Next Level Purchasing vs. ISM Financial Health Comparison

In the past two years more than ever, procurement professionals have realized that evaluating the financial condition of the organizations with whom they do business is vitally important. This can apply to whom you choose as your purchasing certification provider as much as it applies to whom you select as your direct materials supplier.

A few weeks back, I reported on ISM's release of their annual report for the past year. While a double-digit percentage reduction in headcount and second consecutive year of multimillion dollar losses is hard to laud under any circumstances, it is always a good idea to compare one supplier's financial performance versus that of another supplier in the same industry to get a true feel for a supplier's financial health. That way, you can rule in or rule out whether it was a bad year for the entire industry or simply a year of poor supplier performance.

With that in mind, here are statistics comparing the financial stability of Next Level Purchasing and ISM - two providers of certification for procurement professionals:

	Next Level Purchasing	ISM*
Revenue Growth 2007 - 2009	51% growth	32% decline
Profitability	Profitable every year of existence	Lost over $2 million in each of last two years
Personnel Budget Growth 2008-2009	21% growth	30% decline
Best Known For	Purchasing training & certification	Monthly economic reports
Global Recognition	SPSM® Certification earned in 54 countries	CPSM designation earned in 16 countries

* All statistics gathered from ISM Annual Report released March 2010

To Your Career,
Charles Dominick, SPSM
President & Chief Procurement Officer
Next Level Purchasing, Inc.
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