Saturday, April 19, 2008

CPP Exam

I did it!! For about two years now I’ve contemplated the idea of attaining my CPP designation. CPP (Certified Protection Professional), for those of you not familiar with the security industry, is offered by ASIS (American Society for Industrial Security) and is our industries most sought after professional designation. About two months ago I enrolled in a weekend preparation course offered by the GLAC (Greater Los Angeles Chapter) of ASIS. I finished the course a week ago today (April 12, 2008) and then sat for my exam yesterday (April 18, 2008).

I guess this post would have a whole different spin had I not passed the exam, but I did. CPP is attained by only the top 3% of security professionals and it is not at all uncommon for someone to fail the exam their first time out. I was more than a little nervous going into the exam. It’s the type of nervous that builds over time so that by the time I sat down at the computer terminal for the actual exam I was desperate to pass and get it over with. You are allowed 4 hours for the exam and I took every minute of it. By the time a clicked “finish” I had to close my eyes and yet try to see (like when you were a kid at the scary movies) my exam results. When the word “congratulations” appeared on the screen the relief I felt was enormous.

I’d like to offer up a special thanks to Rod Mulvay, my GLAC Review Course mentor and Hank Gatlin and Mark Creighton my group team mates. It’s truly a team effort to get through the course and a supportive team makes all the difference in the world. I look forward to serving as a mentor next year.