Forms Talk

CFSP Study Group Begins

By: Margaret Tassin, CFSP, CDC
VP, Programs

Mark you scheduler now! The next Certified Form Systems Professional (CFSP) study group will begin July 31.  Participating in the study group is a great way to learn about forms in general as well as prepare for the exam.

This 13-week study group covers all facets of the body of knowledge used to develop the exam. Because of the nature of the work done by forms professionals, the scope of CFSP knowledge is very broad. The CFSP examination of 250 multiple-choice questions covers four areas:

• Process/Workflow Analysis
• Design and Development
• Technology Principles
• Forms Management

The study group participants are expected to read, research, discuss, write study questions, take study quizzes, share knowledge, contribute to the body of knowledge reference document and ask lots of questions.  This is  not a college curriculum; it is a study group.  What you will learn you must learn on your own.  To help you, there are organized and structured study sessions, a study hub with recorded lectures and suggested readings, practice quizzes and the support of the other members of the group and experts in the field.

Teri Watanabe, CFSP, became accredited in 2007 and says, "If anyone thinks that studying for certification is difficult, time-consuming, and draining…well, you’re right. It is. But the hard work does pay off — financially, professionally, and in the recognition both inside and outside our industry — and there are plenty of forms people here to help."

It is recommended but not required that you have five years of experience in form systems or a related field before sitting for the examination. Experience plus sufficient study can help you achieve certification.

Check out http://www.bfma.org/cfsp/aboutcfsp.php for additional information and the application.  This portion of the BFMA website is currently being updated for the 2008 information, so please bear with us.  Registration fees are $179 for BFMA members and $249 for non-members.   The study group begins on July 31 and ends on October 23.  Each session is 90 minutes and is scheduled from 9:30 - 11:00 Pacific time.  The next CFSP exam period is November 1 - 15.

For additional information, contact me.

CFSP Exam Scheduled

By: Margaret Tassin, CFSP, CDC
Program Council, Director of Education

The Certified Form Systems Professional (CFSP) examination is scheduled twice a year, and the next exam period is May 3 - 17.  This means that you can attend the Symposium in Las Vegas and take the exam while you are there!  What a concept!  Imagine, filling your head with the latest knowledge and then taking the exam.  Taking the exam in Las Vegas is the same cost as taking it at home.

The exam period after that will be November 1 - 15.  The next CFSP study group will begin July 31 in preparation for the exam.  This 13-week study group covers all facets of the body of knowledge that is used to develop the exam.    

Reference books sold in the BFMA online bookstore will be available for review at the Symposium registration desk.  This is a great opportunity to beef up your professional library in preparation for the exam.

For additional information, contact me. 

People and Processes Behind the CFSP Program

By: Margaret Tassin, CFSP, CDC
Program Council, Director of Education

The Certified Form Systems Professional (CFSP) certification program is sponsored by BFMA International through the Form Systems Certification Board (FSCB).  The FSCB is charged with maintaining the integrity of the CFSP certification program.

To meet this challenge, the FSCB screens CFSP exam content, sets exam pass and fail standards, establishes recertification criteria, and approves CFSP candidates for recertification. The objectives of the FSCB are to govern, define criteria, set and maintain standards, advertise, promote, and administer the CFSP program.

The FSCB members include:

Joyce Endres, CFSP, FSCB Chair

Bill Hill, CFSP, CFC

Tami Bevan, CFSP, CFC

Lea Anne Fuchs, CFSP

Ben Wiggs, CFSP

Linda Kenney, CFSP

Karen Albright (ex-officio non-voting member)

Andy Palatka, CAE (ex-officio non-voting member)

The FSCB works closely with the Professional Testing Corporation (PTC), a third-party, independent certification program testing service that administers the CFSP exam.  To learn more about PTC, go to ptcny@ptcny.com.

FSCB must be very careful during discussions about the CFSP study group and exam process.  Why? FSCB members have seen every question/answer that makes up the CFSP exam!   While the FSCB supports the idea of the study group and encourages participation, FSCB can have very little to do with the study groups because of a potential conflict of interest.

Watch this space next month for information about CFSP study groups!

Alphabet soup? No! It is CFSP!

By: Margaret Tassin, CFSP, CDC
Program Council, Director of Education

If you have been around BFMA very long, you have likely seen the initials "CFSP" following the names of some of our members. What is "CFSP"? These initials indicate a Certified Form Systems Professional, an accreditation sponsored by BFMA. This certification program is one of the jewels in the array of benefits BFMA offers to forms professionals.

In this era of specialization, proof of education and expertise is becoming more important to management. By achieving certification you provide documented evidence to a current or potential employer that you have been examined by an independent professional organization and found to have knowledge essential to fulfill the responsibilities of a form systems professional. In addition, you indicate to your peers that you have taken the time and effort - beyond job experience - to learn the body of knowledge, thus exhibiting a significant commitment to the form systems profession.

Because of the nature of the work done by forms professionals, the scope of CFSP knowledge is very broad. The CFSP examination of 250 multiple-choice questions covers four areas:

• Process/Workflow Analysis
• Design and Development
• Technology Principles
• Forms Management

It is recommended but not required that you have five years of experience in form systems or a related field before sitting for the examination. Experience plus sufficient study can help you achieve certification.

The CFSP examination is offered during a two-week period twice each year. In 2008, the testing periods are the first two weeks in May and the first two weeks in November. The exam is electronic, and it is given at a testing center near you. This four-hour exam tests your endurance as well as your knowledge!

There is plenty of additional information at http://www.bfma.org/cfsp/aboutcfsp.php.

Teri Watanabe Speaks About CFSP

By: Teri Watanabe, CFSP

Membership Council, Region I Coordinator

Hello. I’d like to share with you how my name, Teri Watanabe, came to be followed by those four infamous letters “CFSP.” During my recent job search, I hadn’t intended to become a “forms person”; I was looking in the instructional design/corporate training realm. (Then again, at 10 years old, I had thought I was going to be a lawyer — that was before working for lawyers cured me of that desire.) But, through mutual contacts at BFMA headquarters, a local software integration firm came looking for me. I was offered the opportunity to work with a fledgling line of business and shape its future, learn new software, and expand my professional horizons with continued training and development. Everything just so happened to revolve around forms. Look out, forms…here I come!

When I learned that there was such a thing as certification within the forms industry, my manager encouraged me with both training and time. And while my manager wanted to write “Obtain CFSP certification” into my first annual performance goal, I managed to delay it until my second year with the company. I was new to forms, new to the company, and really wanted a way to prepare me for this unexpected career path. I saw CFSP certification as the way to do this.

As a newbie to the forms industry, my background in editing, technical writing, document design, and corporate training served me well in preparing for the exam. I read (and hopefully absorbed) most of the BFMA library resources, as well as soaked up as much Symposium knowledge as I could. However, my contacts within BFMA were the real instructors. Networking with BFMA members and the CFSP Virtual Study Group gave me my true education and (most important of all) emotional support. I would not have attempted the exam without them. The study group was challenging at the beginning; we worked very hard to craft a format and methodology that would best serve rapid acquisition of forms knowledge. Even with all of BFMA’s current resource material, we discovered how big the forms knowledge pool really is. It’s huge! I will ever owe my study buddies eternal thanks for helping me achieve my goal.

The test itself was a computer-based exam with an easy-to-use interface. Four hours is a long time for anything, let alone an examination. I took plenty of breaks (mental and otherwise) to try to stay fresh for the next battery of questions I attempted each hour. Then came the long weeks of waiting for the results.

I remember the day the envelope came (or at least when I opened it). I had just returned from an anniversary trip to Japan with my husband of 12 years. There it was in black and white. I was certified! Those distinguished letters “CFSP” have now graced my business cards, project resumes, and presentations in my daily work in the forms industry. I’m proud to be a “forms person” and even prouder to be a part of the community of forms people within BFMA.

If anyone thinks that studying for certification is difficult, time-consuming, and draining…well, you’re right. It is. But the hard work does pay off — financially, professionally, and in the recognition both inside and outside our industry — and there are plenty of forms people here to help.