Vowing to have a winning team is easier said than done. The workforce is saturated with qualified workers, but how can an employer be certain they have winners?

One way is to look for professional certifications, which validate an individual’s skills and competencies. Certified professionals demonstrate a deep personal commitment and sense of accountability, inspiring credibility and confidence in their professional knowledge. Certification programs vary, so wise employers verify not only the individual’s credential but also the credentialing program. Many employers also make sure certification is a requirement or at a minimum a “preferred” requirement for certain job positions.

For a certification program to be considered valid and reliable, national and international standards must be met. The two standards are: (1) NCCA (National Commission for Certifying Accreditation) Standards for the Accreditation of Certification Bodies, and (2) ISO 17024, Conformity Assessment-General Requirements for Bodies Operating Certification of Persons.

To help you better understand the standards and the important criteria to evaluate certifying agencies, the American Health Information Management Association has issued a free whitepaper, “What Defines a Quality Certification Program? Make Sure Your Employees Stand Out from the Crowd.” This paper reviews the seven common guidelines of both standards and provides some critical questions managers should consider when evaluating and selecting an employee.