ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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“We are CMS-certified because our customers deserve the highest quality services.”

Testimonial from Maria Gergova-Bengtsson, CEO & Founder of United Partners
Website: https://united-partners.com/

 

Why do agencies need an international quality label like CMS at all?

The CMS certification is a fantastic opportunity for the stakeholders’ self-reflection and definition of improvement strategies.

What has certification brought to your agency in concrete terms?

Bringing all the agency assets in one spot and meeting with undisputable thought leaders helped us understand both strengths and areas for future improvement.

Why do you recommend other colleagues to tackle CMS certification for their agency?

Agencies willing to lead in their domains, functions, and geographies can receive valuable unbiased advice and fast track to the next level.

In what way does the CMS label help you in acquisition?

The certification has given UP an objective confirmation of the global standards in all aspects of the business. Now our international development posture is backed by the highest quality label.

What influence does a label have on the internal effect – on your employees?

After CMS certification, the agency employer brand gained additional equity vital for top talent attraction. Now UP team’s efforts for relentless self-improvement got globally recognized.

What are your wishes for the further development of the CMS? What is missing today?

More global and local communication on CMS could help our customers understand the value behind it. Also building a community of CMS certified agencies will be a way of always on sharing and improving.

ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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Testimonial from Patrick Schober, Managing Partner at PRAM Consulting
Website: www.pram.cz

What has certification brought to your agency in concrete terms?
I run my agency based on quality management principles, which makes me more effective, competitive, I am better partner for my clients, who are investing more for our services. CMS certification is the way to prove that our management is on high level.

ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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Testimonial from Jürgen Gangoly, CEO / Managing Partner, The Skills Group
Website: www.skills.at

Why CMS certification?
We are CMS-certified… because we have always focused on outstanding quality and the CMS certification has enabled us to have this quality standard externally verified by independent auditors since 2004.

Why do you think agencies need an international quality label like CMS at all?
The demonstrable and obligatory compliance with international industry standards gives clients security when commissioning agencies and at the same time helps to recognise quality providers in the communications industry at first glance.

What has certification brought to your agency in concrete terms?
We are of course getting better and better! 😉 No kidding: the certification – and especially the re-certifications every two years – ensure that you can actually live a continuous improvement process in practice and that mistakes – if any – only happen once. This demonstrably increases customer satisfaction, the length of time customers and staff stay with the agency and automatically makes the agency more successful economically. Onboarding new employees and communicating the agency’s quality standards takes less time and is more effective. As a recognised and quality-certified agency, you are not only more attractive for clients, but also on the labour market, and you appeal particularly to “high potentials”.

Why do you recommend other colleagues to tackle CMS certification for their agency?
For all the reasons mentioned above – and because you can of course also be proud of being demonstrably one of the best communication agencies internationally in terms of quality.

In what way does the CMS label help you in acquisition?
In the last 15 years we have noticed several times that the quality certification is a significant plus point in agency presentations and pitch processes. Of course, you don’t win new clients with this alone – you also have to convince them personally, through consulting and implementation competence and creativity. But the certification is an additional evaluation and decision criterion for clients – and demonstrable quality sometimes justifies higher prices.

What influence does a label have on the internal effect – on your employees?
Our employees are really proud to work for a recognised and quality-certified agency. This has a positive effect on everything from the number of applications to the length of time they stay with the company.

What are your wishes for the further development of the CMS? What is missing today?
Public institutions and companies looking for communication agencies should increasingly demand CMS certification or at least provide it as a positive evaluation criterion with extra “points” in the pitch process. This requires the PR industry associations to become active nationally and internationally.

 

ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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Testimonial from Heinrich Beate, Board Member at HEINRICH GmbH Agentur für Kommunikation (GPRA)
Website: www.heinrich-kommunikation.de

We are CMS certified because…
… this quality management system fits the demands of agencies. We are the fourth GPRA member agency to be certified according to CMS III shortly before the first lockdown in 2020. The timing could not have been better. We were perfectly prepared to move all our staff to the home office immediately. Whether goals, competencies, processes, methodology or digital communication: thanks to CMS III, everything was regulated and the quality of the output was assured.

Why do agencies need an international quality label like CMS at all?
When choosing an agency, companies look for personality, conceptual strength and creativity. However, professional agency and quality management should also be important decision-making criteria for the successful awarding of contracts. We can prove this to our clients with the certificate. CMS III provides new convincing arguments.

What did the certification of your agency bring in concrete terms?
The preparations for the certification according to CMS III have already brought us significant progress in terms of organisation and content. We wanted to prove that this quality management system also works for an owner-managed agency of small to medium size. We have succeeded. CMS provides a measurable framework, but leaves a lot of room for the individual agency DNA.

Why do you recommend other colleagues to tackle CMS certification for their agency? 
A CMS III certification challenges every agency and means real work for the management and team in advance. All relevant processes are scrutinised and checked for functionality, relevance as well as practicality and future viability. The gain is enormous and is called: clarity. The clearer the goal and the processes, the better the output and the higher the economic success. Therefore, we strongly recommend all colleagues to take this step.

How does the CMS label help you in acquisition?
The consulting services of agencies must be measured according to objectively comprehensible standards. Clients are therefore looking for suitable criteria. Unfortunately, CMS III is not yet satisfactorily known. Therefore, in every conversation with new and existing clients, we explain in detail our attitude to quality and innovation, CMS III and our certification. This gives us security and a good feeling that we are talking to the right partners.

What influence does a label have on the effect internally – on your employees? 
Our team was committed both in the run-up to and during the audit. It was a source of pride for everyone to be awarded the certificate. Especially the examination of daily work processes with regard to relevance and optimisation potential was meaningful and motivating.

What are your wishes for the further development of the CMS? What is missing today? 
Before CMS III is further developed, we as a communications industry should first use the potential of the present system and bring it into the mainstream. The more agencies are certified nationally and internationally according to CMS III, the better known the label will become and the significance of consulting quality will increase overall. Whether and how this works is up to us agencies.

ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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Reto Wilhelm Dr., (Managing Owner at Panta Rhei PR AG) CMS testimonial
Website: www.pantarhei.ch


Can you explain in one sentence why your agency pursued CMS certification?
We have been certified according to CMS, and since our agency has been in existence,we have always focused on quality. am absolutely convinced that this will prevail on the market. Even more, right now!

Why do we need an international quality label like CMS for agencies at all?
Because we – like architects, lawyers or other industries – need a reliable standard that can be used to distinguish pioneers in the world of communication from those who do not conduct their business sustainably. We owe this to our customers – and to our offspring as well. Quality matters.

What exactly did the certification of your agency bring?
A drastic development boost. We have already completed 8 recertifications and the democratization of knowledge and skills in our agency has increased enormously thanks to CMS. The learning curve is unmistakable. Everyone can rely on solid processes and fully exploit their creativity thanks to these instruments. And as an agency manager, running the agency has become much easier – because we all speak the same language and pursue the same goal: Quality sells better.

Why do you recommend other colleagues to tackle CMS certification for their agency?
Because we need a common sense for our industry. We need more pioneers for quality, for ethics, for fair cooperation and solid business. The CMS provides all of this – it is our compass for an industry that is undergoing major change. CMS guarantees stability, for the customer, for the individual agency and for us as an overall organization at ICCO level, which is responsible for the CMS.

To what extent does the CMS label benefit you in acquisition?
We address the label in all our channels, on offers, on the website, in presentations, on social media. I also write regular technical articles. We see ourselves as the standard bearer for this label, which needs even more visibility – with customers who are looking for a reliable partner.

What influence does a label have on the effect on the inside – on your employees?
A quite considerable one – especially the next generation wants to know what ethics, fair behavior and communication and sustainable action are all about. CMS is the right answer – because the standard operates holistically: socially, ecologically and economically.

What wish do you have for the further development of the CMS? What is missing today?
We need to reflect the concerns of inclusion and diversity even more strongly – especially when we talk about talent search. When I think about how difficult it is to gain a foothold in communication as a person with a migrant background. We also need to shed better light on the issue of succession planning in owner-managed agencies. And, of course, the topic of “ethics” in a very broad sense – from the technological to the behavioral level.

Reto Wilhelm BLOG
https://www.pantarhei.ch/zertifiziert-in-punkto-qualitaet/

https://www.pantarhei.ch/qualitaetsmanagement-in-der-krise-trennt-der-spreu-vom-weizen/

To learn more about the Consultancy Management Standard certification, please click here.

ICCO CMS Certification testimonial

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Testimonial from Alexandra Fuchs, CEO at Fink & Fuchs AG
Website: www.finkfuchs.de 

In one sentence, why did you pursue CMS certification?
We have been certified according to CMS because we are convinced that high and consistent quality and thus economic success are only possible on the basis of stringent and transparent processes.

Why do we need an international quality label like CMS for agencies at all?
Our market is very fragmented and sometimes confusing. A generally valid and binding quality seal provides the necessary orientation and order in the search for the best partner. I am also convinced that this will strengthen competition and further increase quality in our market.

What exactly did the certification of your agency bring?
Our customers think this is great and expect a high degree of management competence and structure from us in their daily cooperation. As an organization, we have made our teams much more efficient and powerful. However, we have also noticed that young people in particular demand binding processes. This provides security and supports working on the same understanding of quality.

Why do you recommend other colleagues to tackle CMS certification for their agency?
With the seal of approval, you make the difference in the market and learn a lot about your own organization.

To what extent does the CMS label benefit you in acquisition?
Customers rely on this, as they themselves are usually bound by high quality guidelines. In some cases, proof is even required in tenders.

What influence does a label have on the effect on the inside – on your employees?
It motivates all employees to work together on a quality goal.

What wish do you have for the further development of the CMS?
What is missing today? We urgently need generally applicable standards for the further qualification of our young industry talent. This should be taken into account more comprehensively in the CMS. But also how to make the advice more comparable to one about the standard. At least to some extent.