Professional Membership : Grading Criteria

Management experience and education qualifications form the basis of the criteria used in grading applicants for personal membership of the Australian Institute of Management.

Professional Grades are those of Member (AIMM), Associate Fellow (AFAIM) and Fellow (FAIM).

The category of Affiliate is used for members not yet eligible for professional membership grading.

Membership of AIM is open to applicants from all fields of management endeavour, ranging from trainees to those who have already achieved success at the highest level. Entry may be made at any level of membership.

Affiliate
The category of Affiliate is open to persons who have:

• partially satisfied the requirements for, either or both of, proven management achievement and approved educational qualifications for the grade of Member.
  or
• satisfied the approved education qualifications, but have not yet satisfied the requirement of proven management achievement for the grade of Member,
  or
• expressed the desire to improve their management potential by active association with members and participation in member activities and services.

Member
The grade of Member is open to persons who have a record of proven management achievement over a period of five (5) years or more in a position with management responsibility, such as:

• a person responsible for planning, organisation, decision making, staffing and control of an operation requiring the delegation of work to several other positions of a supervisory or technical or skilled nature.
  

The required period of proven management achievement may be reduced by up to three (3) years dependent on credits gained through holding approved educational qualifications appropriate to this level of management.

Associate Fellow
The grade of Associate Fellow is open to persons who have a record of proven management achievement over a period of five (5) years or more in a senior management position, such as:

• a chief executive, general manager or senior functional manager, who delegates authority to several other persons holding positions which require management skills of at least Member level,
  or
• a specialist position requiring management and entrepreneurial skills, the exercise of which have a substantial impact on the overall operations of the organisation.

The required period of proven management achievement may be reduced by up to three (3) years, dependent on credits gained through holding approved educational qualifications appropriate to this level of management.

Fellow
The grade of Fellow is open to persons who have a record of proven management achievement over a period of six (6) years or more in a general executive management position, such as:

• chief executive or group/chief general manager of an organisation of such complexity as to require the delegation of authority to staff of at least Associate Fellow level,
  or
• divisional, regional or state general manager in an organisation of such complexity as to require the delegation of authority to staff at Associate Fellow level,
  or
• the senior specialist in a particular field, providing advice of a highly significant nature, to general executive management in an organisation of such complexity as to require the delegation of authority to staff at Fellow level.

The required period of proven management achievement may be reduced by up to two (2) years, dependent on credits gained through holding approved educational qualifications appropriate to this level of management.

General Criteria

Personal Qualities
All applicants for membership must be of good character and may be required to supply character references sufficient to verify their suitability as members of AIM.

Other Interests
AIM may take into account other interests such as service to AIM, contribution to the profession of management by teaching, publishing or other relevant activity, service to the community, membership of other associations, or achievement of special recognition by making a distinguished contribution to the management profession.

General
Gradings and grading criteria differ for all professional associations. A specific grading in another association does not necessarily warrant a similar grading in AIM, where criteria is focused on the management content of the job positions rather than technical knowledge and expertise in a variety of other disciplines.

Management Experience
For practising managers, primary consideration is given to the level of responsibility as prescribed in position descriptions and other supporting documentation, to be supplied with all applications. Details of the organisation in terms of type of industry, its period of operation with relevant statistics of growth and development, numbers of employees and/or annual turnover, are also supportive factors in the assessment of management experience.

In specialist positions not directly involved in line management, the nature and complexity of the type of advice given, and the level of management or organisations to whom it has been given together with proven results, take on extra significance as relevant criteria.

An owner/manager who has practised a high degree of management skill and entrepreneurship and has initiated, established and developed a successful business, recognised in the community as a leader in its particular field, over a period of time as specified in the grading criteria, may be eligible for membership at the Associate Fellow or Fellow levels. In the public sector, supporting information, such as position ranking or classification, should be supplied by personnel in the Armed Services, Police Force, Senior Executive Service and other Government funded/subsidised organisations or institutions.

Education Qualifications
The following education credits may apply, provided the qualifications concerned have been completed immediately prior to, or within, the relevant time frame of years of management experience being assessed at each particular grading level.
(a) Applicants holding a University/CAE Degree or Diploma in management/business studies or in a discipline appropriate to the applicant’s management work (or other equivalent courses of study in management, as approved by the AIM) may receive a two (2) year credit against the required years of proven management achievement.
(b) Applicants holding post graduate qualifications in management/business studies may gain a further credit of one (1) or two (2) years against the required years of experience.
(c) Education credits may also apply in respect of other relevant qualifications including AIM courses (up to one year) and TAFE Certificates or Diplomas in management/business (normally 1 year).

Note: The maximum credits which can be applied at each grading level are: three (3) years at the Member and Associate Fellow grades and two (2) years at Fellow grade.