Electronic Document Professional
The EDP (Electronic Document Professional) is a professional designation awarded by Xplor International for participants in the electronic document industry who have satisfied a number of criteria.
The EDP is not a measure of specific knowledge, but awardees normally have a broad knowledge of the electronic document industry along with specific knowledge in one or more areas. Thus, the EDP differs from certifications such as the CDIA+ from CompTIA in which the awardee has passed a formal exam. Rather, the EDP is more closely related to the older MIT and LIT designations from AIIM. Generally, the EDP does show that the awardee has been in the industry for at least 5 years, and has participated in at least 3 major projects showing competence in a number of 'bodies of knowledge'.
The EDP program is regulated by the EDP Commission of Xplor International, which is a body of senior professionals in the electronic document industry who set the standards and judge the qualifications of the applicants.
History
The first EDP 'class' (as the annual group of awardees is called) was in 1990, when 12 industry professionals were given the award. In 1991, the class was much smaller (only 6), but in 1992 and in all the years following, the number of awardees has generally been double digits, with as many as 25 at one time. The Dutch Chapter of Xplor International has particularly stressed the EDP designation as an essential part of being a professional in the electronic document industry, with the result that in some years, more than ten Dutch members alone were named EDPs, and there are more EDPs per capita in The Netherlands today than in any other country.
In 2009, Xplor relaunched its certification program, so that there is now a three-level certification process to help employers benchmark their staff.[1]
The EDP and the Master-EDP awards are presented once a year at the annual international conference of Xplor. While the first EDPs were awarded at the 1990 conference in Nashville, Tennessee (USA), the first 'class' of Master-EDPs was awarded at the association's annual event in St. Petersburg, Florida (USA) in March, 2010. At that event, the following industry professionals received the association's highest certification:[2]
- William Broddy, M-EDP
- Ernie Crawford, M-EDP
- Scott Draeger, M-EDP
- Oscar Dubbeldam, M-EDP
- William J. "Bill" McCalpin, M-EDP, CDIA, MIT, LIT
- Walter Riddock, M-EDP, CMDSM
- Donald Scrima, M-EDP
At the association's next annual event in April, 2011, two more industry professionals will be named M-EDPs:[2]
- Pat McGrew, M-EDP
- Carrie Murphy, M-EDP
On the other hand, the new EDA designation is awarded at the point that the individual's application is accepted and verified, throughout the year. Currently (December 2010), there are 48 industry professionals who have received this designation,[3] nearly all of whom received the designation as a result of attending courses certified by Xplor and taught by acadami, two of whose principals are M-EDPs.
Levels of Certification
Electronic Document Associate (EDA)
The EDA designation recognizes electronic document sales, development and support specialists who have shown significantly more knowledge of the industry than someone in another discipline. It requires candidates to be in the industry for 2+ years and have successfully completed 5 days of Xplor Continuing Education Unit (CEU) certified courses, or the equivalent.[4]
Electronic Document Professional (EDP)
EDPs have clearly shown enough working knowledge of the process to make significant decisions regarding technology or process deployment. For example, management should trust them to lead projects, or support teams. To become certified as an EDP, a candidate must be in the industry for 5+ years, have successfully completed 10 days of Xplor CEU training (or the equivalent), and have shown their working knowledge and experience through 3 work examples.[5]
Master Electronic Document Professional (M-EDP)
M-EDPs are the recognized experts on specific technologies, processes, or management skills. For example, an M-EDP may have co-developed a composition or print stream transform system. Another might be the expert on print costing, or statement design. By earning their M-EDP, they are clearly recognized as one of the ‘go to’ people in the industry.
To earn the M-EDP, a candidate must have been in the industry for at least 10 years, have been an EDP for at least 5 years, and be able to prove their area of expertise through published material.[6]
Designees
In all, there are more than 500 industry professionals with the EDP designation, including:
- William Broddy, M-EDP - formerly the Vice Chair of the EDP Commission
- William J. 'Bill' McCalpin, M-EDP - former Treasurer and former General Manager of Xplor International
- Dr. Michael Turton, EDP - recognized expert in the design of transaction documents and the use of color in transaction documents
- Scott Kelly, EDP - current Xplor International board member
- Ernie Crawford, M-EDP - President of Crawford Technologies
- Stephen Poe, EDP - Principal at Nautilus Solutions
- Scott Draeger, M-EDP - Customer Communication Strategist at HP Exstream
- Loic Avenel, EDP - EMEA Product Marketing Manager at HP Exstream
- Roberta McKee-Jackson, EDP - Principal at RSM Consulting and current Vice-Chair of EDP Commission
- Skip Henk, EDP - Current President/CEO of Xplor International
- Kent Lewis, EDP - Product Manager, HP Exstream
- Matt Riley, EDP - Solution Support Manager, HP Exstream
- Donald A. Scrima, M-EDP - Current Chair of EDP Commission (2009-20120) and Principal at AFP Education & Consulting
- René M. Joor, EDP - Current member of the EDP Commission, Partner at De Berichtenfabriek BV, the Netherlands
- Kenneth H. Pugh, EDP - Senior Output Analyst at Aon Corporation
- Kathy Rixham, EDP - Print System Administrator at RR Donnelley
- Kees van de Graaf, EDP - Consultant at PostNL
- James Shand, EDP - Xplor International member of +30-years, Current President Xplor UK & Ireland and member of the Xplor International Board of Directors