26-year-old Kyle Eckstein, who has worked for SAB for the past three years as a production planner, has become an APICS CPIM (certified in production and inventory management) in record time.

Kyle has been an APICS member since June 2014 and had around three months to complete the CPIM which consisted of five examinations, each three hours long.

According to SAPICS, through whom the APICS CPIM certification is offered in South Africa, most candidates take around 12 to 18 months to successfully complete all their examinations. Since 1973, more than 97 000 professionals worldwide have earned the APICS CPIM designation.

“The APICS CPIM is the strategic advantage that operations management professionals need in today’s world, where the rate of organisational and technological change is accelerating exponentially,” says Jenny Froome, general manager of SAPICS, the South African association for supply chain management professionals.

“The in-depth approach taken to understanding and evaluating production and inventory activities within a company’s global operations is why this certification is preferred by thousands of employer’s worldwide,” she adds. “In the nearly 20 years I have been involved with SAPICS and APICS, I have watched the professional and personal growth of many individuals flourish with the benefit of the APICS Body of Knowledge which is encapsulated in the APICS certifications.”

The CPIM covers essential terminology concepts and strategies related to demand management, procurement and supplier planning, material requirements, planning, capacity requirements planning, sales and operations planning, master scheduling, performance measurements, supplier relationships, quality control and continuous improvement. The certification is organised into five modules, each focusing on key areas that are integral to mastering production and inventory management principles.