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Tag: <span>self-directed course</span>

01 Nov 2018

Loss Inventory Course Now Available

personal developmentThe most requested course in our December 2017 survey has now been developed and recently made available. All NICA members and also any other professional seeking this valuable information can now log in and take this online, self-directed course.  Members will receive 3 CEUs toward their certification renewal.

When someone faces a loss due to fire or natural disaster, they are overwhelmed with emotion. There are insurance standards that state what a policyholder is required to do after a loss. Add that to the many emotions one deals with and the time required to complete the recovery process, and most have a need for professional assistance.

Documenting their losses, one piece of personal property at a time, is a time-consuming and difficult process. For the home inventory professional, having the knowledge and a plan to document the contents of a client’s home or business is essential to assist them in achieving an equitable settlement. When conducting a loss inventory, it is important to know what is salvageable vs. unsalvageable. Sorting items that can be considered for “allowances” and also those that might need appraisals is a large responsibility that many homeowners and business owners don’t know how to do or have the desire to tackle this difficult task.

There are challenges an inventory professional will likely face during a loss inventory that aren’t encountered in other types of inventory services. These challenges can include standing water, no power or lights, contaminants, and personal safety issues. Information is provided regarding how to deal with these hazards.

Additionally, this course includes information about marketing loss inventory services, the importance of developing business affiliations, and options regarding how to price this extremely important service.

Module 1 – Introduction to Loss Inventory Services

  • What is a Loss Inventory?
  • Insurance
  • Your Role as an Inventory Professional
  • Challenges You Might Face

Module 2 – Preparing for and Completing the Inventory

  • Preparations Prior to the Visit
  • The Inventory Process
  • Inventory Equipment
  • Personal Protective Equipment

Module 3 – Marketing Your Loss Inventory Services

  • Marketing Your Service
  • Business Affiliations
  • Pricing Options
25 Jan 2017

Appraisal Examiner Course

Professional DevelopmentThe National Inventory Certification Association has recently released the course, Appraisal Examiner. This is the foundation course for the Appraisal Examiner Certification Program (CAE). 

To enable our members and other personal property inventory professionals to achieve their desired education for this industry, this course and all courses provided by NICA, are online and self-directed. This allows the participants to complete their courses all in one sitting or take one module at a time, depending on their time constraints. Associate Member Ray Nugent of Nugent Appraisal Services, co-wrote this Continuing Education course.

When completing an inventory service for residential and commercial clients, the home inventory professional is often asked if they know the value of items, or if they can refer a professional appraiser. Developing a working relationship between appraisers and inventory service providers will help both professionals serve the other.

This course presents the many benefits for a personal property inventory professional to become an appraisal examiner, the examiner’s responsibilities, and appraisal industry terms. Also included are the specifics required by appraisers to enable them to complete a thorough appraisal of each item.

The participant will also learn how to market their examiner service directly to the client and to a variety of professionals who could become referral sources for a continued revenue stream.

Module 1: Why Become An Appraisal Examiner

  • Reasons for Appraisals
  • Value Added Service
  • Additional Revenue Stream

Module 2: Understanding Your Role As An Examiner

  • Terms
  • Remote Appraisals
  • The Examiner’s Responsibilities

Module 3:  Processes Of The Examiner

  • Documenting the Items
  • Descriptions and Images
  • Information Delivery

Module 4:  Marketing Your Examiner Service

  • Direct Marketing
  • Referral Sources

The information that the home inventory professional will be required to collect when serving as an appraisal examiner is provided in great detail in this course. Once you complete the course, you will have ongoing access to this information so you can review and reference the material as necessary.

To register for this course, visit the Professional Development page of the NICA website.

23 Nov 2016

Collections Inventory Course Now Available

ceuA course on Collections Inventory was the most requested topic in our survey about continuing education topics. With your needs in mind, we are pleased to announce that the National Inventory Certification Association (NICA) has recently released the Collections Inventory course. For your convenience, it is an online, self-directed course to enable you to fit it into your busy schedule.

Our member and Certified Inventory Professional Tricia Hoekwater of Uniquely Yours Digital Solutions, is the author of this very detailed instructional online, self-directed course. Tricia has found collections inventories to be a niche that she enjoys and has been quite successful in this market. Therefore, we couldn’t think of anyone who would be a better fit to provide her expertise on this topic. We have great appreciation for her willingness to share her knowledge with fellow members.

In addition to learning the inventory processes and procedures to thoroughly document collections, this course also includes information regarding how to market a collectibles inventory service, creating additional business through “upselling” this service, the tools and materials you’ll need, and how to price your collections inventory service.

The Collections Inventory course includes three Modules, as noted here:

Module 1 – Introduction to Collections Inventory Services

  • What Is A Collections Inventory?
  • Insurance
  • The Difference Between Home Inventory and Collections Inventory
  • Purposes For Collections Inventories

Module 2 – Process Strategies

  • Proper Documentation, Storage, and Updates
  • Develop Your Strategy
  • Appraisals
  • Challenges You Might Face
  • Materials and Tools

Module 3 – Monitoring and Identifying Success

  • Marketing Your Service
  • Partnerships and Alliances
  • Pricing Options
  • Attention to Detail

Upon successful completion of the Collections Inventory course, you will receive 3 CEUs that can be applied towards the required 5 CEUs per year to retain your CIS designation.

09 Jun 2016

Project Management Course Released

ContinuingEdIn our continued effort to add a variety of topics to our Continuing Education Program, NICA has recently released the course, Project Management. Our initial online, self-directed course offerings were Code of Ethics (to set a standard for our industry) and Inventory 101 (which covers the various types of inventories). Also included in our first course releases were Residential Contents Inventory and  Business Contents Inventory. These offer a variety of approaches one can take to provide inventory services to home owners, renters, and business owners. By offering the various techniques, it enables beginning inventory professionals to have a concise road map of successfully applied processes from which to choose as they create or refine their own personal property inventory services.

Once these four foundation courses were developed, our goal was to offer a variety of topics that will benefit small business owners of any sector. Many of these courses, though, include examples of how the information can be applied to the inventory industry.  Our most recent addition to the NICA curriculum, released today, is Project Management.

Project Management Course Description

Personal property inventory professionals are often called to document the contents of extremely large homes, multiple properties, and commercial buildings. These are projects that offer great revenue, but many decline the opportunity due to the size or complexity of the job. The reason for turning down these great opportunities is that they don’t have the knowledge to approach it with confidence.

Basically, it all comes down to project management. Even a small inventory is a “project” that must be managed. Sometimes even small ones can have a unique twist to them, creating a question of, “How do I begin?” or “How do I approach this?” No matter the size or type of inventory – whether it is a couple hours or a few weeks – managing it is essential for a professional outcome.

To ensure quality for this online, self-directed course, as with all others, the author of this course has credentials and experience in this field. In addition to being a Project Management Professional (PMP), the course creator is a Certified Inventory Specialist. Having both of these certifications, and the experience to go along with the education, we are confident that you will find value and a great foundation to gain the confidence in accepting the projects that require this expertise.

The course was written using the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) principles from the Project Management Institute and lays down the foundations of project management. The topics in this 3-module course are as follows:

Module 1 – What is Project Management?

  • Definition of Project Management
  • The Five Project Management Process Groups
  • Knowledge Areas
  • Project Management vs. Operations Management

Module 2 – Scope and Activities

  • Scope
  • The Stakeholder
  • Managing Customer Expectations
  • Work Breakdown Structure
  • Defining the Activities
  • Estimating the Duration of a Project

Module 3 – Monitoring and Identifying Success

  • Monitoring the Project
  • Project documents
  • Success criteria
  • Project Management Definitions

Click on this link to access the Project Management course.  The cost is just $60, and only $30 for NICA members (remember to apply your member code to receive the 50% discount). Once completed successfully, you will receive 2 CEUs to be applied towards achieving certification or to the required annual 5 CEUs of continuing education.

06 Jun 2016

NICA Member Tricia Hoekwater Authors Project Management Course

NICA member Tricia Hoekwater, certified in Project Management and Asset Inventory, authored the Project Management Course for the home inventory industry’s Continuing Education Program.

HoekwaterPRESS RELEASE – It is imperative that the National Inventory Certification Association (NICA) contract with qualified authors to create online, self-directed courses for the Continuing Education Program. The most recently released course, Project Management, was created by Tricia Hoekwater, a member of NICA, who is certified as a Project Management Professional, a Certified Inventory Specialist, and owner of Uniquely Yours Digital Solutions.

“We thought it would be difficult to locate someone with experience in both the Project Management and the Home Inventory sectors, who also has the writing skills required to create a quality course. We are very fortunate to find this in one of our certified members,” NICA Managing Director, Cindy Hartman said. With the asset inventory industry mind, Hoekwater included examples of how specific steps throughout the project can be applied specifically to personal property inventory projects. However, the course is written with the intent to serve any professional who seeks to gain the knowledge required to manage projects that will help ensure a successful result.  

Tricia earned her PMP certification in 2008 from the Project Management Institute. Prior to achieving certification, she studied Project Management at U.C. Berkeley and received an honors certificate in Project Management. Tricia shared her background by stating, “I have worked as a Project Manager since the late 90’s in a variety of industries including law, telecom, digital media consulting, direct sales, and the cruise industry.” She used the certification professionally in website development, facilities management, marketing projects, and most recently as an Inventory Professional in the San Francisco Bay area.

What ended up merging these two interests began in 2006 when Hoekwater experienced a home robbery. She practiced as an inventory professional indirectly when she had to put her project management skills to work.Tricia explained, “I had to identify what was lost, create an items lost inventory for insurance and the police report, and then subsequently, created an inventory of my personal assets where none existed before.”

In 2008 during the weak economy, Hoekwater lost her project management position and was unable to find replacement work in the private sector. She discovered an 11-week mini-MBA program (Women’s Initiative for Self-Employment) and  launched her home inventory business 30 days after graduation.

Many home and business inventory professionals fear taking on a large inventory project due to a lack of knowledge in tackling a multi-unit or multi-property opportunity. As an inventory professional, Hoekwater uses her project management skills to assist in identifying her clients’ needs, developing the contract and managing her team of onsite and back-end support – all necessary to successfully complete a project.

Hoekwater sees the value in continuing education, which encouraged her to accept the course-writing project. She concluded, “In an ongoing quest to provide the best service to my clients, I became a Certified Inventory Specialist. Having NICA as a resource for continued learning has been so gratifying to me and helped me grow professionally and financially. My business has always been about helping people document their assets, minimize paper, and have an organized system for tracking their assets. Writing this course gave me the opportunity to assist others in this industry.”  

In addition to Home Inventory services, Tricia speaks to senior and community groups on the topics of Home Inventory, DeCluttering, Digital Legacy, and Digital Photo Libraries.  

The online, self-directed Project Management course will be available by mid-June on the Professional Development page of the NICA website.

11 Nov 2015

Customer Service Is Key Says Survey

CustomerServiceHow important is your customer service? More importantly, how important is your customer service reputation?

One of the difficulties with customer service is that it is difficult to measure. How do you put a number on the result of your interaction? Often people ask for a response on a scale of 1 to 5. What is the difference between 3 and 4, or 4 and 5? Does anyone deserve a 5? Would that mean they are perfect, or just that your recent situation left you extremely satisfied?

Often people turn to their Facebook and Twitter accounts to receive feedback regarding a company’s customer service. Unfortunately, one bad report will receive attention, while many might have been extremely happy with the service they received, but because of peoples’ nature, don’t report it.

In a recent survey, 64% of the respondents said that a company’s customer service reputation is “very important” when they are comparing and choosing which company to do business with. Good customer service is appreciated, but often it goes unmentioned. However, a company that provides bad customer service has found themselves blasted across the social media platforms and it spreads very quickly. Another 35% said it is “somewhat important.”

Knowing this, it is obvious that it is extremely important to provide a service that leaves the client feeling good about you and your company. This is true when seeking new clients, as well as being able to retain your client base. There are standards in the asset inventor industry, and this is addressed within the Code of Ethics. The National Inventory Certification Association offers an online, self-directed course, titled Customer Service. Topics covered are a variety of skills and techniques that can be utilized to aid in the success of an inventory business, as well as any service-based business.

Check it out, and learn some helpful information to help ensure that you have a great reputation for excellent customer service.