TECHNICALLY SPEAKING: PPMA: Where's The Beef

Several years ago the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) undertook a bold endeavor, the Professional Pest Management Alliance(PPMA). The purpose of PPMA is to “serve as a proactive, unified voice of the pest management industry. It is designed to utilize public relations activities to educate consumers about the value of the industry and improve the overall image of its members. The goals of the Alliance are twofold — to protect the reputation of the industry in the face of critical issues, such as pesticide use, and to actively promote the benefits of hiring a professional as the best defense against pest problems.”

I wholeheartedly supported the PPMA when it was first conceived some eight years ago, although then it was known as the “Industry Awareness Campaign.” The founders had lofty aspirations of raising $10 million to support a high-end media campaign, which would increase public awareness of our industry and the role we play as protectors of health, food, property and the environment. However, industry funding and commitment was lacking and it took another five years to garner the support to launch PPMA.

I’ve watched and I’ve listened, and my question remains, “Where’s the beef?” What have the contributing pest management companies (a paltry few), manufacturers and distributors received for their $1 million investment? At last count, a couple of high-paid advertising agencies, three executive directors, a few media events and some press, which seems little more than what was accomplished during media blitzes for June as National Pest Control Month. The fundamental problem with PPMA is that they are selling the same message the industry has been using for 60 years and informed consumers are looking for “the beef.”

In my opinion, there are two things the Association can do to put meat on PPMA’s bones and improve the overall image of its members:
• Set industry standards.
•  Establish a pest management technician credentialing program.
I can already see the letters to the editor. But hear me out. If we are trying to sell a product and promote its attributes, we need something to sell. Industry standards and credentialed technicians should be the foundation of the PPMA promotional campaign. As an industry we should be able to stand up and say  that we have enforceable industry standards and we recognize the value of experienced and well-trained technicians.

INDUSTRY STANDARDS. This is a concept that the industry has continuously skirted. The rhetoric I have heard regarding this issue is that if the industry sets standards they could be used against us during litigation. There are two undisputable facts: litigation occurs in the absence of standards and whether standards exist or not, companies are held accountable to “reasonable standards of practice.”

What would professional pest management companies be risking if there were industry standards?

My firm conviction is nothing. Most companies will never be subject to litigation because they adhere to unwritten industry standards, they do everything reasonable to ensure pest management problems are solved, and they resolve customer issues rather than ignore them. While the industry typically concerns itself with technical standards, there are equally important ethical standards.

When it comes to ethical standards NPMA really sticks its head in the sand. This is an issue that most Associations disdain because it requires members to judge other members. However, ethical standards of conduct should be set by the Association and enforced. Membership in the Association should not be “come one, come all” and membership should not be a forever. Membership in the Association should be a privilege, not a right, and ethical standards should be enforced and continued membership should be predicated on meeting those ethical standards. In the past 20 years, to the best of my knowledge, only one company was denied membership renewal. If there were ethical standards, there are certainly companies whose continued membership would be questionable.

JUDGING FOR THEMSELVES. Customers have no way of assessing the expertise of a pest management firm. The standard has been to look for companies who are members of national and/or state associations, however, as previously discussed, there are no standards of membership and no credibility.
The Credentialed Pest Management Master Technician program was developed to fill this credibility void. The program was designed to improve the quality of pest management service through the testing and credentialing of pest management technicians. It was designed to go beyond state certification and create a national recognition system for the accomplishments of technicians and present the professionalism of the industry to the general public in a way that will enhance their perception of the value and quality of services received.
Through the credentialing program, NPMA (as proposed by NPCA in 1995) has the opportunity to:
•  Raise the professionalism of technicians.
•  Encourage continuing professional development of technicians.
•  Provide national recognition for technician skill and knowledge.
•  Enhance the image of the industry in the eyes of the general public.
•  Foster greater awareness among the public of services we provide through a professional workforce.

The automotive industry has created national recognition and fostered professionalism through the Automotive Service of Excellence (ASE) program. Trade industries have been accomplishing this for decades through formalized training and certification programs. Several state associations are beginning to bridge this gap, e.g., the New England Pest Management Association’s IPM Registry, and the Virginia Pest Management Association’s Certified Wood Destroying Insect Inspector’s Program.

Isn’t it about time NPMA and PPMA put more beef in the bun?

The author is technical director of American Pest Management, Takoma Park, Md., and can be reached at 301/891-2600 or rkramer@pctonline.com.