| How long does accreditation
take? |
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| A period of three to six months is
usually sufficient dependent on your day-to-day opportunities
to provide advice to SMEs on the adoption and usage of new technologies.
However, candidates have achieved the accreditation in a much
shorter time frame. |
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| How much does it cost? |
|
|
| The cost of Adviser Accreditation
starts from £895+VAT. In some cases this price may vary,
dependent upon the assessment centre as each has developed
its own approach to the accreditation. It is up to the adviser
to choose the most appropriate centre and approach for his
or herself. For a list of Accreditation Centres click here. |
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| I already have several other
qualifications. Does this mean I am exempt from some areas of
the accreditation? |
|
|
| It depends on what qualifications
you already have. TMB is an accreditation for those people that
give ICT advice to SMEs. Before TMB was developed, there were
no industry standard or qualifications designed for this group
of professionals. Therefore it is unlikely that existing qualifications
will relate closely to the TMB standard and therefore enable
exemption from parts of the TMB accreditation requirement to
be given. The TMB standard has however been mapped to the new
SFEDI standard (Small Firms Enterprise Development Initiative)
for Business Advisers. If you have achieved a qualification
based upon the new SFEDI standards and have achieved this qualification
within the context of giving ICT advice to SMEs then it is very
likely that you will have provided evidence that will also be
applicable to certain aspects of the TMB standard. In these
cases, your TMB tutor/assessor will be able to advise you on
which parts of the assessment process can be exempted. If you
feel that you have covered aspects of the TMB requirement by
the achievement of any other qualifications, your TMB tutor/assessor
will advise you of any exemptions that can be given. |
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| Who devised the TMB accreditation
standard and process? |
|
|
| The TMB Accreditation Standard is
a professional qualification and was developed by the TMB
Agency at the Chartered Management Institute in collaboration
with Durham University Business School. The TMB Standard has
been mapped directly against the SFEDI (Small Firms Enterprise
Development Initiative) Standard. |
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| How is the process being monitored? |
|
|
| The IT Forum Foundation, as the Technology Means Business agency, has responsibility
for quality control and the overall monitoring of the process. |
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| Is this a professional qualification? |
|
|
| Yes, it is a new professional qualification
offered by a recognised professional body. |
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| How will SMEs choose an adviser? |
|
|
| All accredited advisers will be
placed on a directory that will be searchable by postcode,
region and by specialism- this will be available on the Technology
Means Business website. Each adviser will complete an electronic "CV" which
they can update on a regular basis. This will form the basis
of the information that SMEs will search when looking for
a suitable adviser. |
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| Who is eligible to become TMB
accredited? |
|
|
| Advisers are drawn from a wide range
of backgrounds. Anyone offering advisory services on business-related
ICT advice to SME clients is eligible for this accreditation.
This includes: |
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Business support organisations |
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IT resellers and consultants |
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Independent consultants |
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Financial advisers and banks |
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Commitment to Technology Means Business
also forms part of the franchise requirements for the new Small
Business Service, launched in spring 2001. Those ICT specialists
working under the SBS brand, must have TMB accreditation
|
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| I am not sure if I will be able
to gather sufficient evidence required? |
|
|
| The first step to take would be to
talk to one of our centres, in particular a tutor/assessor.
They can tell you what kind of evidence you need to generate
- you may find that you have already undertaken work that could
be put into your portfolio. There are also a series of online
tools that will help you identify evidence relevant to the standard
which can be used when working with clients. |
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| Can I become accredited if I
work in a specialist area, such as printers and PCs? |
|
|
| You can become accredited if you
can provide evidence against the three performance units of
the standard and pass the knowledge test, in order for you to
prove that you are competent in giving business and ICT advice
to SMEs. |
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| I work for a reseller/software
supplier tied to a particular supplier/group of products.
Will I be prevented from operating under the scheme? Will
I be allowed on the TMB National Register? |
|
|
| You will be permitted to operate
under the scheme, provided you are accredited. This demonstrates
that you have attained the industry standard for providing
advice to SMEs on business and ICT issues. You can be placed
on the Register and sell the products you are tied to, as
long as you can demonstrate that there is a business need for
the product and you can show that it will increase the client's
competitiveness and profitability. |
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| Can my company be accredited? |
|
|
| The Technology Means Business Approved
Centre programme is the accreditation scheme for organisations
providing business-related ICT advice to small and medium sized
enterprises (SMEs). As with Accredited Advisers, Approved Centre’s
will be placed on the TMB National Register, searchable by
postcode, region and specialism. |
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