (NARI) is pleased to announce the first recipients of its Certified Remodeler Project Manager (CRPM) certification program. Shawn Kruse, CR, CKBR, CRPM, UDCP, president of Kruse Home Improvement LLC based in Bristol, Conn.; Scott Meyer, CRPM, of Country Living Construction Group Ltd., based in Gurnee, Ill.; and David Peters, CR, CRPM, CLC, of Callahan & Peters Inc., based in Glenview, Ill., all participated in the eight-week virtual study group education course as well as passed the certification exam.

All three agree the program was challenging and informative and will strengthen their remodeling companies. The program, which launched in September, addresses a growing trend in the remodeling industry, which has more companies using project managers to supervise jobs as opposed to lead carpenters.

"Even though we're a small company, my boss thought it was important for me to get the additional knowledge and education on project management to address my new role [as project manager] as we prepare future growth," Meyer says. Meyer is slowing moving into project management from a field position and still maintains a hands-on role.

The CRPM program was designed to do exactly what Meyers and many others are intending it to do: provide tools and ideas that will improve business operations and efficiency to generate and sustain growth.

Kruse found similar value out of the program, particularly in the planning phase. "I now have a system for developing flow charts that map out the course of the job based on the life cycle of a typical project before work begins-doing this ahead of time makes it less likely for me to miss things," he says. These systems are a by-product of the direct experience from the Certified Remodeler Project Manager Task Force members, who developed the course to provide "real world" knowledge of what happens throughout the remodeling process.

The program follows a set of knowledge domains and sub-domains that include project cost management, communication, project planning, quality assurance, record-keeping and risk management.

"The course material and the discussion helped me break down the project lifecycle into components that are more manageable," Meyer says. He is incorporating his knowledge into a proposal for his boss, at which point it will be used to develop and implement a project management system for the whole company to follow.

Peters already has started using the work breakdown structure into his weekly and daily operations. "I discovered that I can be better at handling the subs and daily work schedules-I always had a weekly plan, but never a daily plan, and now we don't waste as much time during the day," he says. The increase in control and management of the job spills into the success of the project and into the clients that are being served.

"I believe the CRPM helps the job go smoothly but also has made the line of communication between myself and the clients more fluid and allows me to speak more accurately about what is happening," Meyer says. For Peters, there's no question the CRPM will be beneficial. "We've always been a company that is interested in continuing education, and currently, the project management aspect of our company is very important to us to run a productive company and better serve clients," Peters says.

The next CRPM course begins Jan. 12, 2012, and the NARI member price for the CRPM online prep course and certification exam is $820. The non-member price for the CRPM online prep course and certification exam is $1,120. For more information on the eligibility requirements, registration and sub-domains, please visit nari.org/certify/crpm.

Source: NARI