Professional Qualifications

Doing for today 

Focusing on key behavioural skills and the wider purpose of your job role, the Communications qualification develops the skills needed to build relationships with customers and colleagues in the context of the organisation

The Communications qualification:
• Is customer-focused, developing employees’ ability to deliver excellent service
• Is suitable for any role and offers core skills to front-line staff as well as those managing and/or leading customer service organisations
• Covers essential skills for those dealing with internal and/or external customers
• Helps deliver consistent customer service in all situations, regardless of sector
• Employees consider the impact of their skills, attitudes and behaviours on their customers, organisation, colleagues, and their own performance
• Is a pathway in to other Institute qualifications

The Communications qualification can be taken on its own or with the following:
• Combined qualifications with Solutions and/or with Innovations

Developing for tomorrow 

Solutions focuses on developing the skills to solve customers’ problems. 

To achieve the qualification, practitioners must demonstrate that they inspire confidence, are pro-active, and respond quickly to service trends and customer feedback. They must also demonstrate that they are a team player who gives practical support to others to help them improve their performance. 

The Solutions qualification:
• Focuses on the customer and develops skills in identifying, creating and providing solutions for improvements in service 
• Allows employees to demonstrate they are able to work independently and show initiative to identify and propose solutions to recurring issues that impact on customer service delivery 
• Encourages practitioners to be pro-active about their own personal development 
• Ensures practitioners to consider the impact of their proposed solutions on their customers, organisation, colleagues and themselves 

The Solutions qualification can be taken in the following combinations: 
• Solutions on its own (provided Communications or accepted equivalent has been previously achieved)
• Solutions with Communications (compulsory to take together if no accepted equivalent or Communications qualification achieved)
• Solutions with Innovations (provided Communications has been previously achieved) 
• Solutions with Communications and Innovations combined 

Creating for the future 

To achieve the Innovations qualification practitioners must demonstrate they are pro-active, flexible, creative and always looking for new ways to improve customer service. 

 They will need to provide examples of how they have identified, developed and implemented new service improvements, and how they translated into tangible results.  Practitioners must also demonstrate how they motivate and influence others and how  improvements contribute to customer loyalty and retention, as well as the future success of the organisation.

The Innovations qualification:
• Offers continued development after Communications and/or Solutions qualification is achieved 
• Allows participants to develop, implement and evaluate customer service solutions 
• Ensures that developed skills are underpinned by knowledge and understanding that ensures employees are able to work pro-actively with colleagues to gain support for change 
• Ensures employees are able to consider the impact of the implementation on customers, colleagues, organisation and themselves 
• Encourages employees to be pro-active about their own personal development 

The Innovations qualification can be taken in the following qualification combinations: 
• Innovations on its own (provided Communications or acceptable equivalent is held)
• Innovations with Communications  
• Innovations with Solutions (if Communications qualification has been achieved) 
• Innovations with Communications and Solutions combined 

N.B: This qualification builds on the Communications module – all participants must have completed Communications at a minimum or be registered for Communications so they can complete both qualifications concurrently. 

Developing people

Our Customer Service Coach qualification recognises the valuable and skilled work that professional qualifications coaches perform.

Using coaching techniques and skills, the Customer Service Coach qualification requires you to improve your organisation’s service delivery through those you coach.

The Customer Service Coach qualification:
• Focuses on customer service coaching and is aimed at those supporting individuals who deal with customers
• Allows coaches to demonstrate they support excellent customer service delivery in others through their coaching skills
• Encourages practitioners to be pro-active about their own personal development
• Ensures practitioners consider the impact of their coaching on their coachees, organisation, colleagues and themselves

• Developing knowledge and understanding of how to plan, run and review a programme successfully
• Sharing best practice and discussing solutions to common challenges
• Networking with other QPMs

• Supporting the standards, consistency and quality of coaching delivered in your organisation
• Sharing best practice and discussing solutions to common challenges
• Providing information resources and guidance to develop the skills of your Professional Qualifications Coaches
• Supporting start-up of Practitioners taking a qualification

• The Institute trains and accredits Assessors in your organisation to ensure they provide high standards of assessment for individuals who are taking qualifications
• We also conduct an ongoing programme of Assessor quality assurance to support continuous professional development

• UK-wide programme of forums, building a networking of expertise and learning
• Supporting the standards, consistency and quality of qualifications assessment through developing Assessors’ knowledge and skills
• Sharing best practice and discussing solutions to common challenges