Certification in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA) is a degree offered by The Insurance Information Institute. This program has a curriculum so extensive that it requires that you complete your final two years at university before you can become a CRM manager. There are four concentrations within the course that you can pursue if you are seeking a career in risk management:

Risk Assessment and Policy Development (RAPID): In this concentration area of risk management, students learn how to develop policies and procedures for assessing and managing the risks inherent in organizations. This course emphasizes the use of statistical methodologies in order to create effective risk assessments. Students will also be introduced to statistical programming in order to create multiple regression reports. At the end of your courses, students will be prepared to write a risk assessment and policy development brief for their organization. The goal of this concentration is to prepare you for work as a risk manager in any insurance company.

Financial Services Assurance (FSAA): Similar to the RAPID concentration area of risk management, students pursuing a career in financial services assurance will study the material in the Financial Services Assurance concentration. As with the RAPID concentration area, students will learn how to develop and maintain policies and procedures for financial services assurance. However, in the FSA concentration area, you will also learn about the other aspects of the insurance industry and how these areas affect each other. Students will learn about new regulations and trends that affect the insurance industry as well as how these regulations affect insurance agencies and their clients. After your coursework, students will be prepared to write an assurance brief concerning FSA standards and procedures, as well as methods of evaluating the financial security of a client. A certificate of completion will grant you the status of Certified Financial Services Specialist (CFS) or Registered Professional Examiner (RPE).

Security Management Assurance (SMA): Those individuals in risk management who also are interested in specializing in security may choose to pursue a course in SMA. For those with backgrounds in business and/or math, the SMA coursework will prepare you for working in operations and risk administration of security solutions. Your coursework will also cover financial, operational, and system-wide risk management techniques, and introduce you to various types of risk control and compliance methods.

The U.S. Department of State issued a Travel Risk Certification, which is valid through May of each year, for those travelers intending to travel to certain countries that are on the prohibited person’s list. This certification proves that you have completed all approved training provided by federal and state agencies, and that you understand all the measures you must take to ensure that you are not present in a country that is on the forbidden person’s list. If you obtain a certification in risk management, you will know that you can travel to these countries without putting your own personal safety or the safety of your companions at undue risk. Furthermore, if you successfully complete the training, you will become familiar with the most common threats and how to address them. As a result, your knowledge about these issues will be very useful when it comes time to apply for certifications in assuring compliance with travel-related policies.

A number of organizations offer certifications in risk management assurances. One of those organizations is the Society for Protective Security Management. The society offers two different certifications: one that are issued by the Department of Homeland Security and one that are offered by the Society for Environmental Quality Management Assurance. Both of these certifications require that applicants have a general understanding of risk management and the statistical distributions used to determine that risk. Other training is generally required for both types of certifications.

There are a number of companies that offer training and certification in risk management assuring compliance with environmental laws and regulations. In addition to this, there are a number of certifying associations that focus specifically on particular industries. For example, the Society of New Engineers offers a variety of certifications. These include the New Tech Assurance, the Nextiva, or the Verisk eCERT. These certifications can help ensure that applicants have the knowledge necessary to understand the statistical distributions used in determining environmental compliance and can help them learn how to evaluate the risks associated with various jobs or projects. Those seeking certification from these associations should ensure that they have already completed the training and studying to qualify for the exam.

When looking at different areas of the field of Assurance, the Society for Protective Security Management Assurements (SPMS) is among the most highly regarded. SPMS offers both a national certification as well as regional certifications depending on the specific industry that you are working in. Regardless of whether you are looking for certification in risk management assuring compliance with environmental laws and regulations or evaluating potential job candidates, this is one certification that you definitely want to make sure that you have earned.