Member Spotlight: The Powerful Impact of Professional Designations

​Earning a designation in any field gives a sense of accomplishment to those who put in the work to earn them. NACM's Professional Certification Program is a six-level educational program with several courses providing knowledge needed to excel in the role of a credit professional. It is a great way to seek career opportunities, get promoted to an upper management level and earn professional recognition from colleagues.

The Credit Business Fellow (CBF) is an academic and participation-based designation, which illustrates that achievers are knowledgeable about and have contributed to the field of business credit by first having earned the Credit Business Associate (CBA)designation, as well as having completed additional course work.

Melina Badalamenti, CBA, CBF is a credit analyst at Ampco Distribution Services. She said earning her CBF wasan amazing accomplishment. "I look back at when I first started this journey and I cannot believe how much knowledge I have gained," Badalamenti said. "The courses provided through NACM are fantastic. These courses not only educate you in business and credit law, but they also provide practical application in day-to-day business tasks."

💡Balancing her daily responsibilities with time to complete coursework was the only difficult part of Badalamenti's journey to the CBF. "One study tip I used was being able to identify aspects of the material I was comfortable with and identifying which areas and topics needed to be reviewed," Badalamenti said. "That really helped me with time management and self-assessment of the material."

Despite the two certifications behind her name, Badalamenti's certification journey isn't over yet. "I look forward to pursuing my CCE designation," she said. "I can honestly say, I look back and still cannot believe how much I have learned thus far."

For more information about each designation within NACM's Professional Certification Program, visit our website.