PROFESSIONAL
OPERATIONAL
RISK MANAGER
(ORM) DESIGNATION
CANDIDATE
GUIDEBOOK
PROFESSIONAL
OPERATIONAL
RISK MANAGER
Contents
How to Use this Candidate Guidebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
PRMIA Contact Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
About the Professional Operational Risk Manager (ORM)
Designation Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Program Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Professional ORM Designation Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Experience Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Examination Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Recertification Requirements: Maintaining the
Professional ORM Designation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Professional ORM Designation Outline . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
The Path to Certification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Is This the Right Certification for You? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Refund Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Profile Details for PRMIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Program Fees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Profile Details for Pearson VUE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Preparing for the Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Reading List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Scheduling Your Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Canceling or Rescheduling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Checking in for an Exam Appointment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Exam Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Taking the Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Exam Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Retaking the Exam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
PRMIA Certification and Examination Policies and Procedures . . . . . . . . 21
Application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Program Enrollment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Examination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Professional ORM Designation Status Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
1
How to Use this Candidate Guidebook
T
he purpose of this Professional Operational Risk Manager (ORM) Designation
Candidate Guidebook is to ensure future and current candidates have the
information needed to pursue the Professional ORM Designation.
Future candidates (those individuals
who have not yet applied for
certification) may find important and
detailed information regarding the
Professional ORM Designation to
determine whether it is appropriate for
their career path.
Current candidates (those who
have applied for and are taking the
examination) should refer to this
Candidate Guidebook to aid their path
to the Professional ORM Designation.
2
Be sure to read this entire document. It
contains important information that will
help you be a successful candidate.
Many of your questions can be
answered by this Professional ORM
Designation Candidate Guidebook.
However, as a quick reference, some of
the more commonly asked questions
from candidates can be found on the
online FAQs page.
PRMIA CONTACT INFORMATION
Inquiries related to PRMIA Membership or the Professional ORM Designation program may be submitted using
the options below.
Inquiry Category
Online Contact Us Form
Category Email
Membership and renewal
General Questions
support@prmia.org
General questions about certification
General Questions
support@prmia.org
Exam results
Exam Result Inquiries
certification@prmia.org
Fees and refunds
Billing Question
support@prmia.org
PRMIA courses and training, including
member webinars
Training Inquiries
learning@prmia.org
Inquiries related to the certification process or requests for
appeals of results may be submitted by completing the
Contact Us form titled Exam Result Inquiries.
Accommodation requests: Examinees who require specific
test environment accommodations may contact certification@
prmia.org with details of the specific accommodations required
for testing.
Report a potential violation of the PRMIA Standards of Best
Practice, Conduct, and Ethics via the PRMIA website.
Do not hesitate to contact certification@prmia.org or call
+1-612-605-5370 for answers to any other questions.
3
About the Professional Operational
Risk Manager Designation Program
T
he Professional Operational Risk Manager Designation recognizes the
competencies of the leading operational risk leaders around the world.
Developed by a broad coalition of industry leaders to reflect the mission
objectives of the association and to establish the leading form of education,
validation, and certification for operational risk managers, the Professional
ORM Designation demonstrates the competency of professional operational
risk managers related to:
• Operational risk management frameworks and taxonomies
• Compliance risk management
• Enterprise risk management approaches
• Risk control, control frameworks and financial controls
• Emerging risk identification and management
• Risks such as country/sovereign, geopolitical, conduct, reputation,
corporate treasury, climate, etc.
• Processing and execution of operational risk
• Business continuity and resiliency
• IT, IS, and cyber security
• Theft and fraud risk, and financial crime
• Risk profiles, KRIs, scenario analysis, and the use/types of risk information
• Risk modeling approaches and risk models
• Bank and regulatory requirements
• Risk monitoring and controls
• COBIT and COSO frameworks
• Sarbanes-Oxley
• Skills related to analytics, communication, teaming, project management
and influence
4
Program Design
PROFESSIONAL
T
he Professional Operational Risk Manager Designation program was
developed under the guidance of the PRMIA Education Committee
and the PRMIA Operational Risk Task Force.
OPERATIONAL
RISK MANAGER
Specifically, the program has been designed with four of the PRMIA Mission objectives in mind:
1
To be a leader of industry opinion and a
proponent for the risk management profession
3
2
To drive the integration of practice and theory, and
certify the credentials of those in our profession
To be global in our focus, promoting cross-cultural ethical
standards, serving emerging as well as more developed markets
4
To be transparent, nonprofit, independent,
member-focused, and member-driven
5
Professional ORM Designation
Requirements
The Professional ORM Designation program consists of three core requirement areas:
1. Experience Requirements
2. Examination Requirements
3. Recertification Requirements
The purpose and scope of each are described in detail in the following sections.
EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS
The experience requirements ensure that PRMIA members who seek the Professional
ORM Designation are qualified and ready to begin the certification process.
To become eligible as a candidate for the Professional Operational Risk Manager
Designation program, applicants must have:
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n
Five (5) years of full-time work experience, and
at least one (1) year with risk management responsibilities (risk management
experience can be from any department but must be specific to risk
management from the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd line of defense).
The following completed degrees may be used to recognize
work experience as follows:
n
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Bachelor’s degree can be used to recognize two years of full-time work
experience; or
Master’s degree can be used to recognize three years of full-time work
experience.
• When a completed degree is submitted for work experience recognition, no
more than three years of full-time work experience may be recognized via
completed degree program.
• A degree cannot be used for recognition of the one-year requirement for risk
management related responsibilities.
6
EXAMINATION REQUIREMENTS
To achieve the Professional ORM Designation, candidates must pass the
required examinations.
The ORM Designation examinations are administered in two parts as
shown in the table below.
Number of
Test Questions
Time Limit
to Complete1
Part 1
60
two hours
Part 2
50
three hours
TOTAL
110
The examinations are administered in one test window. Examinees are required
to complete Part 1 before they may attempt Part 2. When scheduling the exams,
examinees may schedule Parts 1 and 2 on the same day, or may schedule Part 1 on
one day, and Part 2 on another day; both parts must be attempted in the same
testing window.
The test time for Part 1 is two hours; the test time for Part 2 is three hours. Examinees
must follow all test security requirements and instructions provided by the test
administrator (whether the exam is administered in a test center or in an online
proctored environment).
1
The time limit allows enough time to respond to the exam tutorial, introduction, instructions, and respond to the test
questions in the exam.
7
Part 1 of the ORM Designation exam assesses the topics in Domains 1-7 with single,
multiple-choice questions. The questions will be presented randomly throughout Part 1
and will use the following test design:
Domain
Number of
Test Questions
Proportion
of the Exam
1
11
18%
2
8
13%
3
11
18%
4
10
17%
5
10
17%
6
5
8%
7
5
8%
TOTAL
60
100%
Part 2 of the ORM Designation exam, the Case Study Practicum, assesses the PRMIA
Case Studies identified as being important for the work of Operational Risk Managers.
A case study scenario will be presented with ten (10) multiple choice questions
following each case study scenario. Each multiple-choice question will relate to the
case study or the case study scenario presented and will also address one of the seven
domains in the outline. For this reason, the number of questions that are aligned to each
domain may vary across exam forms, although the number of questions for each case
study scenario will consistently be 10 test questions.
8
The Case Study Practicum, Part 2, will use the following test design:
Domain
Specific Domain Topic
1
Risk Taxonomy
Minimum
Number of
Test Questions
Maximum
Number of
Test Questions
Proportion
of the Exam
1
5
2–10%
FOR EXAMPLE: “Which risk taxonomy
is reflected in this scenario?”
2
Any topic as appropriate to
the case study
1
5
2–10%
3
Any topic as appropriate to
the case study
1
5
2–10%
4
Any topic as appropriate to
the case study
1
5
2–10%
5
Root cause analysis or
corrective action development
1
5
2–10%
FOR EXAMPLE: “What mitigation
strategies should the operational risk
manager implement to prevent
risk occurrence?”
1
10
2–20%
Board or team communication
1
5
2–10%
6
Project management or
influence with stakeholders
1
5
2–10%
7
Any topic as appropriate to
the case study
1
5
2–10%
Topics will vary and will be specifically related to the PRMIA
10
10
Case Study being assessed
20%
6
6
Case
Study
Specific
TOTAL
Analytical skills
FOR EXAMPLE: “Identify and assess
key operational risks that currently
exist or may emerge within the institute
(operational, compliance, technology,
third party, etc.).” OR “What symptom
is evident in this scenario that suggests
this risk is present?”
5 Case Studies with 10 questions each = 50 test questions
100%
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RECERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: MAINTAINING THE
PROFESSIONAL ORM DESIGNATION
CONTINUED RISK LEARNING
Once the Holder status is achieved as a Professional ORM, holders must meet the
following maintenance requirements:
n
n
Hold a PRMIA Sustaining membership each year, starting with the day the
ORM Designation is obtained.
Complete 20 Continued Risk Learning (CRL) credits each calendar year starting
with the calendar year immediately after the ORM Designation is achieved.
For details on how to submit Continued Risk Learning (CRL) credits, visit the
CRL Program Guide.
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Professional ORM Designation Outline
T
he Professional Operational Risk Manager syllabus includes a comprehensive
set of skills expected of a competent operational risk manager.
The following outline has been established to form the basis for the examination
program.
DOMAIN 1
• Risk taxonomy
• Risk management structure, typical
• Risk management framework (policy,
roles and responsibilities in an
organization)
• Enterprise risk management
approaches
• Approach to the implementation of
operational risk frameworks
• Compliance risk management
• Role of the Compliance Department
versus the Risk Department
• Role and responsibilities of a
compliance officer
• Types of compliance risks (codified
and non-codified)
• Consumer protection
• Risk control and risk control
frameworks
• Financial risk control
DOMAIN 2
• Emerging risk identification and
management
• Country/sovereign risk
• Geopolitical risk
• Systemic risks (e.g., market conduct,
unauthorized trading, conflicts, etc.)
• Conduct risk
• Corporate treasury risk
• Reputational risk
• Climate risk/ESG
DOMAIN 3
• Processing and execution operational
risk
• Resilience risk
• Business continuity risk (Resiliency)
• Cyber security risk
• Information technology (IT) risk
• Information security risk
• Theft and fraud risk
• Financial crime
• Internal/external fraud
• Safety and physical security
operational risk
• Staff wellbeing and emotional safety
operational risk
• Data management and data risk (front
line and IRM)
DOMAIN 4
• Risk profile
• Use and types of risk information (e.g.,
risk profile, toolsets and reporting, loss
data fields, etc.)
• Key risk indicators (KRIs)
• Scenario analysis
• Risk modeling approaches (e.g.,
frequency modeling, dependency
modeling and risk aggregation, etc.)
• Risk models (e.g., ILD severity model,
ELD model, capital allocation, etc.)
• Reporting tools
• Database, analysis, and reporting tools
• Risk and controls self-assessment
(RCSA)
• Incidents and losses reporting and
management
11
DOMAIN 5
• Regulatory capital
• Bank and regulatory requirements
• Root cause analysis
• Risk monitoring and controls
• Corrective action development
• Process review/process mapping
• Group transformation and large-scale
change programs
• Internal control principles
• COBIT Framework
• Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX)
• COSO Framework
DOMAIN 7
• PRMIA 10 Principles of Corporate
Governance, PRMIA, September 2009
• Bylaws of Professional Risk Managers’
International Association, PRMIA,
October 2020
• Standards of Best Practice, Conduct,
and Ethics, PRMIA, October 2016
• D515 Revisions to the Principles for the
Sound Management of Operational
Risk, Basel Committee on Banking
Supervision, March 2021. ISBN 97892-9259-468-8 (online)
DOMAIN 6
• Analytical skills
• Communication with Boards and
Executive committees
• Team communication skills
• Project management
• Influence when working with
stakeholders
CASE STUDY PRACTICUM
The following case studies will be used to form the Case Study Practicum portion of
the exam for Year 1. Each year following, new case studies will be developed to ensure
currency and to address any emerging operational risks that current candidates need
to address. Visit the ORM Designation Resources webpage for the most current list of
case studies.
• Deutsche Bank (Weak risk management practices)
• Citibank (Transaction processing - 900M payment made due to manual errors)
• Baring Brothers (Unauthorized trading in derivatives by Nick Leeson)
• Wells Fargo (Reputational risk related to unauthorized policies)
• American Insurance Group, AIG (Severe losses due to investments in
subprime mortgages through credit default swaps)
• Long-Term Capital Management, LTCM (Liquidity squeeze of a major
hedge fund via margin calls on trading positions)
12
The Path to Certification
P
rofessional certifications are an excellent way to enhance a resumé and to ultimately
provide validation of knowledge and skills.
This section of the guidebook describes the path for new applicants and provides
additional resources that some applicants may find helpful as they progress through the
certification program.
IS THIS THE RIGHT CERTIFICATION FOR YOU?
Choosing a professional certification is a personal one that depends on professional goals,
current knowledge or skill level, and how well that credential will aid one’s career path.
When considering the Professional Operational Risk Manager Designation, one could
consider the following:
n
Do I meet the experience requirements?
• If I don’t currently meet the experience requirements, or the alternatives,
will I meet them soon?
n
Am I knowledgeable of the topics shown in the syllabus?
n
Is the program a global certification recognized in the regions where I work?
n
Does my employer or potential employer recognize the importance of
continued education through the study for a professional certification?
• If not, review the information provided by PRMIA for making the
case for the Professional ORM Designation.
13
REFUND POLICY
The application and program fees are not refundable or transferable. The information
provided in this guidebook and online is intended to ensure candidates who apply for
the Professional ORM Designation program are well informed about its requirements
and fees before applying. For more information, visit the PRMIA Terms of Use.
APPLICATION
Potential ORM candidates must first apply to PRMIA by visiting
www.prmia.org/ORMApplication
Professional ORM Designation applicants are required to submit verifiable evidence of
meeting the minimum experience requirements as part of the online application.
The following evidence is accepted for meeting experience requirements:
n
Verifiable evidence for work experience, which includes the following details
• Employer name
• Role/title
• Start and end dates of employment
• Employment status (full time or part time)
· If part time, hours per week
• Total years plus months of duration
• Summary of role/work description
· Include details on risk management responsibilities
For individuals using completed degrees to meet part of the work
experience requirement:
n
• Scanned copy of the diploma showing the graduation date, name,
and the university and program name; or
• Scanned copy of an official transcript showing the graduation date,
name, and the university and program name.
All documents should be submitted in the original language with official
English translation.
References will be contacted to verify the employment dates. Alternatively, a formal
letter from a current employer detailing the duration of employment may be submitted
with the application.
14
The application review process will occur within two weeks of application submission
provided the application fee is paid. For applications with missing or incomplete
information, the review process may take longer. In some cases, responses from
references for verification may delay the application review process. In these instances,
candidates are notified of the status of the application.
Refer to the Frequently Asked Questions for details on the application process and the
required documentation.
PROFILE DETAILS FOR PRMIA
It is critical that a complete PRMIA profile be provided when applying for the
Professional ORM certification or any certificate program.
PRMIA uses the following details when reviewing the application and also when
sending pre-approval for any exam authorizations to Pearson VUE for testing purposes.
n
Name as it appears on identification card
n
Full preferred mailing address
n
Phone number with country (or country code)
Information on PRMIA Data Privacy may be found in the PRMIA Privacy Policy.
PROGRAM FEES
Individuals with an approved application are required to indicate their readiness to
begin the study process by paying the program fee within 90 days of the date the
application was submitted.
Instructions on how to pay the fee are included in the application approval email.
Within 2-3 business days of paying the program fee, candidates will receive information
on how to access some of the published reading materials. An authorization to take
the required examination will be submitted to Pearson VUE, and instructions on how to
schedule the exam will be sent via email to the candidate.
PRMIA has contracted with Pearson VUE to administer the examination at its test
centers around the globe.
Follow the instructions in the email to create an account with Pearson VUE.
15
PROFILE DETAILS FOR PEARSON VUE
Once a candidate receives an email notification that the exam authorization has
been submitted to Pearson VUE, an account must be created with Pearson VUE,
unless one already exists.
When creating a new account with Pearson VUE, candidates must enter their profile
details as they appear in their PRMIA profile; these details are used to link their
exam records at Pearson with their records at PRMIA.
PREPARING FOR THE EXAM
This candidate guidebook includes a list of references that are used to support the
Professional Operational Risk Manager Designation exam program.
It is the candidate’s responsibility to locate and purchase the reference materials
they feel they need to study as they prepare for the examination. The references
indicated in bold font are available to ORM Designation candidates as part of the
program fee payment.
16
READING LIST 2
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n
n
n
n
n
n
n
n
Chapelle, Ariane. Operational Risk Management: Best Practices in the Financial Services Industry.
John Wiley & Sons, 2019. ISBN/EAN 1119549043, 9781119549048
Crouhy, Michel, Galai, Dan, and Mark, Robert. The Essentials of Risk Management, Second Edition.
McGraw-Hill, 2014. ISBN/EAN 0071818510, 9780071818513
Girling, Philippa X. Operational Risk Management: A Complete Guide for Banking and Fintech. Wiley
Finance: 2022. ISBN/EAN 1119836042, 9781119836049
Grimwade, Michael. Ten Laws of Operational Risk: Understanding its Behaviours to Improve Its
Management. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 2021. ISBN/EAN 1119841380, 9781119841388
Howitt, Jonathan (Ed), McCarthy, Justin (Ed), Risk Management Frameworks and Practices for
Operational Risk Management, Northfield, MN. PRMIA, 2023, B0BXPCZ8KH
“H.R.3763 - 107th Congress (2001-2002): Sarbanes-Oxley Act ...” Accessed February 4, 2022.
https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/3763
2019 Introduction and Methodology. https://www.isaca.org
COSO Internal Control - Integrated Framework, Executive Summary.
https://www.coso.org
D515 Revisions to the Principles for the Sound Management of Operational Risk, Basel Committee on
Banking Supervision, March 2021. ISBN 978-92-9259-468-8 (online)
PRMIA Institute Papers https://www.prmia.org/prmiainstitute
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Mulder, G. A Random Walk into Climate Disaster. 2021
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Jones, E.T. Environmental Risks & Banking. 2021
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de Barmon. T. & Tweddle. S. Operational Resilience and COVID-19 - A New Age of Reason?. 2020
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McCarthy, O., Radigan, K. & Voicu, A. The Impact of Climate Risk on Financial Institutions. 2019
PRMIA Standards and Bylaws
https://prmia.org/Public/ORM/ORM-Designation-Resources-and-Case-Studies.aspx
n
PRMIA 10 Principles of Corporate Governance
n
PRMIA Articles of the Bylaws
n
PRMIA Governance Principles
n
PRMIA Professional Standards
PRMIA Case Studies
http://prmia.org/Public/ORM/ORM-Designation-Resources-and-Case-Studies.aspx
n
Deutsche Bank
n
Citibank
n
Baring Brothers
n
Wells Fargo
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American Insurance Group, AIG
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Long-Term Capital Management, LTCM
2
When updates are made to the reference list supporting the exam program, all current applicants and candidates will be
notified via email. Be sure to add certification@prmia.org and support@prmia.org to your safe senders lists.
17
SCHEDULING YOUR EXAM
The ORM Designation exam is administered in an online proctored environment or
in a proctored environment at Pearson VUE facilities around the globe.
Candidates who wish to schedule an exam will need to create an account with
Pearson VUE or log into their existing account to view the pre-approved exam at
www.pearsonvue.com/prmia.
The ORM Designation exam is offered four times per year during specific testing
windows. These testing intervals allow for consistent opportunities to complete the
exam by the required end date. Current exam schedules can be found on the PRMIA
website and also on the Pearson VUE scheduling page.
Candidates are encouraged to review the important details about registration,
cancellation, identification requirements and space availability. The current testing
schedule on the PRMIA website shows when the scheduling and testing windows open.
CANCELING OR RESCHEDULING
In recognition of the busy and changing schedules of risk managers, candidates may
change their exam appointment without charge through the Pearson VUE system at
www.pearsonvue.com/prmia.
All change requests must be made at least one business day before the testing date
or the entire exam fee will be forfeited.
All authorized exams have an expiration date. To view the exam expiration dates,
candidates may log into their Pearson VUE account and view the details of the
pre-approved exam.
All program and exam fees are final and non-refundable.
18
CHECKING IN FOR AN EXAM APPOINTMENT
On the date of the appointment, candidates should arrive at the testing center at least 15
minutes before the scheduled start time. Two forms of identification are required. The first
must be a current government-issued ID with a photograph and signature.
In addition to providing identification during the admissions process, all authorized
Pearson VUE testing centers will take a digital signature using a signature pad and a
digital photograph.
Arrive on Time
It is very important that candidates arrive at the testing center early. Candidates that
arrive late to the testing center may not be permitted to test. The full fee for the exam
will be charged even if candidates are not admitted for any reason. As these centers
offer exams for other organizations, not everyone in the room will be taking the same
exam, so no assumptions should be made about when other candidates enter or leave
the testing center.
EXAM SECURITY
The ORM Designation exam is conducted under secure conditions. Any attempt by
candidates to copy questions by any means, including organized memorizing, and to
distribute these questions to other individuals, will be treated as unethical behavior
and may result in penalties against the candidate, which could include forfeiture of
any PRMIA certifications, exam authorizations, and possible expulsion from PRMIA.
Incitement to copy and usage of copied questions may also result in the same penalties.
TAKING THE EXAMS
ORM Designation candidates have 12 months from the date of enrollment to sit for the
required exam.
Examinees are required to complete Part 1 before they may take Part 2. Parts 1
and 2 may be scheduled for the same test day, or on separate testing days.
n
n Candidates who need to retake either part 1 or 2 may only sit for the same
exam once every 60 days.
n
The exams are computer-based.
n
Candidates will not receive any copies of the questions.
No paper may be brought into the testing center; however, candidates will be
provided with an erasable board upon request.
n
19
Examination Administration
The test begins with a tutorial that introduces the functionality of the exam and a brief
message from PRMIA. After the tutorial has been viewed, the candidate may begin the
exam, which includes multiple-choice questions, varying in quantity by exam. Sufficient
time is allocated to read the tutorial and message and complete the exam.
The testing system allows marking and reviewing questions as long as time is
remaining. Candidates are encouraged to monitor and use their time effectively to
ensure they respond to all required test questions.
Incidents During an Exam Administration
In the event of an incident where the exam candidate believes the testing environment
is no longer compatible with good examination conditions (computer failure,
inadequate supplies, excessive noise, or any other circumstance), the candidate must
bring the incident to the attention of the examination proctor (invigilator) immediately
upon the incident being noticed – without continuing the exam.
Failure to inform the proctor in this manner will invalidate any subsequent candidate
incident reporting that cannot be substantiated by the test center.
Calculators
Calculators are not needed nor provided for the ORM Designation exam.
No other materials may be brought into the exam room.
EXAM RESULTS
PRMIA will notify candidates of their results via email within 15 business days from
the testing date.
RETAKING THE EXAM
Candidates who do not pass an exam are eligible to retake the exam 60 days from the
date of the last exam. Individuals who require a retake will receive notifications from
PRMIA at the beginning of the testing window when they are eligible to retake the
exam with instructions for how to purchase an exam retake.
Candidates may also contact support@prmia.org or submit a Contact Us inquiry to
request the retake exam purchase link.
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PRMIA Certification and Examination
Policies and Procedures
T
he following policies are in place to ensure a timely certification path for all
candidates. Candidates should review these as they prepare to apply for
the Professional ORM Designation, and as they progress through the
certification path.
Additional details may be found online in the Frequently Asked Questions.
APPLICATION
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Professional ORM applications are reviewed only with a paid application fee. No
pre-approval is allowed.
No exemptions to the experience requirements are allowed for the Professional
ORM Designation program. All applicants must meet the same experience
requirements.
PRMIA reviews all submitted applications within 14 days of the application fee
payment. In instances where additional documentation is required, if the applicant
does not provide the necessary information within 60 days of the request, the
application may be denied.
Applicants have 90 days from the date the application was submitted to pay the
program fee and formally enroll into the Professional ORM Designation program. If
the program fee is not paid within 90 days of application approval, a re-application
fee may apply.
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PROGRAM ENROLLMENT
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The Professional ORM Designation enrollment period is one year, and this period
begins the day the program fee is paid.
The required exams must be successfully completed within the one-year period.
It is the candidate’s responsibility to monitor progress toward meeting the program
deadlines and scheduling the examination.
EXAMINATION
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Exam authorizations are issued within 2-3 business days of the program
fee payment.
The initial exam authorizations are valid for 365 days. It is the candidate’s
responsibility to monitor the end date of the exam authorization to ensure the
exam is scheduled before the end date.
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Retake exam authorizations purchased are valid for 365 days from the date of
purchase.
Individuals who do not pass who need to retake either part 1 or 2 of the Professional
ORM exam program and are eligible to retake an examination may request a retake
purchase by contacting certification@prmia.org.
Individuals with expiring exam authorizations may receive information from PRMIA
regarding their testing options. They may also contact certification@prmia.org to
request a one-time extension to the expiry date.3
3
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• The end date for the exam authorization is viewable in the
Pearson VUE system.
Extension fees apply.
PROFESSIONAL ORM DESIGNATION
STATUS DEFINITIONS
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APPLICANT — an individual who has submitted an application and paid the application
fee, or an individual who has an approved application but has not yet paid the program fee.
CANDIDATE — an individual who has an approved application and has paid the program
fee to formally enroll in the program. This status continues until the required examination
is successfully taken or until the enrollment period ends.
QUALIFIED — a candidate who has passed the required examination but has not met
all other program requirements, or who has not met the prior year’s recertification
(maintenance) requirements.
HOLDER — a candidate who passed the required examination and currently meets all
recertification (maintenance) requirements.
SUSPENDED — a holder who has lapsed in recertification for more than one calendar
year (365 days) from the date of the most recent certification.
RETIRED — a certified user that has been certified as ‘retired’ in their professional career.
This user is not required to submit for yearly recertification. For instructions on how to
retire a Designation status,
contact certification@prmia.org.
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PROFESSIONAL
OPERATIONAL
RISK MANAGER
Professional ORM Designation Candidate Guidebook
© 2023 Professional Risk Managers’ International Association (PRMIA). All rights reserved.