Who We Are and Benefits of Being a Member of the Canada West Chapter (CWC)
We are a Chapter of “NIGP – National Institute of Government Purchasing”, which is a national membership based non-profit organization providing support to professionals in the public sector purchasing profession. We align our mission, values and principles and guiding practices as well as training and seminars with those of NIGP, bringing in the seminars and courses the Institute offers, as well as other training programs or advancing our profession (purchasing, warehousing, contracts, negotiation, etc.).
In our Chapter, we strive to assist our members to get certified under either the CPPB (Certified Professional Public Buyer) or the CPPO (Certified Professional Public Officer). These certifications (Issued by the UPPCC organization that oversees test results and certifications) provide recognition of your dedication and professionalism in the Public Procurement role and can assist in career advancement as well.
With either of these certifications, you are required to earn and/or maintain a minimum amount of certification ‘points’ to obtain or renew your certification. Once certified, it is valid for a period of 5 years, at which time you submit an application to renew, detailing where and how you have earned your ‘points’ in the previous 5 years.
CWC holds 3 to 4 general meetings a year, which include a meal and typically a guest speaker and are striving towards speaker presentations that will count as contact hours for certification/recertification.
You are also eligible to earn points by participating in the Chapter Operations by being on the Executive (holding either an Executive Committee Member position such as President, Vice President, Professional Development, Programs and Nominations, etc).
If you get involved in the Executive or one of the Committee Positions of the Chapter, we have approximately 5 to 6 meetings a year which are held either towards the end of the business day or via teleconference during the noon hour.
We strive to setup the training and procurement classes locally so that our members want to take part in them and also provide support where we can to assist other members.
It is recommended that public agencies have both a national membership and a chapter membership for the following reasons:
- The chapter membership gets you access to local seminars, training and speakers, as well as provide you an opportunity to network and share ideas within our membership. You can also get assistance with issues you may be experiencing; as well you can gain valuable recertification points for being active in the Chapter by holding a position (i.e. Executive or Committee Position).
- The national membership allows you access to a Library of Procurement documents, RFP’s and templates, etc. to assist in building your own documents for procuring goods and services and offer on-line courses and webinars. It also provides access to procurement professionals across the continent that you can network with through various means and share ideas and concepts with, as well as get access to white papers, industry news and sharing of ideas and knowledge. They also sponsor an Annual Forum/Conference that provides a wealth of seminars and topical discussions related to our industry, including a vendor trade fair as well.
Both memberships complement each other, but if you were restricted to one, having the Chapter membership may be the best way to start as our fees are only $35 per member per year.
Please contact our Membership Committee Chair, if you need more information on becoming a Chapter Member.
Information on NIGP National memberships as well as nationally offered training seminars can be found on their website.
One of our goals is to strive to do as much as possible to help members get certified and have access to public purchasing related training as our main goal. We also look at the chapter as a great way to network and help/assist others to grow and become more successful in their public procurement role(s).
We have a dedicated team of professionals on the Executive that can help and provide more information as well and if you are interested, all are welcome to attend any General Meeting as a guest of the Chapter to learn more about us and what we do. If interested, please contact any one of our Executive members from the “Contact Us” section of the web site.