Plain words
Glossary
The terms this site uses, each in one sentence. Where a term is defined in a Regulation or the Standards, that definition governs.
A to Z
Every defined term, in plain English
| Term | What it means |
|---|---|
| Affiliate | The workforce-level membership category: open access, no post-nominal, bound by the Code of Ethics. |
| Assessed grade | One of the four grades decided on evidence against the Progression Matrix: Associate, Member, Fellow, Senior Fellow. |
| Band A, B, C | The three country bands for organisational fees, at 100%, 75%, and 50%, by the World Bank income classification of the country of operation. |
| Career Stage | One of four stages of professional practice in the Standards: Practitioner, Professional, Strategic Professional, Strategic Leader. |
| Certified Programme | One of the five IAM programmes, one for each Career Stage plus the Essentials Foundation, leading to a membership grade. |
| Competency Domain | One of the seven areas of practice in the Professional Standards against which competence is described. |
| CPD | Continuing professional development: 30 hours a year at the assessed grades, of which at least 15 Structured, including 3 hours of ethics and 2 of sustainability. |
| CPD Year | The calendar year, 1 January to 31 December; the first is 2027. |
| Endorsement | The Institute’s two-year recognition of a course, qualification, or event owned by another provider, against the Standards. |
| Experience-Assessed route | Admission on documented professional experience, for candidates without the matching programme or qualification. |
| Good Standing | Membership with subscription paid, CPD met, no sanction in effect, and compliance with the Code of Ethics. |
| PLH (Programme Learning Hours) | The total learning time a course or programme requires; used to size endorsement fees and CPD awards. |
| Post-nominal | The letters after a member’s name showing grade: AInstAM, MInstAM, FInstAM, SFInstAM. |
| Professional Designation | Certification of a role — leader, consultant, manager, trainer — written after the post-nominal, for example “MInstAM, IAM Certified Manager”. |
| Programme Approval | A Recognised Centre’s approval to deliver a named programme. |
| Progression Matrix | The table in the Standards that sets out what competence looks like in each Domain at each Career Stage; every grade is assessed against it. |
| Recognised Centre | An organisation approved by the Institute to deliver IAM programmes and courses under its own roof. |
| Recognised Employer | An organisation recognised for developing its people through a Professional Designation Programme. |
| RPL (Recognition of Prior Learning) | Admission on a qualification or course already held that maps to the grade’s requirements. |
| Structured CPD | CPD with a defined learning outcome and evidence — a course, a Masterclass, a lesson — as opposed to informal reading. |
| Tier 1, 2, 3 | The three country tiers for individual subscriptions, at 100%, 50%, and 25%, by the World Bank income classification of the country of residence. |
Still unclear?
The Ask the IAM assistant in the corner answers from the site, or write to the Institute.