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Career Management Professional Program
Over the past 14 years, Life Strategies has built a reputation for excellence by providing training and curriculum development services that are custom designed, inspiring, and focused on helping individuals and organizations realize their greatest potential. Through numerous strategic partnerships, Life Strategies offers leading-edge, internationally recognized, and client-centred training, priced fairly and presented with passion.
 Program Information Program Information
Program Information
Offered in an arrangement with Yorkville University as our academic home, the Career Management Professional Program (CMPP) is designed to meet the professional development needs of career/employment counsellors, career practitioners, human resource management professionals, counsellors, rehabilitation professionals, and/or practitioners in related fields.
The Career Management Professional Program has over 20 separate courses in seven areas of specialization. Certificates require the completion of 10—11 courses at 20-hours per course (specific course requirements vary per certificate). Each course is delivered over a two week period and students are expected to commit to 20-hours per course. A new course begins every Wednesday, on a set schedule, available at www.lifestrategies.ca/cmpp.html
Each course has been pre-approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) and the Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada (VRA Canada) for continuing education units.
Courses are offered online, via an interactive, facilitated e-learning format, designed to engage the learner in ongoing discussions. This format brings together students from around the globe without them ever leaving their own communities. All courses are taught by industry professionals with extensive experience in the career development sector and either Masters degrees or PhDs.
The Career Management Professional Program is proud to be the home of Canada’s only pre-approved program for the Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF) credential.
CMPP Certificates include:
- Organizational/Career Development Specialist
- Career Transition Specialist
- Employment Facilitation/Work Search Specialist
- Rehabilitation Specialist
- Multicultural Specialist
- Personal and Professional Development / Life Skills Coach
- Global Career Development Facilitator
The following five certificates require the completion of four core courses, three required courses, one applied project, and two electives.
The four core courses are:
- Career Development Foundations, Emerging Theories and Models
- Helping Skills to Facilitate Career Development
- Career Coaching Skills
- Researching Workplace Trends, Career Information, and Employment Possibilities
Organizational/Career Development Specialist
Some career practitioners are employed directly by businesses to work “in-house” with their employees. Learn the skills required to work as a career specialist within human resources, employee development programs, and corporate training departments. This certificate has a dual focus, supporting both individual employees and the organizations that employ them.
Required courses:
- Group Facilitation Strategies for Career Programs
- Facilitating Work-Life Balance
- Career Management at Work: Keeping Employees Engaged
Career Transition Specialist
Career-related transitions include finding work after completing a program of study or losing a job, navigating mid-career changes (whether made by choice or out of necessity), and even preparing for retirement. Career management professionals within post-secondary institutions, community programs, corporations, consulting firms, and private practice often find themselves helping people in transition.
Required courses:
- Outplacement and Career Transitions
- Work Search Essentials 1: Resumes, Cover Letters and Career Portfolios
- Work Search Essentials 2: Interview and Negotiation Strategies
Employment Facilitation/Work Search Specialist
Traditional roles for career practitioners involve facilitating career planning and job search programs and providing one-to-one support. This certificate prepares career management professionals to deliver career related information to individuals and groups that are trying to determine a suitable career direction and find and secure appropriate work.
Required courses:
- Work Search Essentials 1: Resumes, Cover Letters and Career Portfolios
- Work Search Essentials 2: Interview and Negotiation Strategies
- Group Facilitation Strategies for Career Programs
Rehabilitation Specialist
Facilitating a successful return to work for workers recovering from illness or injury can be rewarding work for career practitioners. It also presents a unique set of challenges. Insurers, community programs or corporations may employ rehabilitation specialists. Some also work with clients through their private practice.
Required courses:
- Employment Readiness: Preparing for the World of Work
- Administering and Interpreting Career Assessments
- Placement and Monitoring
Multicultural Specialist
Immigrants often bring a different set of concerns to career management professionals. In addition to looking for work, the newly arrived may need to identify a neighbourhood, settle into their new homes, get their children into school, begin to learn about the culture, get their foreign training and experience recognized, and, sometimes, learn a new language. This certificate prepares career management professionals to support immigrants to successfully manage their career transitions.
Required courses:
- The Immigrant Experience
- International/Global Careers
- Understanding Diverse Clients
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- CMPP Electives CMPP Electives
CMPP Electives
To complete each certificate, students must select two electives from the following list. Note: a course cannot be used as an elective if it is already listed as a required course for that particular certificate.
- Administering and Interpreting Career Assessments
- Career Management at Work: Keeping Employees Engaged
- Community Capacity Building
- Developing Career Programs, Services or Courses
- e-Coaching
- Employment Readiness: Preparing for the World of Work
- Ethics for Career Practitioners
- Facilitating Work-Life Balance
- Group Facilitation Strategies for Career Programs
- The Immigrant Experience
- International/Global Careers
- Interpersonal Relationships
- Outplacement and Career Transitions
- Placement and Monitoring
- Program Management
- Retirement Readiness
- Understanding Diverse Clients
- Women at Work
- Work Search Essentials 1: Resumes, Cover Letters and Career Portfolios
- Work Search Essentials 2: Interview and Negotiation Strategies
- Personal Professional Development/Life Skills Coach Personal Professional Development/Life Skills Coach
Personal Professional Development/Life Skills Coach
The Personal and Professional Development / Life Skills Coach and Global Career Development Facilitator Credential are also part of the Career Management Professional Program, but have more specialized course requirements.
Personal and Professional Development/Life Skills Coach
“A Life Skills Coach is a trained, caring professional who is able to facilitate groups, model and evaluate skills and support individualized learning” (CALSCA, 2006). The Canadian Standards and Guidelines for Career Development Practitioners and the Blueprint for Life/Work Designs demonstrate that career management and life management cannot be separated. This certificate area of specialization is designed to prepare students for employment as a Life Skills Coach while also addressing the broader Personal and Professional Development work done by career management professionals within employment programs, corporations, and continuing education programs.
Required courses:
- Administering and Interpreting Career Assessments
- Career Coaching Skills
- Employment Readiness: Preparing for the World of Work
- Group Facilitation Strategies for Career Programs
- Helping Skills to Facilitate Career Development
- Interpersonal Relationships
- Researching Workplace Trends, Career Information, and Employment Possibilities
- Theories and Models: Human Development and Life Skills Coaching
- Understanding Diverse Clients
- Applied Project
- Global Career Development Facilitator Global Career Development Facilitator
Global Career Development Facilitator
The Global Career Development Facilitator (GCDF) credential was established to recognize the training and background of those working in career development fields, and to establish minimum competency areas. It is considered a global designation with international recognition. The credential is a combination of academic education, experience, and additional training in career development. The GCDF specialization of the Career Management Professional Program is Canada’s only pre-approved program for the additional training requirement of GCDF.
Required courses:
- Administering and Interpreting Career Assessments
- Career Coaching Skills
- Career Development Foundations, Emerging Theories and Models
- Ethics for Career Practitioners
- Group Facilitation Strategies for Career Programs
- Helping Skills to Facilitate Career Development
- Program Management
- Researching Workplace Trends, Career Information and Employment Possibilities
- Understanding Diverse Clients
- Work Search Essentials 1: Resumes, Cover Letters and Career Portfolios
- Work Search Essentials 2: Interview and Negotiation Strategies
Students who complete all the GCDF course requirements will be eligible to apply for the GCDF credential if they also meet the other GCDF requirements (see below). Please note, the following is excerpts taken directly from the CCE website (click here to view PDF document.)
A combination of the following education and experience is required. Documentation of the highest level of education completed must accompany your application. In order to qualify for certification, experience must be acquired after obtaining a high school diploma or GED.
| Education |
Experience* |
| Graduate Degree |
1,400 hours |
| Bachelor’s Degree |
2,800 hours |
| Associate’s Degree |
4,200 hours |
| High School Diploma/GED |
5,600 hours |
*GCDF training hours cannot be used to fulfill the experience requirement. Experience hours accrued prior to completion of GCDF training may be included. All documented experience hours must be career development related and must fall within the 12 GCDF competency areas.
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Psychometric Assessments...
The Life Strategies team uses a wide range of vocational and psychological assessments to provide psychometric testing for individuals and organizations. Assessments, as part of a comprehensive counselling / coaching program, can contribute to deeper understanding and appreciation of individual differences, strategic planning for personal and organizational development, and more effective interpersonal relationships. The Life Strategies team trains counsellors, coaches, human resource professionals, and vocational rehabilitation specialists to administer and interpret psychometric assessments.
Psychometric Assessments Qualification Training
Psychometric assessments (career, psychological, and academic) are used by human resources professionals, career/employment counsellors, career practitioners, counsellors, family therapists, rehabilitation professionals, etc. However, only those professionals with a university degree (preferably a Masters) and completion of university level courses in tests and measurements and interpreting psychological assessments are able to purchase, administer, and interpret "B" Level assessments.
Life Strategies Ltd., in partnership with Yorkville University, is pleased to offer the following two courses designed to meet the requirements for graduate level university courses in psychometric assessment. Combined, these courses will qualify students to purchase "B" level assessments. In addition, each course has been pre approved for the following Continuing Education Units (CEUs):
- 5 Continuing Education Units
- Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) - Certified Canadian Counsellor designation
- 30 Continuing Education Units
- Vocational Rehabilitation Association of Canada (VRA) - Registered Rehabilitation Professional designation
Note: persons interested in pursuing a "B" level qualification must have an undergraduate degree.
The Fundamentals of Psychometric Assessments: Understanding Validity, Reliability and Other Important Stuff (CPE 510)
This 30 hour course will be offered in a facilitated e-learning format. It introduces basic statistical concepts that are foundational to psychometric assessments (e.g., scaling, norms, frequency, correlation) and introduces factors that impact reliability and validity in test construction and use.
This course (or a similar university-level course in tests and measurements) is one essential component in the process of becoming qualified to administer "B" level psychometric assessments. CPE 510 is a prerequisite for CPE 520/521 Psychometric Assessments: Selection, Administration and Interpretation of "B" Level Tools.
Psychometric Assessments: Selection, Administration and Interpretation of ?B? Level Tools
This course, offered through our partnership with Yorkville University, provides opportunities for participants to examine, discuss, and practice using a wide variety of "B" level assessment instruments that measure such individual characteristics as career interests, personal style, values, emotional intelligence, occupational stress, and quality of life.
Note: students must have an undergraduate degree and have completed CPE 510 Fundamentals of Psychometric Assessments or a similar course (instructor reserves the right to approve similar courses).
This course is offered in two formats:
CPE 520 is a mixed-mode, 30 hour course, involving self-directed study, participation in an online, interactive forum, and attending a 1.5 day "in-person" seminar.
CPE 521 is a fully online course, presented through the use of a facilitated interactive e-learning forum. Two 30 minute one-on-one coaching sessions with the instructor, either using an online CHAT forum or telephone, will also be available.
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Personality Dimensions®
Personality Dimensions® represents the next level of evolution in presenting temperament or personality theory. It builds on the foundations established by the work of David Keirsey, Linda Berens and Don Lowry, and a history of temperament theories that span 25 centuries. It is a fabulous tool to use with intact teams, parents and families, and diverse groups on such topics as communication building, leadership development, work-life balance, sales and marketing, customer service, and career planning.
Personality Dimensions® Facilitator (Level I) Qualification Training
Personality Dimensions® is a "B" level assessment which means that you must have specific training in the tool or graduate level training in the use of assessments, typically through a Master's in Counselling or Psychology degree. This 21 hour training program meets the "specific training" requirements. Participants who successfully complete the training and the qualification exam become Qualified Personality Dimensions® Facilitators.
Prerequisite: Adult/group facilitation experience; attendance at a Personality Dimensions®, or other personality temperament/type introductory session.
Personality Dimensions Bridging and Level 1 Training are now available online. Register today for the next session through the Life Strategies Online Store.
Personality Dimensions® Facilitator-Trainer (Level II) Qualification Training:
Current PD Facilitators can choose to become Facilitator Trainers, which allows them to offer the basic Facilitator Qualification Training workshops. To qualify for this program you must have been certified to use PD for a minimum of one year and have conducted over 10 PD workshops to diverse clients on a wide array of topics (i.e., not the same "teambuilding" workshop to 10 different groups). Essentially broad base of experience, with the tool, is needed. Participants in this workshop must be prepared to deliver a 20 - 30 minute presentation to their peers as part of the certification process.
Life Strategies combines their Facilitator and Facilitator-Trainer qualification training (i.e., we train Facilitator-Trainers during the same sessions as we train Facilitators). As such, Facilitator and Facilitator-Trainer training has the same schedule format:
Thursday evening, 5:30pm to 9:00pm
Friday and Saturday 8:45am to 5:30pm
Bridging Workshop
A bridging workshop gives existing True Colors® Facilitators and Myers-Briggs Type Indicator® Qualified Users an opportunity to gain equivalent qualification for the Personality Dimensions® self-discovery model. Participants in bridging sessions receive a full set of Personality Dimensions® manuals, Dimension cards, Traits and Characteristics checklists, and a PD in Action booklet. Bridging fees include the cost of certification as a PD trainer.
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Blueprint for Life/Work Designs
According to the Blueprint for Life/Work Designs web site (www.blueprint4life.ca) ?Career development is about growing through life and work; about learning, experiencing, living, working and changing; about creating and discovering pathways through one's life and work. When intentional, career development is about actively creating the life one wants to live and the work one wants to do. The Blueprint for Life/ Work Designs will help make career development intentional for more people. Join Blueprint leaders, Roberta Neault and Deirdre Pickerell as they introduce you to the Blueprint, in this official orientation session - the only session currently available online.
Life Strategies is also pleased to offer online qualification training to use a variety of assessments:
- Survivability® Workshop Leader
- Survivability® Coach
- The Fundamentals of Psychometric Assessments: Understanding Validity, Reliability and Other Important Stuff (CPE 510)
- Psychometric Assessments: Selection, Administration and Interpretation of "B" Level Tools
What Blueprint Participants are Saying:
As per my usual experience with Life Strategies' courses, I'm really finding this one to be just excellent and eye-opening! I'm inspired to complete the assignments to the best of my abilities because it's an opportunity to really delve into the content and apply the learnings in a meaningful way to something real, with the added bonus of a trusted expert providing feedback!
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Let's CHAT!
As organizations face the challenge of recruiting, retaining, and re-skilling the employees that they need in the changing workplace and employees strive to find a measure of work-life balance as they continue to learn and grow, managers and supervisors are often expected to take on the role of coach, mentor, or confidant.
Let's CHAT! is an innovative program that facilitates open communication, empathy, appreciation, and a commitment to action - between employees and their supervisors or managers, or between managers and the executive team.
Life Strategies can introduce your organization to Let's CHAT! or can offer you certification to use the model in-house.
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Life Strategies LearnOnline
After over a decade of successfully offering customized professional development in-house and in academic programs, Life Strategies is pleased to be able to offer the same calibre of training in our flexible, facilitated e-learning format. Each course runs online over a one week period. Students are expected to participate in daily topical discussion forums, complete relevant readings, and in most cases, submit very practical assignments to demonstrate their learning.
Courses include:
- Marketing Career Development Programs and Service Marketing Career Development Programs and Service
Marketing Career Development Programs and Service
REGISTER ONLINE
Whether working in government-funded programs or in private practice, effectively marketing programs and services is vital to career management professionals. This course will discuss “best practices” in marketing programs and services. This includes marketing on a shoestring budget.
- Beyond Government Contracts Beyond Government Contracts
Beyond Government Contracts
REGISTER ONLINE
Are you worried about the future of work in government-funded projects? Perhaps you aren’t sure what other opportunities exist for someone with your skills? In addition to the somewhat traditional roles career practitioners have known, within government-funded programs, there are increasing demands and opportunities for career development services within organizations, the rehabilitation sector, and educational institutions. This course will introduce the many opportunities available to career development practitioners to move beyond government contracts.
- Budgets and Business Plans Budgets and Business Plans
Budgets and Business Plans
This course will present methods of budget creation and tracking for financial management of small businesses and contracts/projects. Participants will learn about tracking income and expenses, managing payables and receivables, and tax implications for the self-employed. Business plans, their importance, and what banks will be looking for in considering financing will also be discussed.
- Start a Private Practice Start a Private Practice
Many career practitioners, counsellors, coaches, and other professionals consider setting up a private practice (even if only on a part-time basis to supplement earnings and enrich their work experience). Self-employment can maximize flexibility, offer opportunities to work with diverse clients, and minimize reliance on external funders. This course will introduce essential considerations in setting up a private practice and explore the pros and cons of self-employment.
- Entrepreneurial Spirit: Forming Strategic Partnerships Entrepreneurial Spirit: Forming Strategic Partnerships
Entrepreneurial Spirit: Forming Strategic Partnerships
In today’s complex economy, many workers are self employed, working for small businesses or working on short-term contracts/projects. Learning to think like an entrepreneur and leverage strategic partnerships to achieve employment success are skills that all workers can benefit from. This course will equip career practitioners and human resource professionals to assess self-employment readiness, both for themselves and for their clients, and explore opportunities for creating meaningful work.
- Proposal Writing / Responding to RFPs Proposal Writing / Responding to RFPs
Proposal Writing / Responding to RFPs
Whether responding to a Request for Proposal (RFP) or proposing creative new services, career practitioners, consultants, coaches, and human resource professionals are often called upon to participate in the submission of proposals. This course will introduce participants to the most common sources of proposal requests, and equip them to analyze the needs/requirements of funders and potential clients and respond quickly with complete, concise, and compelling proposals.
- Successful Academic Writing using APA Guidelines Successful Academic Writing using APA Guidelines
Successful Academic Writing using APA Guidelines
Do you need to master the American Psychological Association (APA) style for your academic or professional writing? Nobody is born knowing APA style and getting used to it can be one of life’s bigger challenges! Join the Life Strategies team for a brief course that highlights the most common APA errors and provides tips for avoiding them. As a published author, university instructor, editor, and thesis supervisor, Dr. Roberta Neault has spent countless hours editing papers to conform to APA. This course shares lessons learned and a comprehensive checklist of the most common APA errors made by her students and colleagues.
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Curriculum Design, Development, and "Moodle" Support for Face-to-Face and Facilitated e-Learning Initiatives
Benefit from our experience developing and instructing hundreds of courses, as well as our solid academic backgrounds in traditional adult education, e-learning, e-course design, and e-career coaching.
The Life Strategies team supports organizations in curriculum development (for face-to-face and e-learning initiatives), converting traditional courses to e-learning formats, uploading courses to “Moodle” and other learning management systems, and hosting e-learning courses for several of our strategic partners.
Curriculum Design/Development
As specialists in adult education and experienced facilitators, Roberta and Deirdre will design and develop curriculum covering a wide range of topics. From assisting in developing the concept or goal of a course/program, through to creating outline(s) with learning objectives, developing supporting materials (e.g., PowerPoint, facilitator’s guide, participant handouts and workbooks, and program evaluations), Life Strategies can satisfy all your curriculum design/development needs. As an added bonus, the Life Strategies team is equipped to design and develop curriculum for both face-to-face and e-learning initiatives.
Moodle Support
“Moodle is a course management system designed to help educators who want to create quality online courses. The software is used all over the world by universities, schools, companies and independent teachers” (www.moodle.com). Moodle is easy to use, even for the novice computer user. If you can open and send e-mails with attachments then you can use Moodle. Life Strategies uses the Moodle learning management system for all e-learning courses and online communities. We can provide support to instructors and course designers/developers who are using or wish to use Moodle. We can also teach and support instructors to use Moodle effectively to facilitate their e-learning initiatives. The Life Strategies team can also upload existing courses to Moodle.
Converting Face-to-Face Learning to a Facilitated e-Learning Format
Is it time to take some of your existing workshops and seminars online? Life Strategies has successfully converted workshops, seminars, and courses designed for the traditional classroom to a facilitated e-learning format.
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Consulting Services
The Life Strategies team provides consulting services to a wide range of organizations, on topics such as people development, interpersonal relationships, strategic planning, and business process improvement. Our focus is always on capacity building—equipping organizations to use their existing resources more effectively and identifying areas for change.
We have award winning consultants with diverse professional backgrounds available to help you with:
- Facilitating meetings and retreats
- Writing effective proposals
- Developing in-house programs
- Employee engagement
- Leadership development
- Career management
- Supporting the people side of restructuring
- Facilitating career transitions
- Building post-merger teams
- Assisting managers to deliver tough messages
- Counselling employees immediately after receiving notice of termination or layoff
- Developing processes for small, home-based, and family owned businesses
- Administering and interpreting assessments
- Setting organizational goals
- Planning financially
[NOTE: click on any of the images to go directly to our online store to purchase.]
Beyond the Basics
 Beyond the Basics: Real World Skills for Career Practitioners has over 100 pages of tips and techniques for working with diverse clients including individuals, groups, corporations and communities - linked to the Canadian National Standards and Guidelines for Career Development. Published by Life Strategies. This version is in PDF format and will be e-mailed to you. There is no shipping charge. This book is also available in printed format.
That Elusive Work-Life Balance
 Written by Roberta Neault (2005). Stress-related illness and disability costs the Canadian economy billions of dollars each year. Achieving work-life balance is the number one challenge for workers in the new millennium. Whether juggling dual careers with family responsibilities or struggling with the need to stay connected 24/7, individuals today are facing new challenges. This 31 page workbook provides background information and many worksheets, tips, and strategies to help you (and your clients) find "that elusive work-life balance." Topics include stress, transitions, role overload, and the impact of dual careers on families. Links to relevant web sites are provided. This book is available in both print and PDF format. The printed version will require a shipping fee.
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Career Strategies for a Lifetime of Success
Written for adults, at any stage of life, who are looking for tips on managing their careers more successfully, this book consists of six e-books, shown below. You can purchase each separately or the entire collection as one e-book. [Author: Dr. Roberta Neault, Published by Life Strategies, 2006].
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Time to Reflect: Understanding Yourself
 This section provides tips and tools to facilitate taking a comprehensive look at both internal and external influences on career success and job satisfaction. Topics include personal characteristics, contextual influences, and the skills most sought after by employers.
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Time to Explore: Understanding the Workplace
 This section explores changes in the workplace and equips readers to research economic trends, investigate new ways of working, uncover career possibilities, and examine corporate culture.
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Time to Choose: Identifying Career Possibilities
 The focus of this section is on identifying specific career goals, and then developing and implementing a plan to achieve them. Topics include goal-setting, decision-making, prioritizing, and managing expectations.
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Time to Prepare: Developing Portfolios, Resumes, and Interview Skills
 This section provides tips and strategies for building a toolkit of job search resources. Topics include developing career portfolios; writing compelling letters, e-mails, and targeted resumes; and preparing for a wide range of job interviews and contract negotiations.
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Time for Action: Successful Marketing Strategies
 The focus of this section is on creating new career opportunities and ensuring that others see you as the right person for the job. Topics include networking, creative ways to get started with the organization you?ve chosen, and customizing your presentation to suit the position.
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Time to Look Ahead: Proactive Career Management
 This section highlights the importance of constantly managing your career and life, not just in times of crisis. Topics include school-to-work and retirement transitions; lifestyle expectations; managing time and money; lifelong learning; self-employment; keeping a job and moving ahead; accessing mentors, coaches and allies; and the new realities of international and global careers.
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Retirement Inspirement (order online)
The NEW Book for people who want to live an INSPIREMENT not a RETIREMENT! Most boomers reject traditional retirement. They already know they don't want to be put out to pasture, or snooze with the TV remote in hand. Will finances force boomers to accept a less than satisfactory retirement? Are the barriers REAL or PERCEIVED? What can you do if something hits you out of left field? What are the choices? Is retirement a game of chance? Can you manage change? Can you even prepare for changes you can't predict? We already know that the new retirement defined by the baby boomers will be significantly different than the retirement of their parent's generation. What will it be like though, as the number of seniors out numbers the number of people under age 14. Will the services seniors will expect be available? What do SUCCESSFUL retirees say? What do retirees say about living life to the fullest even in the bonus years? What is possible?
Kristi Nielsen, Retirement Coach, interviewed: Human Resources Managers, prospective retirees, and people presently living out their Golden Years, while writing this book. The result is a candid look at the challenges and possibilities that await the boomers. Order Retirement Inspirement TODAY.
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