Beginning last Sunday, and running through Saturday, March 14, is RV Fixed Operations Professional Certification Week, as designated by the Society of Certified RV Professionals and the Mike Molino RV Learning Center.
The Mike Molino center created the Society of Certified RV Professionals in 2014 as a way to celebrate those who have achieved certification in a certain area and to encourage others to pursue certification. A task force was formed to broaden professional certifications for dealership employees working in the fixed-ops side of the business – parts managers, parts specialists, service writers/advisers, service managers and warranty administrators – and to encourage them to keep their certifications up to date and to remain in the industry.
“It was a task force of dealers, and they were looking at, ‘OK, what else can we do to build awareness about certifications for the fixed-ops people?’” said Karin Van Duyse, chief of the RV Learning Center. “People are more inclined to know about certifications for technicians, right? So, what can we do to also help build awareness when it comes to parts and service, and other people that are in fixed-ops?”
The Learning Center’s fixed-ops credentials were developed by a team of demographically diverse RV industry professionals working in coordination with The Ohio State University’s Center for Education and Training for Employment. Detailed curriculums were developed for each of the fixed-ops positions, and the Mike Molino center offers various ways for dealers, professional trainers and individuals to access those materials. The certification testing itself is done online.
There are five fixed-op certifications in all: two of them management level and three non-management. Depending on the type of certification an individual is pursuing there is a minimum length of time the person has to be working in that particular area before they can pursue certification. If a person performs multiple fixed-op tasks at a dealership the opportunity is there for them to earn multiple certifications.
Van Duyse said this week is all about the mission of the Society itself, which is recognizing professional achievement in the fixed-ops community. Dealers appreciate it as a way to single out and honor employees who have earned their certifications, she said. Some will throw a staff pizza party in honor of the occasion, or some will put a large sign in the dealership with a picture of the employee and a note about their certification. Almost all will put the framed certification certificate on the wall in the person’s work area.
“The task force did the research and they know that recognition and feeling valued for achieving certification is important to an individual on the job,” Van Duyse said.
Along with its mission of encouraging certifications, the Society also provides scholarships to long-certified professionals to attend and participate in the 70-plus training sessions offered annually at the RV Dealers Convention/Expo, which this year will be Nov. 9-13 at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas.
