IDEAS
IMCA—Investment Management Consultants Association—was established in 1985 to deliver the premier investment consulting and wealth management credentials and world-class educational offerings—membership, conferences, research, and publications. IMCA sets the standards and practices for the investment management consulting profession and provides investment consultants with the credentials and tools required to best serve their clients.
Certifications
Certified Investment Management AnalystSM
The CIMA® certification is the premier credential for advanced investment consultants and advisors. It reflects experience, education, examination, and ethical standards. Every financial professional who has earned the CIMA certification has at least three years of client-centered financial services experience, has passed an extensive background check, and has completed the demanding graduate-level program of study.
Certified Private Wealth AdvisorSM
IMCA’s Certified Private Wealth Advisor, or CPWA®, designation is an advanced credential specifically created for wealth managers and advisors who work with high-net-worth clients on the life cycle of wealth: accumulation, preservation and protection, and distribution. Advisors who attain this designation will gain superior expertise in advanced wealth management content, strategies, and applied concepts.
Certifications
Certified Investment Management AnalystSM
The CIMA® certification is the premier credential for advanced investment consultants and advisors. It reflects experience, education, examination, and ethical standards. Every financial professional who has earned the CIMA certification has at least three years of client-centered financial services experience, has passed an extensive background check, and has completed the demanding graduate-level program of study.
Certified Private Wealth AdvisorSM
IMCA’s Certified Private Wealth Advisor, or CPWA®, designation is an advanced credential specifically created for wealth managers and advisors who work with high-net-worth clients on the life cycle of wealth: accumulation, preservation and protection, and distribution. Advisors who attain this designation will gain superior expertise in advanced wealth management content, strategies, and applied concepts.
IMCA’s certification programs only are offered through two of the top business schools in the country: The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania and The University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
The association is proud to serve more than 8,400 members including more than 6,200 CIMA professionals and 450 CPWA professionals. Each member must subscribe to and each designee must adhere to IMCA’s Code of Professional Responsibility. In addition, IMCA’s Standards of Practice and Performance Reporting Standards provide practical guidance to investment management consultants in the course of conducting their practices and providing services to clients.
Advanced Education and Membership
To further distinguish its members, the association is dedicated to the advanced education of investment professionals. IMCA conferences hosted more than 4,500 attendees in 2009. The IMCA Annual Conference offers headline general sessions and leading-edge workshops covering topics such as practice management, technology, international investments, and wealth management. The 2010 specialty conference calendar delivers five focused-topic agendas including asset allocation, advanced wealth management, practice management, a New York consultants conference, and an advanced CIMA workshop at The Wharton School.
In addition to onsite offerings, IMCA provides interactive audio broadcasts that concentrate on current industry 'hot topics.' IMCA also offers an entry-level certificate program, Essentials of Investment Consulting. The association’s publications include Investments & Wealth Monitor, a bi-monthly educational magazine featuring professional contributors addressing everyday issues, the Journal of Investment Consulting, which delves into the research and theory of investments, and IMCA Research Quarterly, a proprietary, in-depth research report detailing how IMCA members deliver best practices. IMCA members receive access to a number of other tools, resources, and content as a benefit of membership.
Governance Structure
A thirteen-member board of directors, including four officers, governs IMCA. The membership nominates 12 positions, the nominating committee appoints the directors, the past president serves one additional term of office, and the executive director serves on the board ex-officio. Volunteer committees, such as certification, conferences, membership, and wealth management, provide input to the board and assist in directing the activities of the association.
For the investment professional, IMCA is an ethical and trustworthy conduit to cutting-edge investment strategies that maximize wealth potential.
For more information about IMCA, or to become a member, call 303.770.3377 or visit the Members Section of IMCA.org.
