Institute for Supply Management

With the entry of the United States into World War I in 1917, N.A.P.A. offered its services to President Wilson to aid in the buying of materials. With the industrial war effort in high gear, materials were scarcer and procurement had become more complicated as the U.S. government "attempted to guide economic activity via centralized price and production controls."[6] It was a time of opportunity that allowed purchasing to prove itself. Purchasing agents nationwide began to exert themselves as departments in their plants that typically claimed purchasing rights were now too busy to interfere in procurement and purchasing agents proved to management they could help keep production up.

It was also during this time that N.A.P.A. members helped establish purchasing courses at New York University and Harvard. It was a small step, but the first seeds of N.A.P.A.’s renowned purchasing education program had been planted. The association was also deep in standards work and discussing a code of ethics for the purchasing profession.

During the 1920s, it became clear to businesses the centralization of purchasing was not a fad. N.A.P.A.'s efforts to promote the field bore fruit and the business world began to view purchasing in a more favorable light.

During World War I, N.A.P.A. called for the centralization of War Department purchasing to reduce inefficiency and graft.[7] The association began to flex its muscle and demanded standardization in the purchase and use of coal and the prosecution of profiteers. Its crusade for ethical standards resulted in the Purchasing Agent’s Creed that observers hailed for decades as one of the outstanding moral statements in modern business. In 1928, it released the Standards for Buying and Selling with the recognition that buying and selling should be mutually profitable and that cooperation would reduce the cost of purchasing.

During the 1930s, N.A.P.A. undertook an intensive effort to improve education and develop standards. The Harvard Business School published two purchasing textbooks and it developed case studies about purchasing problems, all under the auspices of N.A.P.A. The association also commissioned a highly regarded authoritative two-volume work on purchasing practices and procedures.

In 1931, the association continued its push toward excellence, when it established the J. Shipman Gold Medal Award, the highest honor in the field, bestowed on an individual for exceptional performance who advanced the cause of supply management.[8]

As the Great Depression gripped the world, N.A.P.A. created its Business Survey Committee in 1931 and began polling members on commodities. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce began using these reports when compiling information for the federal government. These reports would eventually evolve into the association's market-moving report now known as the ISM Report On Business a highly regarded indicator of the health of the U.S. economy.

When World War II broke out, N.A.P.A. again rose to Washington's call for assistance and kept its members routinely updated on government requirements and regulations during wartime production. As the government placed controls on producers and consumers, many of N.A.P.A.’s members played a critical role in the process. With the return to a peacetime free market, purchasing executives faced new complexities with higher costs and increased shortages requiring innovative techniques. Again, N.A.P.A. led the way by making its educational content even more robust and wide-ranging.

By the 1950s, N.A.P.A.’s prestige had grown along with the function that it served. Membership during this period hit 15,000. N.A.P.A. intensified its efforts to develop a new image for the purchasing profession in the eyes of the public, educators, management and purchasing executives. As companies battled ever more fiercely for a better return on their investment and greater market share, they eventually came to the realization that purchasing was spending, on average, one-half of corporate sales income, and began demanding that purchasing make positive contributions to attaining corporate goals.

In the eyes of U.S. companies, purchasing was no longer acting as a mere agent—it had been transformed into a vital management function. To accurately reflect this fundamental shift in purchasing's role, in 1968, N.A.P.A. changed its name to the National Association of Purchasing Management, Inc. (NAPM).[9]

As early as 1966, NAPM's leadership recognized the importance of developing a national certification program to create a standard on which to judge a competent purchaser. After careful groundwork, in 1974, NAPM introduced the Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M) qualification, the first professional certification in the field.

The association continued its educational efforts and in 1976 conducted its first ever onsite plant training. NAPM was cognizant of the profound social changes the country had been undergoing and became involved in minority and women's initiatives and even elected May Warzocha as its first woman president in 1979.[10] In 1987, it formed the Minority Business Development Group to assist members with their minority supplier programs.

The Report On Business continued to gain recognition as the most reliable near-term economic barometer available. In 1982, NAPM introduced the Purchasing Manager's Index (PMI) and in 1988 it added diffusion indexes and introduced a graph format. In 1989, the U.S. Department of Commerce began including NAPM's data as a component of its Index of Leading Indicators and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve praised the Report. In 1998, the association added to the value of the Report when it developed the Non-Manufacturing Report On Business.[11]

As the field grew in complexity and became more global, purchasing professionals were becoming more responsible for the supply of goods and services instead of strictly purchasing. To more accurately reflect the scope that the profession encompassed, NAPM members voted in April 2001 to change the organization's name to Institute for Supply Management (ISM), which became effective in January 2002.

In 2002, ISM launched its sustainability and social responsibility initiative and in 2004 issued its ISM Principles of Social Responsibility, the first of their kind for the supply management profession.

To ensure a strong group of future supply management leaders, in 2005, ISM partnered with the R. Gene and Nancy D. Richter Foundation to expand the R. Gene Richter Scholarship Program into the largest national scholarship program in the field of supply management. Together, in 2008, they established the ISM R. Gene Richter Scholarship Program Fund with a goal of providing for the funding of scholarships on an ongoing basis.[12]

To accurately address the range of demands required to master supply management, in 2008, ISM introduced a new professional qualification the Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) to replace the C.P.M. The CPSM represents the highest degree of professional competencies and is built on an in-depth analysis of supply management functions across industries.

In 2011, ISM introduced the Certified Professional in Supplier Diversity (CPSD) certification to create experts who could help guide their companies through supplier diversity issues, harness underutilized, innovative suppliers and tap into new markets. That same year, ISM began its Corporate Program to help the employees of corporate members perform at a higher level.

In 2023, ISM introduced the Associate Professional in Supply Management (APSM) certification to create a pathway for students to achieve the CPSM earlier in their careers.

In an attempt to create a common language for the supply management field, ISM introduced the ISM Mastery Model in 2015. Later renamed to ISM Capability Model, it covers 16 core competencies and 73 subcompetencies, the model and its assessment tool identify employee skills gaps and solutions to close them. It also allows companies to benchmark team member skills and create a development roadmap and set job expectations.

ISM currently offers three professional qualifications: CPSM, CPSD and APSM.

Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM)

In 2008, ISM launched its Certified Professional in Supply Management (CPSM) certification to address the changing demands of the profession and the international marketplace. According to ISM's 2023 annual salary survey, the average salary for a CPSM holder was $139,730.

Certified Professional in Supplier Diversity (CPSD)

ISM's Certified Professional in Supplier Diversity (CPSD), launched in January 2011, is currently the only certification for professionals whose responsibilities include supplier diversity, and it is supported by various diversity organizations such as the National Minority Supplier Development Council and the Women's Business Enterprise National Council. According to ISM's 2023 annual salary survey, the average salary for a CPSD holder was $166,899.

Two previous certifications, the Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.) and Accredited Purchasing Practitioner (A.P.P.), are no longer offered to new applicants but current designation holders remain eligible for recertification and lifetime certification.

Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.)

ISM's Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.) designation was a popular certification through the 1990s. However, it is no longer offered for testing by ISM and has transitioned into recertification-only status.[14] ISM continues to recertify C.P.M.s who meet continuing education requirements. According to ISM's 2023 annual salary survey, the average salary for a Certified Purchasing Manager (C.P.M.) was $163,038.

Accredited Purchasing Practitioner (A.P.P.)

ISM also offered the Accredited Purchasing Practitioner (A.P.P.) designation for several years. The A.P.P. focused on entry-level purchasing functions for those primarily engaged in the operational side of the supply chain. No longer offered for testing, ISM continues to recertify A.P.P.s who meet continuing education requirements. According to ISM's 2023 annual salary survey, the average salary for an Accredited Purchasing Practitioner (A.P.P.) was $112,012.